NTUC chief says KPA Engineering directors "may not be in the country" as 400 workers await unpaid wages

The secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), Ng Chee Meng, has said that the directors of KPA Engineering and its related firm SK Industries may no longer be in Singapore, as authorities work to assist approximately 400 migrant workers left without pay and, until recently, without food.

Ng made the remarks on 24 June 2026 after visiting workers at Tuas View Dormitory, where most of the affected workers are housed. He said the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) and tripartite partners had been attempting to contact the employers involved in the case, but added: "I understand that they may not be in the country."

The statement is the first public acknowledgement by a senior official that the directors of the companies at the centre of the dispute may have left Singapore, a detail that raises direct questions about the enforceability of any salary awards made in the workers' favour.

Workers describe months of unpaid wages

In a packed cinema hall within Tuas View Dormitory, Ng addressed around 200 of the affected workers — most of whom are from India and Bangladesh — with the assistance of Tamil and Bengali interpreters. When asked how many months of salary they were owed, most workers indicated three months, while some raised their hands for four.

When Ng asked how many of the workers wished to continue working in Singapore, almost every hand in the room went up.

Ng reassured those present that the authorities would do their best to recover the workers' salaries.

He said: "The practice of abandoning the workers and not paying salaries is not something the NTUC will stand by without acting upon. Employers must be responsible, and I'm glad that many employers have come forward to assist these migrant workers."

He also acknowledged the financial burden many of the workers were carrying. "I understand they still owe agency fees, and some of them are in debt," he said, adding that he had read reports that some affected workers had borrowed money at home for their children's schooling.

Immediate assistance and job placement

NTUC's Migrant Workers' Centre (MWC), which said it has assisted around 400 workers in the case so far, has identified 40 firms with approximately 150 vacancies for the affected workers. Ng said that in the coming days, efforts would focus on matching all affected workers to available positions.

Each worker will receive S$100 in cash and S$100 in FairPrice vouchers to meet near-term needs. On 24 June, Ng and Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash distributed bags of lunch — curry rice with vegetables, fish or chicken — to workers at the dormitory.

Dinesh, who also addressed workers in a mix of Tamil and English, said the financial assistance, while modest, was intended to allow workers to make phone calls home. "Some of them really don't have much money in their pockets," he said.

The Minister of State added that MOM would move affected workers whose dormitory term has ended to the MOM Onboard Centre at Sengkang.

Food supply had already been cut off

The situation at Tuas View Dormitory had deteriorated before official intervention.

Workers' meals had previously been provided by an external caterer hired by their employers, but that arrangement collapsed after the caterer alleged it had not been paid. MWC has since been providing meals for the affected workers.

The breakdown in food supply adds to a pattern of cascading failures — unpaid salaries, an inaccessible employer, and now a disrupted supply chain of basic welfare — that preceded the government's formal response.

Investigations described as "nascent"

Despite the scale of the situation — with over 400 workers affected and both companies under investigation — the Minister of State characterised MOM's inquiries as being at an early stage.

"MOM takes a very serious view of the employers allegedly involved in this case," Dinesh said. "Investigations are currently in its nascent stage, and MOM will take the necessary actions once investigations are done."

He said MOM would conduct investigations and impose the necessary punishments, without specifying a timeline.

On 22 June 2026, over 100 migrant workers had presented themselves at a MOM office seeking assistance, having discovered that KPA Engineering's office had been shuttered. Workers said they had been unable to contact a recruiting agent, and an employee at the company's listed address confirmed KPA Engineering had vacated the premises in September 2025.

Workers permitted to seek new employment

TADM has confirmed that affected workers are permitted to seek new employment while their salary complaints are being processed. Workers in such circumstances are typically issued a Special Pass, which allows them to remain legally in Singapore to resolve salary disputes and arrange employment transfers.

Ng declined to characterise the case in terms of scale relative to past incidents. "This was not an issue of numbers, but of migrant workers' lives and livelihoods," he said. He added that a proper case study and lessons learned exercise would be conducted after the immediate situation was resolved.

Directors linked to multiple firms — whereabouts unknown

As reported by The Online Citizen earlier on 24 June 2026, ACRA business profiles retrieved on the same date show that KPA Engineering Pte Ltd (UEN: 201426210N), SK Industries Pte Ltd (UEN: 202328151R), and a related entity, KPA Services Pte Ltd (UEN: 201613558R), share overlapping directors, shareholders, and a common registered office address at Westech Building, 237 Pandan Loop.

ACRA records indicate that both directors of KPA Engineering are Indian nationals. One holds Singapore permanent residency, while the other holds what registry records suggest is an Employment Pass or equivalent long-term pass. If that pass has lapsed or been cancelled following the company's reported cessation of operations, the director may no longer hold valid residency status in Singapore.

Ng's remark that the employers "may not be in the country" is consistent with this reading of the corporate records, and raises the question of whether MOM is actively verifying the current immigration status and location of the directors of both companies.