The Big Read: Solving Singapore’s Foreign Worker Problem Requires Serious Top-Down Search

Liton has reason to be concerned: Two of his friends, Asit and Zakir, who live in the largest bedrooms, have been diagnosed with the disease and hospitalized.

“We all want to go home in good health … My wife misses me more and more,” he said.

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When asked about his prospects for staying in Singapore for the foreseeable future in the midst of the pandemic, Liton said: “I don’t think (worry) about the future, because I understand the situation.”

But for the 400,000 migrant workers living in Singapore, their future may remain shrouded in uncertainty for some time. Their livelihoods here will be in the balance even after COVID-19 has been eradicated in the Republic, experts said.

Amid the crushing impact of the circuit breaker measures and the drastic blow to the construction industry, will Liton’s employer survive the economic drought that has already begun? Will you still have a job in Singapore after the pandemic?

As Mr. Liton reflects on the future, his host country, Singapore, will also have to reevaluate his entire relationship with migrant workers like himself, especially his “addiction” to cheap migrant labor, and examine whether the lessons learned from the COVID explosion – 19 cases in the workers’ dormitories could be used to implement significant changes.

In the short and medium term, at least, what will likely happen will be a reduction in migrant workers here as economic conditions worsen, labor economist Walter Theseira said.

“At the same time, having fewer migrant workers means more room for change,” said the associate professor at Singapore University of Social Sciences.

With renewed national attention to migrant workers, the Government has pledged to raise the standard of living in dormitories when the battle against COVID-19 ends.

There are already a few suggestions on what these changes may be, from having more living space per worker, more bedrooms to house them, and tightening state regulations.

Over the years, Singapore’s history with migrant worker housing has seen a general apprehension towards migrant worker housing in the residential community.

In 2008, more than 1,400 Serangoon Gardens residents signed a petition against a bedroom located in their neighborhood, which they handed over to then-Minister of National Development Mah Bow Tan.

But beyond the bedrooms, there are also broader questions to consider, experts said.

Should society begin to question its dependence on low-cost foreign workers? Can the economy cope with the higher costs of high standards? Can people accept migrant workers who live in their midst?

To get some ideas on these issues, we reached out to various stakeholders in the migrant labor industry, such as dormitory operators, construction companies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as labor academics and policy researchers.

Ultimately, almost all interviewees said that a significant perspective on how Singapore accommodates its migrant workforce, both literally and figuratively, is lagging.

Christopher Gee, principal investigator at the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS), said: “We cannot return to the status quo … We have ridden our luck for so long and now it has come home to rest.” . “

THE STATUS QUO

There are around 200,000 migrant workers housed in 43 specially designed dormitories in Singapore.

These are licensed dorms that house more than 1,000 workers each and are required to comply with the requirements of the Foreign Employee Residency Act (FEDA), such as providing facilities including sick bays and wards. of isolation.

Dorm operators must also develop contingency plans in the event of a pandemic, such as providing quarantine arrangements.

Despite this, around 20 of the specially designed bedrooms – almost half – don’t meet the FEDA license requirement on average each year, Human Resources Minister Josephine Teo revealed in Parliament on Monday (May 4). Operators face fines of up to S $ 50,000 and up to a year in prison for Feda crimes.

Another 95,000 workers are housed in the 1,200 dormitories converted into factories; 20,000 in temporary construction rooms; and 85,000 construction permit and S-pass holders housed in floors of the Housing and Development Board (HDB), private residential premises, and others.

READ: Comment: A home can heal at the time of the coronavirus

These are not covered by FEDA due to their smaller size, although they do have to comply with other regulations, such as building and fire safety codes.

Each specially designed dorm house has 1,500 to 25,000 workers.

By law, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) prescribes a minimum of 4.5 square meters per resident inhabitant for living space, which includes bedrooms, kitchen, dining room, and bathroom.

Operators have largely complied with these minimum standards, as well as other environmental health guidelines from the National Environment Agency that states that there should be one bathroom for every 15 residents.

Each room can accommodate 12 to 20 workers, and the beds are often two stories.

OPERATORS: RULES NOT BUILT FOR A PANDEMIC

While specially designed dormitories have met the needs of workers during “normal times,” dormitory operators said these large facilities were not built or regulated to handle a pandemic of such scale.

A spokesperson for the Mini Environment Service (MES), which oversees operations at Jurong Penjuru Dorm 1, Jurong Penjuru Dorm 2, Blue Stars Dorm and The Leo, added that a bedroom “by nature is dense.”

“Older bedroom specifications and designs were based on a functional approach, and pandemic management was not a design and use consideration,” the spokesperson added.

The managing director of the S11 dormitories, Johnathan Cheah, said that the dormitories in his charge, the S11 bedroom @ Punggol and Changi Lodge II, are organized to accommodate residents who become ill with infectious diseases such as chickenpox, measles and mumps.

“(The dorms) were not designed to accommodate the large number (of infected cases) expected during a pandemic,” he said.

As of Friday, S11 Dormitory @ Punggol is Singapore’s largest infection group, with 2,535 cases.

When asked how each worker’s living space is allocated, the dormitory operators said this largely depends on the authorities’ specifications.

Cheah said that S11 Dormitory @ Punggol was “built to authorities’ specifications for bedrooms” when it was built in 2015.

Accordingly, the MES spokesperson said: “We cannot decide on the living space. This is established by the authorities and the bedrooms are built to specifications.”

HELP FROM AUTHORITIES

As infections in dormitory groups began to increase early last month, an interagency task force was created on April 7 to support foreign dormitory workers and employers.

With the help of the authorities, the operators have been able to reduce occupancy rates inside the dormitories.

Mr. Kong Chee Min, CEO of Centurion Corporation, which is in charge of ASPRI-Westlite Papan, Westlite Juniper, Westlite Mandai, Westlite Toh Guan, and Westlite Woodlands, said that the tenancy of these bedrooms averaged 95 per hundred or more. , while the actual residence was around 85 percent.

Thanks to “concerted decamping efforts supported by multiple parties nationwide” in the wake of the pandemic, occupancy fell to approximately 65 to 70 percent on average.

“On average, there are now about five or six people living in an eight-bed apartment, and eight to nine people in a 12-bed apartment,” Kong said.

Furthermore, the S11 operator Dormitory @ Punggol has been “working closely” with the authorities to curb the spread of the virus.

For example, residents must stay in their assigned rooms and cannot contact other residents on different levels and blocks.

This measure is part of a triple strategy announced by the Minister of Human Resources Teo on April 14.

FUTURE HOPES FOR BEDROOMS

Operators hope that the next two years will bring improvements to living conditions and standards within the dorms.

“A revision of the standards for dormitory operations can only be good for the foreign worker community, as it will help raise quality levels across the industry,” Kong said.

Accordingly, the MES spokesperson said the ability to “tear down” dorms with older specifications and update them “will benefit all concerned.”

Problems operators would like to address include the long distance conundrum of safe distancing.

“If we are to prepare for future pandemic situations, the density of the dormitory population must be addressed and employers must set aside higher budgets for rents, for example,” said Mr. Cheah of S11 Dormitories.

Beyond deciding where to host workers, employers also play an “important role” in regulating the way employees use the facilities, operators say.

Mr. Kong said: “We see employers renting 12-bed apartment units and then choosing to house only 10 or fewer workers in the department.”

EMPLOYERS: “OUR HANDS ARE TIED”

While migrant workers are covered by Singapore’s main labor law, the Employment Act, employers of migrant workers also generally assume greater responsibility for their well-being, including food and medical care, than if they had hired a local resident to do the same job.

But while employers in the construction sector agree that changes are needed in the way in which migrant workers are accommodated, several said that the influence they have on the living conditions of their workers is limited.

To a large extent, it is not up to employers to dictate density or living conditions within bedrooms, but rather operators decide and authorities regulate, they said.

Mr. Johnny Lim, executive director of Teambuild Engineering & Construction, noted that specially designed dorms are often densely populated due to a shortage of land and “concern that these dorms are too close to residential areas.”

Mr. Chew Char Choon, senior project manager for a real estate construction company, said: “As a contractor or residence operator, we only take instructions from (the authorities) … It is up to the government, how they would like to control. ”

READ: COVID-19: Agglomeration and Emotional Health of Migrant Workers in Dorms Worry Employers

While operators can set the maximum room and space capacity for each worker based on current regulations, some employers may choose to accommodate their workers in more spacious settings, but at a cost.

Nelson Tee, managing director of CHH Construction System, has housed its 39 workers in three bedrooms that can accommodate a total of 48 workers.

He pays S $ 369 per worker monthly for his accommodation when he could have been paying S $ 300 if he had housed them at full capacity, and has been doing so before the pandemic.

“I reserve them for three rooms so I can distribute them,” he said.

More space will come at a cost

If the new guidelines make housing more expensive, not all contractors could bear this, employers said. This is especially if they have long-term projects underway, some of which can last four to five years.

Chew said that if dorms charge higher rates per worker, “it would not be fair for ongoing contracts, which are tendered based on past prices.”

“When the new guidelines come in … it will affect (employers’) cash flow.”

At the end of the day, some employers think it all comes down to who would be willing to take on and split the extra costs.

Akbar Kader, managing director of Nan Guan Construction, said he would like to see a “symbiotic agreement” between the employer, the bedroom operators and the authorities, so that the additional costs are shared equally between them.

He added that a maximum rental charge would also make future operators more aware during the bidding process, when bidding for the price of the land on which they build their bedrooms.

Exorbitant offers will be lower if operators “know they would have to provide specific facilities and meet operational requirements, and not charge more than what has been stipulated as the (maximum) price for the rental of a bed space,” he said. .

If all of the above is done, “the increase in cost (to consumers) over time they own the property will be very small,” Akbar said.

Some employers think that consumers should also look beyond the economic cost of the product and be aware of the efforts of the workers who support it.

Kenneth Loo, CEO of Straits Construction Singapore, said most Singaporeans are unaware of the hard work of workers and the difficult living conditions they have to endure.

“The number of people who are willing to pay depends on the economy (rather than the living conditions of the workers),” he said. “For example, when you buy a garment, do you think where it comes from? No, right?

A PUSH TOWARDS AUTOMATION

Over the years, some employers have also turned to technology to help reduce their dependence on foreign labor.

For example, Mr. Lim of Teambuild Engineering & Construction said the company focuses on prefinished prefabricated volumetric construction (PPVC), whereby entire rooms are prefinished and equipped in factories with the use of automation and machinery, formerly to be transported on site for assembly.

These new construction methods “effectively transferred large portions of the work previously done on construction sites to factories,” he said.

However, there is a limit to automation. Unless technological advancement allows machines to “function as merchants” and to be available, accessible and affordable, “construction will remain a labor-intensive industry,” Lim said.

While both bedroom operators and employers say their hands are tied when it comes to housing, the comments in recent weeks have jointly blamed both sides’ shortcomings for the outbreak.

Experts say the time will come for a review to identify where the flaws are.

Associate Professor Theseira said: “Employers and operators are quite a diverse group. Some appear to have neglected their responsibilities, others have simply been overwhelmed, and still others have carried out their responsibilities well. We really need some time to identify who did well and who didn’t, and hold those who couldn’t be held accountable. “

GOVERNMENT: ROLE AS A REGULATOR

As authorities bend down to mitigate the viral spread, the government is also looking for new housing arrangements for migrant workers who have recovered from COVID-19 through a pipeline of short, medium and long-term plans, he said. National Development Minister Lawrence Wong.

Mr. Wong is co-chairing the multi-ministry working group leading the Singapore response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

While the details of these plans are not yet known, several suggestions have been raised, in particular to increase the minimum standard for the living space specified in FEDA.

After all, it’s too much to expect private operators and employers to do alone, said Alex Au, vice president of the migrant worker rights group Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2).

“Employers and bedroom operators must monitor their results. They are not social assistance services. If the legal standards are low, what we think they are today, it would be foolish as for-profit companies to oversupply and increase their own costs.

“That’s what the government is for: ensuring minimum standards with a social conscience, but doing it in a general way so that a level playing field is maintained for all companies,” he said.

Au asked that the living space per occupant be doubled to 9 square meters, equivalent to 10 workers living in a four-room HDB flat.

Adjunct Professor Theseira, a nominated member of parliament (NMP), said adequate study is needed to determine what interprets a reasonable standard for living space.

“If we find a set of standards for the lives of Singaporeans in a similar situation, for example, a long-term shelter, a dormitory or an army camp, it would be very unfair to apply a lower standard to migrant workers simply because they are migrant workers, “he said.

The Migrant Workers Center (MWC) also urged that the changes to FEDA include all housing facilities for migrant workers, regardless of size or type, removing the 1,000-bed threshold that allows the law to take effect.

MWC President and former Member of Parliament Yeo Guat Kwang said: “This is something MWC has been asking for since the FEDA enactment, on the evidence that most of the substandard housing facilities we see and investigate in the course of work continues to come from factory-converted or smaller sleeping facilities. “

Other MWC suggestions include a minimum ratio of dormitory staff to residents to ensure operators have sufficient manpower to perform crucial work such as cleaning, operations support and security.

A more open green space should also be part of the bedroom requirements, which would allow for recreational and communal activities.

Labor economist Kelvin Seah of the National University of Singapore (NUS) School of Arts and Social Sciences said these plans should include strategies to raise the standard of bedroom hygiene.

“For example, the plan may want to prescribe the regularity with which toilets, kitchens and rooms would be cleaned, and the penalties that dormitory operators or employers may face if they fail to comply,” said the lead professor.

But these suggestions would likely lead to substantially higher housing costs for migrant workers, added Dr. Seah.

DBS banking analyst Ling Lee Keng, who frequently reports on the business performance of the specially designed worker accommodation sector, said a stricter law could result in a cut in the supply of beds.

“That could benefit dorm operators who can meet the highest operating requirements: bigger rooms and better facilities would naturally lead to higher cost per bed,” said the analyst, who had previously predicted that high standards could lead to a consolidation in the industry.

A MORE DIRECT ROLE FOR THE GOVERNMENT

In addition to regulations, could the Government play a more active role in dormitory management?

Speaking at an IPS webinar on Wednesday, Associate Professor Jeremy Lim, who is the co-director of Global Health at Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, NUS, noted the existence of two separate “mental models” that authorities had for migrants. workers and for the great community of Singapore.

The political response was guided by these mental models, that although migrant workers are part of the community, there are separate paradigms for the two groups, he said.

READ: COVID-19: ‘Not True’ Singapore has reduced testing among migrant workers, says Gan Kim Yong

Employers of migrant workers assume responsibility for the welfare of workers, including medical care, accommodation and food. Associate Professor Lim said this has been evident since the start of the pandemic when MOM asked dormitory operators to step up hygiene measures and issued warnings to employers.

“When it became clear that employers were overwhelmed in terms of safe distancing and (providing) facial masks, it all fell apart and the government had to step in. To their credit, the government mentally moved away from this mental model … quickly” , said. he said, noting the rapid establishment of community care and recovery centers to house affected workers.

Several observers had mixed feelings about the Government playing a more direct role in the day-to-day management of the dormitories. Such services are best provided by the private market, said Dr. Seah.

But the government could also take a page out of the book for public transport operators who don’t own the buses and trains, or how the management of state-owned buildings is offered to commercial service providers.

Associate Professor Theseira said: “Having dorms owned by the government, and then managed competitively by private companies that are accountable to both workers and the government, can be an interesting model to consider.”

TWEAKING SINGAPORE ECONOMIC MODEL

A more fundamental question would be whether Singapore should continue to rely heavily on low-cost migrant workers, experts said.

In Singapore, past crises historically have led to rethinking the Republic’s social compact: the combined series of unprecedented crises, such as the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States in 2001, the SARS outbreak in 2003, and the crisis World Financial Report 2008 required national responses that “scrapped our planning” and required the 2013 Population White Paper, said then Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean.

With Singapore now facing what has been touted as “a crisis of a generation,” some, like Adjunct Professor Theseira and fellow NMP Anthea Ong, have called for a committee of inquiry into the outbreak of the foreign worker dormitory to resolve the changes. structural than Singapore badly needed

In his response to the NMP call, Minister Wong told Parliament on Monday that the Government will review its overall response to the pandemic in a comprehensive way to learn and improve.

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat also established a stronger emerging workforce, which is tasked with making recommendations on how to reinvent Singapore’s economic strategies.

A positive aspect, from a policy-making perspective, is that current concerns about Singapore’s overdependence on migrant workers are aligned with the government’s goal of increasing the productivity of the resident workforce.

This dates back to 2012, when then-Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said the easy availability of foreign labor will reduce incentives for companies to increase productivity.

Since then, Singapore has taken steps to progressively reduce this dependency, such as tightening the upper limits on the foreign worker dependency ratio, Dr. Seah said.

“There is scope to reduce this dependency even further. By encouraging companies to become less dependent on foreign labor in their production processes, we can actually push them to adopt smarter and less expensive production methods, “he added.

Associate Professor Kenneth Paul Tan of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy said he hopes the dormitory review, when it arrives, will receive diverse voices from civil society in policy discussions.

“And above all, I hope we have deeper discussions to minimize our dependence on low-wage migrant workers, invest in technology that improves productivity, redesign essential jobs to overcome unnecessary stigma, and design more social safety nets.” generous for those who will have difficulty integrating into a new and more resistant economic society. “

PEOPLE: SOCIETY’S APPETITE FOR CHANGE

IPS Gee said this traditional mindset of relying on low-skilled, low-wage labor has created a “category of residents who have limited rights as non-permanent resident aliens and are treated differently.”

If Singapore decides that in a post-pandemic world, it needs to raise its living standards to a decent level that Singaporeans can accept for themselves, then another question will be what level would Singaporeans feel comfortable with, Gee said.

“The same level as the lowest-paid Singaporean household? Or less? We have to negotiate and discuss this, “he said.

And then there is also the question of the cost that society must bear.

READ: MOM says it works to improve conditions for residents of S11 Dormitory, Westlite Toh Guan

Last month, amid the outbreak in the dorms, Ms. Teo said that every time MOM tries to raise the standard of living at these facilities, she will face objections from employers due to the additional costs of moving.

“However, I hope that episode COVID-19 will demonstrate to employers and the general public that raising standards in workers’ dormitories is not only the right thing to do, but also in our own interests. We should be willing to accept the higher costs that come with higher standards, “he said.

In this fundamental rethink of the role migrant workers play in Singapore’s prosperity, TWC2’s Mr. Au urged authorities to look beyond dormitory living standards, such as long-standing issues over hiring that migrant workers have and the lack of payment. of wages.

Associate Professor Theseira said: “Fundamentally, the current structure is low cost, and as a result, in general, Singaporeans benefit in the strict sense that we pay lower prices for anything produced by foreign workers.”

“Either our costs would go up, which would mean more taxes, or the standards would fall, which would mean more potholes, uncleaned fallen trees, etc., without so many low-cost workers.

“Eso significa que hemos contribuido colectivamente a las condiciones actuales de los trabajadores extranjeros, porque hemos encontrado que estos bajos costos y altos estándares de servicio son demasiado convincentes para plantear demasiadas preguntas sobre su tratamiento y la estructura del mercado”, agregó.

ACTITUDES DE SINGAPUR HACIA LOS TRABAJADORES MIGRANTES

Entonces, ¿están los singapurenses dispuestos a pagar los costos más altos que inevitablemente surgirán al ofrecer un mejor trato a los trabajadores migrantes? El jurado aún está fuera, según la experiencia pasada, según los expertos entrevistados.

La evidencia empírica sugiere que la mentalidad de los singapurenses hacia los trabajadores migrantes no ha cambiado, a pesar de una gran simpatía cada vez que ocurre un incidente importante.

En el seminario web de IPS, el director ejecutivo del CMM, Bernard Menon, lamentó que, a pesar de eventos pasados ​​como la huelga de conductores de autobuses SMRT en 2012 y los disturbios de Little India al año siguiente, el impulso que surgió de los discursos en línea sobre el bienestar de los trabajadores eventualmente se agotaría.

“Tenemos mucha gente que dice” deberías mejorar esto, deberías mejorar eso “, dijo Menon.

“Pero desafortunadamente, aunque obviamente se puede notar que ha habido un aumento gradual con el tiempo de interés y preocupación … esto ha quedado a la zaga de las expectativas que tuve durante estas crisis”.

Más recientemente, en diciembre del año pasado, la Organización Internacional del Trabajo y la Entidad de las Naciones Unidas para la Igualdad de Género y el Empoderamiento de las Mujeres publicaron conjuntamente un estudio detallado sobre las actitudes de la sociedad hacia el trabajo migrante en Japón, Singapur, Malasia y Tailandia.

El estudio incluyó tanto a los titulares de permisos de trabajo que trabajan en la industria de la construcción como a los trabajadores domésticos extranjeros como parte de su informe.

Encontró que el apoyo general para los trabajadores migrantes había disminuido en los últimos nueve años, cuando se realizó un estudio similar en 2010.

“El conocimiento sobre los trabajadores migrantes en los cuatro países sigue siendo bajo, y las actitudes discriminatorias prevalecen con un número significativo de miembros del público en los países de destino de los migrantes que declaran que los trabajadores migrantes no deben disfrutar de las mismas condiciones de trabajo que los nacionales”, indicó el informe.

El estudio encontró que el 36% de los 1.005 encuestados de Singapur creían que los trabajadores migrantes no deberían recibir las mismas condiciones de trabajo que los trabajadores locales, ni tener derecho a afiliarse a un sindicato.

Alrededor del 40 por ciento dijo que los trabajadores migrantes que terminan siendo explotados solo tienen la culpa de ellos mismos, una mayoría (60 por ciento) no está de acuerdo con que los trabajadores migrantes deberían recibir el mismo pago y beneficios que los nacionales, y el 53 por ciento dijo que los trabajadores migrantes amenazan la cultura y la cultura del país. patrimonio.

Sin embargo, la mayoría de los encuestados de Singapur (58%) reconoció que los trabajadores migrantes tuvieron un efecto positivo neto en la economía nacional de Singapur.

UNA RONDA DE BÚSQUEDA DE ALMAS

Con la pandemia obligando a Singapur, como colectivo, a pagar el precio por años de aparente negligencia, los comentaristas dijeron que después de que se elimine COVID-19, Singapur necesita embarcarse abiertamente en una seria búsqueda del alma.

Para empezar, la mentalidad y la actitud de la sociedad hacia los trabajadores migrantes deben “sufrir un cambio radical”, dijo el profesor asociado Eugene Tan de la Universidad de Administración de Singapur.

“SG United debe incluir a los trabajadores migrantes desde el primer momento … No podemos, como sociedad, tratar de aprovechar los beneficios de estar aquí y, sin embargo, no prepararnos para asumir los costos de estar entre nosotros. No podemos seguir privatizando las ganancias, sino socializando los costos en nuestra política de trabajadores migrantes ”, dijo la ley don.

A medida que Singapur descubre sus próximos pasos para los trabajadores migrantes, los trabajadores también están tratando de resolver los suyos mientras se mueven en sus habitaciones dentro de los diversos dormitorios que salpican Singapur manteniendo una distancia de todos los demás.

Having spent more than a decade working in Singapore, Mr Liton is keenly aware of the value of social inclusion. Like his friends Asit and Zakir, Mr Liton is a poet, who often pens his thoughts about crises and conflicts around the world, and attends poetry events with Singaporeans such as those organised by Sing Lit Station and local Bengali publication Bangla Kanthar.

Isolated in his company dormitory now, he spends the idle days reading the news online, watching movies, and making video calls to his wife and family back home, he said.

On Apr 17, he wrote in Bengali: “The whole world drowned in darkness today / Every person surrounded by death, disorder and the virus / Humanity is counting down the hours of waiting / For when the end comes – A new dawn.”

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