Ministry says it will 'take the necessary actions' after the probe
Around 400 migrant workers in Singapore with claims of unpaid wages will be receiving assistance and financial aid as the government carries out an investigation into their employers.
The affected migrant workers, most of whom are from India and Bangladesh, will receive special interim passes for the next couple of weeks until they find a new job, according to Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash.
"So they don't need to worry about their employment status during this process until they are able to find new employment," Dinesh told the media after visiting the affected workers.
The ministry is also moving the affected migrant workers from the Tuas View Dormitory, where they are residing, to MOM's onboarding centre as their lease in the dormitory expires.
"The Ministry of Manpower, together with the NTUC (National Trades Union Congress), MWC (Migrant Workers' Centre), and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management, has been working very hard over the last couple of days just to assure our workers and to make sure that they are able to find alternative employment," Dinesh added.
Financial aid extended
The NTUC and MWC, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that works on fair employment practices and the well-being of migrant workers in Singapore, will also extend a cash allowance to the affected migrant workers to cover their daily expenses.
Migrant workers who are MWC members will get NTUC vouchers, while non-members may still receive the aid if they sign up early.
NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng also said they are working with MOM to recover the workers' owed salaries, while stressing that the employers should be held accountable.
"The practice of abandoning workers and not paying salaries is not something that NTUC will stand without acting upon," Ng said.
Overall, a total of 40 firms have stepped forward with 150 job vacancies available for the unpaid migrant workers, according to the NTUC and MOM.
Ng said the job-matching process will begin as early as next week, and they are "working hard with employer partners" to secure more vacancies and offer all affected migrant workers suitable jobs.
Unpaid migrant workers
The number of migrant workers with claims of unpaid wages rose to 400, according to local media, growing substantially from over a hundred employees who stormed MOM's service centre earlier this week to seek assistance over unpaid wages and housing concerns.
The employees are employed by KPA Engineering, a provider of air-conditioning maintenance services, and its related firm SK Industries. A report from The Straits Times indicated that a third firm, VVR Plant Engineering, is also an employer of some of its unpaid migrant workers.
These firms have a single director in common: Indian national Ramu Palani Velu, who local media reported has left Singapore.
Dinesh told the media this week that MOM takes a "very serious view" of the employers that left the migrant workers in the situation.
"MOM is currently doing its investigations and we will take the necessary actions that are required once the investigation is over," the minister added.
