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SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) opened a one-stop center in Punggol on Friday (March 26) for new migrant workers to complete their stay-at-home notice, obtain the necessary medical examination and support to settle in.
Housed in a quick build dormitory, the pilot onboarding center in Punggol has been up and running since March 15, welcoming incoming migrant workers from the construction, marine and process industries.
There are three other centers in Eunos and Tengah.
READ: MOM to pilot onboarding centers for newly arrived migrant workers
Authorities plan to offer COVID-19 vaccines in the future for newcomers to these incorporation centers, said Second Minister of Manpower Tan See Leng.
For now, some 30,000 workers in 30 dormitories are scheduled to take their blows in the coming weeks, as the vaccination exercise for migrant workers moved into its second phase.
In the first phase, 97 percent of approximately 9,000 eligible workers have received their first dose, Dr. Tan said on the sidelines of a visit to Punggol’s onboarding center.
READ: Singapore to vaccinate migrant workers against COVID-19, starting with 10,000 dormitory residents
The centers were announced in Procurement Committee discussions in early March.
A fifth onboarding center will be established soon in a quick-build dormitory in Choa Chu Kang, MOM said in a newsletter. In total, the five sites can house 7,000 workers.
Previously, new migrant workers to the sector needed to provide a 14-day stay-at-home notice at hotels before moving to a designated facility for an additional seven-day isolation period.
With the onboarding center, those who test negative after four days in a hotel can continue to complete their stay-at-home notice at the facility. They stay in rooms of five and take another COVID-19 test on the 7th and 15th.
View of beds at the Migrant Worker Incorporation Center in Punggol on March 26, 2021. (Photo: Ang Hwee Min)
After completing their 14-day stay-at-home notice, workers in “higher risk” regions such as India and Bangladesh are required to deliver an additional seven-day stay-at-home notice to another block in the facility. .
If their serological test is positive, indicating a past infection, they are classified as recovered workers and will be housed in separate blocks at the onboarding center.
Workers from the Migrant Workers Incorporation Center in Punggol in a class for the installation program. (Photo: Ang Hwee Min)
“We need foreign workers to come to support the construction of our economy and continue the growth path that we are used to in recent years. And there are important construction projects, there is also a significant rebound in terms of the growth that is needed in the manufacturing and marine industries, as well as the processing industry, “said Dr. Tan.
“And because of that need, we thought it would be really more convenient for us to centralize this in a common database, so it makes sure that when they come in, they are properly embedded. And at the same time, screening is done for ensure care is delivered to the point where it is needed. ”
READ: COVID-19: New migrant worker dormitories take a step in the right direction, say support groups, but could more be done?
Workers will also undergo an enhanced medical exam that will help identify health risks like diabetes and high cholesterol early, MOM said.
In addition, they go through an expanded adaptation program, which now includes topics such as mental health education, help-seeking channels and safe living measures amid the pandemic, the ministry said.
An example of the e-learning modules on the tablet for the setup at the Migrant Workers Onboarding Center. (Photo: Ang Hwee Min)
In Punggol’s Quick Build Dorm, workers can even record their biometric information to speed up the job pass application process.
Previously, each employer would have to organize the medical examination and setup program on their own after workers completed their stay-at-home notice.
With incorporation centers, the total cost to employers is about S $ 2,400 per worker, about S $ 300 less than before.
READ: IN FOCUS: The long and challenging journey to control COVID-19 in migrant worker dormitories
Adding that it would be “better” if some of these processes could be started in the migrant workers’ countries of origin, Dr. Tan said that the final plan is to move some parts of this process to the countries of origin, so that workers can use them. go through. before they arrive in Singapore.
The one-year pilot will allow authorities to study how to implement some facilities abroad as well, he added.
“Around six to nine months, when we have the numbers, we can evaluate and specify what type of facility, how big (it is) and where we can install the facility,” said Dr. Tan.
“We hope there will be one or two centralized facilities to serve those arriving by plane and those arriving by land. I don’t think there are many people arriving by sea.”
Chan Eng Yew, CEO of shipbuilding company Strategic Marine, estimates that he has saved between 10 and 15 percent of the cost of bringing a migrant worker to the incorporation center.
“The cost savings are definitely there, and not just savings in terms of actual monetary value, but also in time, in terms of the resources the company seeks to coordinate,” he said.
There are currently two migrant workers in the company who came from Bangladesh and are at the Punggol integration center. Chan said the company also received approval in principle to bring in 16 more.
“With the onboarding center, it is also a very good area for us to continue learning, predicting and getting ahead of ourselves. It also allows us to take very proactive and preventative as well as preventative measures towards any future outbreak.” Dr. Tan said.
When asked if there are plans to allow migrant workers to return to the community, Dr. Tan said the Ministry of Labor plans to increase visits to recreation centers and open them slowly to enter the community.
“This is going to be a graded and calibrated process, and we are also simultaneously starting our vaccination program for migrant workers. So with a confluence of all of that, I think you can expect to see some announcements,” he added.
“The caveat is that we shouldn’t see any increase in cases, we are holding it very, very tight … So keep your fingers crossed, let’s keep it that way, then (we’re) really starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.” .
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