400 migrant workers with unpaid wages to receive S$200 in cash, vouchers; 150 job vacancies found: Ng Chee Meng

400 migrant workers with unpaid wages to receive S$200 in cash, vouchers; 150 job vacancies found: Ng Chee Meng The Manpower Ministry will allow the workers to have special passes in the interim until they have found new jobs. SINGAPORE: To help around 400 migrant workers with unpaid wages meet their daily expenses, the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and a migrant workers’ rights group on Wednesday (Jun 24) said they will be giving each worker S$100 in cash and S$100 in Fairprice vouchers. In addition, NTUC has found 150 construction job vacancies from around 40 employers in the past two days for these workers, said labour chief Ng Chee Meng. Speaking to the media at Tuas View Dormitory, where most of the affected workers are presently housed, the NTUC secretary-general said the labour movement has also discussed with the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on recovering the salaries for the workers. “The practice of abandoning the workers and not paying salaries is not something that NTUC will stand without acting upon,” said Mr Ng. “Employers must be responsible, and I’m glad that many employers have come forward to assist these migrant workers.” The visit comes after more than 100 migrant workers employed by KPA Engineering and SK Industries showed up at MOM’s services centre at Bendemeer on Monday morning to seek help as they had been unpaid for months. Workers who were gathered at the services centre on Monday told CNA that they had not been able to contact any of their bosses on the owed salaries. Ministry of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash, who was also present at Wednesday’s dormitory visit, said the ministry takes a “very serious view to the employers who might have caused the migrant workers to be in this situation”, adding that MOM will take the necessary actions following investigations. He said that the ministry has engaged around 300 migrant workers during the visit. “Some of their stories are quite heart-wrenching. Many of them have debts to clear. I spoke to one person who's having difficulty because the kid needs money in order to go to school,” said Mr Dinesh, adding that the unpaid salaries amounted to between one and four months of wages. He added that while the funding support provided to the workers may be “modest” at this point, it is still useful to help the workers tide over this period and top up their mobile phone credits so they can speak to their family back home. MOM will also allow them to have special passes in the interim until they have found new jobs. “They do not need to worry about their employment status during this process until they are able to find new employment,” he said. “Most of them are either working in air conditioning installation companies or construction companies, and thankfully there should be sufficient demand that is out there,” said Mr Dinesh, who is also Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth. On the issue of their housing, Mr Dinesh said the workers will be moved to the MOM onboarding centre in Sengkang when their stays at the Tuas View dormitory comes to an end, so that the workers “don’t need to worry about a roof over their heads”. MWC earlier said it was helping with the workers’ immediate needs and providing support such as temporary shelter, food and transportation assistance. It had also visited the dormitory on Monday to engage the workers on their concerns. MOM and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM), which handles salary disputes, are also providing the workers with necessary assistance, including reaching out to their employers. CNA has reached out to both KPA Engineering and SK Industries.