4 ms·

Your description of "maids" does not seem to match what is on the official Singapore government site: (https://www.mom.gov.sg/employment-practices/employment-ac

Your description of "maids" does not seem to match what is on the official Singapore government site: (https://www.mom.gov.sg/employment-practices/employment-act/who-is-covered https://www.mom.gov.sg/employment-practices/employment-act/w...). I don't think Singapore is exploitative as you describe it. Maybe you are thinking of Dubai.

worrycue 5y ago
I believe “maids” are “domestic workers” and don’t fall under the Employment Act but are governed by a separate set of regulations (best I could find): https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-foreign-domestic-worker/employers-guide https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-fo... Anyway most of what he says about “maids” is wrong - weekly rest day, must be paid monthly (no keeping of salary), … etc. as stated in the aforementioned link.
- dustintrex 5y ago
  Currently, there is no legal mandate for a rest day, since the maid can oh-so-voluntarily "choose" to give up their rest days for an extra day of salary (~$20). Effective end-2022, they will finally get at least one day per month of mandatory rest: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/maids-mandatory-rest-day-policy-manpower-ministry-employers-2041696 https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/maids-mandatory-re... You're correct in that employers are not supposed to confiscate salaries or passports, but rest assured, both are very common practices, as are things like working in multiple households, having to work outside the home, etc. More reading: https://www.home.org.sg/ https://www.home.org.sg/
  - worrycue 5y ago
    “From 1 January 2019, as an FDW employer, you must not keep your FDW’s salary or any other money belonging to her, even if she requests for it. You must not keep her bank book or bank card.” https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-foreign-domestic-worker/employers-guide/salary-guidelines https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-fo...
    - dustintrex 5y ago
      My next door neighbor illegally withheld their maid's passport and did not pay them for a half a year. When the poor woman finally convinced her employer that her young children back in Indonesia need to eat, she was frogmarched to a Western Union outlet and given some cash to remit, while being closely observed to make sure she did not keep any of it. When they decided to get rid of her, she was given one hour's notice to pack, driven to the airport, and had the cost of her flight ticket illegally deducted from her salary. All this happened in 2020.
      - Yeri 5y ago
        Did you file a complaint? Being of European descent and seeing these helpers/maids stories on the news on a monthly basis, this reminds me heavily of our colonial time.
      - c_o_n_v_e_x 5y ago
        I have a neighbor who's now been through 7 or 8 helpers in a span of 4 or 5 years. Allegedly there's a limit on how many you can go through but somehow it's swept under the rug. It's in the maid agency's best interest to not report their clients...
    - deleted 5y ago
      [deleted]
dustintrex 5y ago
What, you're saying the official Singapore government site doesn't say maids are brutally exploited? Say it ain't so! It does, however, say that "you are not covered [by the Employment Act] if you are employed as a: Domestic worker". Have a read through some of the stories here: https://www.home.org.sg/our-updates https://www.home.org.sg/our-updates This case got a lot of press lately, but while the employer was obviously a monster, also consider how it was possible that the victim had no avenue to escape or complain during the 14 month period of abuse: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/gaiyathiri-murugayan-admits-killing-maid-piang-ngaih-don-368861 https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/gaiyathiri-murugay...
- cheesecake_luvr 5y ago
  Can you describe the type of employer that does this? Is it a cultural thing like it is in Dubai? Very curious that this seems to happen in Singapore regularly. I have a very high opinion of Singapore, although I have only been there in transit to some some other place. I especially have a high opinion of Lee kuan yew
  - dustintrex 5y ago
    It's complicated and I hesitate to generalize, but I'd draw two themes: * Economic: Singapore is an expensive place to live and both parents typically need to work to make ends meet. A foreign domestic worker is the cheapest way to get child or elder care, but it's still a significant expense, so there's a natural incentive to cut costs by providing only the absolute minimum (feed them ramen, make them sleep on the kitchen floor, etc). * Power dynamics: The stereotypical domestic worker is young woman from a deeply poor rural background, sometimes underage with fake ID (illegal but particularly common with Burmese), who speaks little to no English, is unfamiliar with city living, and knows nobody in Singapore. They are often deeply in debt to the broker who found the job, supporting family back home who will literally starve if she can't provide, unaware of the little rights they do have, and thus very strongly incentivized to tolerate whatever is thrown their way. The employer thus finds themselves in a position of near-absolute power over them, and as the old saw says, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. In the case above, where the maid was essentially tortured to death over a year, there was an entire household watching and the deviance was normalized quickly because there was nothing she could do to fight back.
OneTimePetes 5y ago
Slavery is widespread on this planet. Nobody will advocate for it or display its legal status on a government website. What you might find, is a gaping hole in the law..
- agent327 5y ago
  And yet, the only people called out for it are the one group that actually ended it long ago...
shell0x 5y ago
Singapore is the same as Dubai, just Singapore is better at PR
baybal2 5y ago
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/30-years-jail-for-woman-who-starved-and-tortured-maid-to-death https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/30-years...

worrycue 5y ago

I believe “maids” are “domestic workers” and don’t fall under the Employment Act but are governed by a separate set of regulations (best I could find): https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-foreign-domestic-worker/employers-guide https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-fo... Anyway most of what he says about “maids” is wrong - weekly rest day, must be paid monthly (no keeping of salary), … etc. as stated in the aforementioned link.

dustintrex 5y ago
Currently, there is no legal mandate for a rest day, since the maid can oh-so-voluntarily "choose" to give up their rest days for an extra day of salary (~$20). Effective end-2022, they will finally get at least one day per month of mandatory rest: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/maids-mandatory-rest-day-policy-manpower-ministry-employers-2041696 https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/maids-mandatory-re... You're correct in that employers are not supposed to confiscate salaries or passports, but rest assured, both are very common practices, as are things like working in multiple households, having to work outside the home, etc. More reading: https://www.home.org.sg/ https://www.home.org.sg/
- worrycue 5y ago
  “From 1 January 2019, as an FDW employer, you must not keep your FDW’s salary or any other money belonging to her, even if she requests for it. You must not keep her bank book or bank card.” https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-foreign-domestic-worker/employers-guide/salary-guidelines https://www.mom.gov.sg/passes-and-permits/work-permit-for-fo...
  - dustintrex 5y ago
    My next door neighbor illegally withheld their maid's passport and did not pay them for a half a year. When the poor woman finally convinced her employer that her young children back in Indonesia need to eat, she was frogmarched to a Western Union outlet and given some cash to remit, while being closely observed to make sure she did not keep any of it. When they decided to get rid of her, she was given one hour's notice to pack, driven to the airport, and had the cost of her flight ticket illegally deducted from her salary. All this happened in 2020.
    - Yeri 5y ago
      Did you file a complaint? Being of European descent and seeing these helpers/maids stories on the news on a monthly basis, this reminds me heavily of our colonial time.
    - c_o_n_v_e_x 5y ago
      I have a neighbor who's now been through 7 or 8 helpers in a span of 4 or 5 years. Allegedly there's a limit on how many you can go through but somehow it's swept under the rug. It's in the maid agency's best interest to not report their clients...
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]

dustintrex 5y ago

What, you're saying the official Singapore government site doesn't say maids are brutally exploited? Say it ain't so! It does, however, say that "you are not covered [by the Employment Act] if you are employed as a: Domestic worker". Have a read through some of the stories here: https://www.home.org.sg/our-updates https://www.home.org.sg/our-updates This case got a lot of press lately, but while the employer was obviously a monster, also consider how it was possible that the victim had no avenue to escape or complain during the 14 month period of abuse: https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/gaiyathiri-murugayan-admits-killing-maid-piang-ngaih-don-368861 https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/gaiyathiri-murugay...

cheesecake_luvr 5y ago
Can you describe the type of employer that does this? Is it a cultural thing like it is in Dubai? Very curious that this seems to happen in Singapore regularly. I have a very high opinion of Singapore, although I have only been there in transit to some some other place. I especially have a high opinion of Lee kuan yew
- dustintrex 5y ago
  It's complicated and I hesitate to generalize, but I'd draw two themes: * Economic: Singapore is an expensive place to live and both parents typically need to work to make ends meet. A foreign domestic worker is the cheapest way to get child or elder care, but it's still a significant expense, so there's a natural incentive to cut costs by providing only the absolute minimum (feed them ramen, make them sleep on the kitchen floor, etc). * Power dynamics: The stereotypical domestic worker is young woman from a deeply poor rural background, sometimes underage with fake ID (illegal but particularly common with Burmese), who speaks little to no English, is unfamiliar with city living, and knows nobody in Singapore. They are often deeply in debt to the broker who found the job, supporting family back home who will literally starve if she can't provide, unaware of the little rights they do have, and thus very strongly incentivized to tolerate whatever is thrown their way. The employer thus finds themselves in a position of near-absolute power over them, and as the old saw says, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. In the case above, where the maid was essentially tortured to death over a year, there was an entire household watching and the deviance was normalized quickly because there was nothing she could do to fight back.

OneTimePetes 5y ago

Slavery is widespread on this planet. Nobody will advocate for it or display its legal status on a government website. What you might find, is a gaping hole in the law..

agent327 5y ago
And yet, the only people called out for it are the one group that actually ended it long ago...

shell0x 5y ago

Singapore is the same as Dubai, just Singapore is better at PR

baybal2 5y ago

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/30-years-jail-for-woman-who-starved-and-tortured-maid-to-death https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/30-years...