Labour Day 2024 Statement

Labour day is a reminder for the importance of workers' solidarity and the ongoing fight for social and economic justice. Today, we call upon everyone, including the Singapore government, employment agencies, industry associations, and trade unions to not forget the rights and invaluable contributions of low-wage migrant workers

This May Day, as we celebrate the rights of workers, we call upon everyone, including the Singapore government, employment agencies, industry associations, and trade unions to not forget the rights and invaluable contributions of low-wage migrant workers. 

Migrant worker numbers are currently at an all time high following our emergence from the COVID-19 pandemic; it is therefore imperative that their well-being is protected, with strong labour and social protections, enforcement of existing laws, and access to remedies. 

Migrant domestic workers (MDWs) should be covered under the Employment Act so that the basic rights we take for granted, such as statutory limits on working hours, medical leave, and paid annual leave, can be extended to them. 

Overwork remains one of the top complaints encountered by HOME: in the last 12 months, more than half of all MDWs who sought refuge at our shelter complained that they had to work between 12 to 16 hours every day, sometimes more. Particularly, MDWs who have eldercare responsibilities can be subject to almost round the clock work, with minimal training and access to support. 

Despite the 2023 regulation mandating a monthly rest day for MDWs, we still encounter MDWs who have no rest days. We call for better enforcement of this regulation, as well as increasing the frequency of mandatory rest days, and to define rest days as 24 hours. Rest days are an important right for MDWs given their live-in situation, and they provide an avenue for physical and mental respite from their work. 

HOME calls for better regulation of recruitment practices to prevent excessive recruitment fees. The indebtedness of migrant workers in Singapore is a significant factor in their compliance with degrading working conditions. 

MDWs can pay up to six months of their monthly wages as recruitment fees, while workers in the construction, marine and conservancy sectors can pay up to S$15,000, which can be more than a year of their wages. HOME advocates an eventual move to an “employer-pays” model as set out in ILO’s Fair Recruitment Initiative, where no recruitment fees are paid by the migrant worker. 

HOME calls for the setting of minimum wages for workers. Due to their lack of bargaining power, migrant workers in Singapore suffer from chronically low, depressed wages that have remained stagnated even though recruitment fees and the cost of living continue to rise exponentially. Financial empowerment is important for workers to reject abusive and exploitative conditions.

Migrant workers deserve job mobility. Their deportability and the constraints on labour mobility are fundamental factors in their decisions to stay in highly exploitative situations and to not report abuses and violations. They fear the very probable, retaliatory consequence of being dismissed and repatriated. Migrant workers should be allowed to change jobs without the consent of their employers, by giving clear notice periods that both parties should adhere to. 

We need to make it possible for migrant workers to advocate for their own well-being and for them to speak up without fear of persecution. Migrant workers are best placed to speak about their lived experiences and suggest feasible and effective recommendations. Worker-led and worker-owned unions need to be set up so they are empowered and can represent their own interests, be able to advocate for themselves.