Apparently, the media coverage had not gone unnoticed – it seems the Chinese embassy had rung to tell the MOM ‘this matter must be settled today’. The MOM officer had also read Yawning Bread’s entry and was displeased with the portrayal. – the author

This is an excellent example of how the internet is being used as a platform of media freedom to address urgent labour issues in Singapore. While the Chinese Embassy deserves an applause (same goes to to Bangladeshi Embassy for the Tagore Lane workers), it is shocking to read that MOM is displeased to be pressured to do the right thing. What’s the point of having labour laws when all MOM does is mediate and not prosecute? It is high time that repatriation companies must be regulated under an established code of practice.

It is most heartening to learn that all the time, energy and effort invested into looking out for this group of PRCs have yielded results that is satisfactory to the workers; even though they may not have been paid the actual amount due to them.

It will be good if a Mandarin account can be written by these Chinese nationals to share with the Chinese literate community on the pitfalls of being a migrant worker.

There is still a dire need to make these companies accountable for the crime and be brought to justice.

What is this MOM officer so displeased about? It is his job to settle labour disputes and he has been pencil pushing all this while.

If he had done his job properly in enforcing the labour laws and regulations, this matter would not have blown up.

I must say that the compensation of the repatriated workers was hardly adequate. There ought to be further investigation on the miscellaneous charges and whether the these charges were actually allowed under the Singapore law. Any contract, regardless where it is signed, would not be valid in Singapore if the contract itself has terms/clauses that contradicts the laws and constitution of Singapore.

and Yawning bread and all blogers and alternate media.

Keep up the good work of speaking out for the downtrodden.

Thank you to Yawning Bread,TOC and Stephanie for your loud and clear voice and restless effort in the follow-up. Bravo!!!

I can bet you all that these workers will never be issued another Work Permit again by our elites.

Many thanks to TOC, Stephannie, Alex and many others to attempt to right the wrong. It also shows the uselessness of our main stream media and how reliable and objective new media can be.

Dealing with MOM (and MINDEF for that matter), it is rare to see the ministry yield to requests. However, pressures from all sides appear to make them tick the way we want and the way that they are not comfortable. Good, get them out of their usual comfort zone!

As for the police force who is so ever efficient to arrest selectively some protestors who really did nothing wrong according to our constitutions, why are actions not taken against people who are really breaking the law?

Good work, one’s heart gets warmed by these moving stories with a just ending.

And this they (the ministers) claim themselves as efficient by taking non consented high salaries :P

They really really don’t deserve it.

MOM – incompetent, couldn’t be bothered, or corrupted!?

Would this government ever let a local get away with not paying in full? Then why not apply the same standards to the companies in the case of unpaid wages? Why the need for settlement? O$P$. Amount owed + interest!

MOM’s mediation is not the right thing as it is forever on the side of employers and I come to this conclusion on the basis of my experience with the labour officers of this ministry.

It is the Labour Court that the many cases of foreign workers should go to. Why? Then you get the world’s media in or outside the court. Again I am talking from experience. The Singapore media to my case, Sunny Tan versus SICC. They were not allowed inside and after the verdict, in which I was the victor, I was so surprised to see them outside the court. I told them my story and told them it is newsworthy and why it is so and that I was a journalist with Bernama and The Star. Fair go. No bluff. The truth.

Then I rang them and they said they will not be writing to submit to their editors. Why? I know. They were told by their big big superiors not to do so. What they did was to get The Sunday Times to write a plain vanilla eight-paragraph story but in spite of all this the message is very clear and that is I a humble small timer won this case against this Goliath.

So, I know why the garmen wants to keep the foreign workers cases very quiet and there must be in the thousands out of court. They fear the stories will go round and round the world. Very bad PR for Singapore. Muddy Sing.

MOM involved?
its only want money
the levies
the rest?
your problemo
even singaporeans who was retrenched
(including YOURS truly)
mom did NOTHIN
tellin you
try the UNION
i replied yeah right
for a small chinese company
being part of the union will worked har?
i asked the MOM officer
who are you workin for?
(when MOM was ministry of LABOUR)
the employer or the labourer?

I feel that it is the norm these days for government departments to ignore you and brush you aside even for small problems unless you make a big hooha by getting ministers and media involved.

When you make a big hooha, they accuse you of breaking their rice bowls. Despite the ministers proclaiming we have a first rate civil service, this is the type of problem people are facing on the ground.

While we are moved by the plight of these foreign workers, it must be noted that local workers have also been given the short end of the stick.

From what I heard, the company running the Heritage Museum at Haw Par Villa has not been paying its staff for a couple of months now. Employees were either asked to delay banking in the cheques or the cheques bounced when they were banked in after the waiting period.