MOM investigating alleged misuse of work passes meant for foreign students and trainees

Straits Times

14 hours ago

MOM said some of the probes surrounding breaches of the pass requirements have already been completed with more to come. PHOTO: ST FILE
SINGAPORE – Investigations are underway into what a support group for migrant workers brands a 'job scam' centred on misuse of work passes.
Training Employment Passes give foreign students and intra-corporate trainees the right to work here for three months, but they have allegedly been used to employ foreign workers in lower-skilled roles that are not allowed under the pass.
Some of the probes surrounding breaches of the pass requirements have already been completed with more to come, noted the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on June 6. It did not disclose how many reports it had received.
The pass allows foreign students or trainees from a company's overseas office or subsidiary to undergo practical training for professional, managerial, executive or specialist jobs here for up to three months. Trainees must earn a minimum fixed salary of $3,000 a month.
The work attachment f or student applicants must be tied to their studies. T hey must either be studying in an 'acceptable institution' or earning at least $3,000 a month.
The investigation comes after 13 TEP holders sought help in recent months from advocacy group Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2).
They were hired by employers to take up various roles with a lower skill level than the pass appears to allow.
Five of the 13 were put to work in a food and beverage establishment, five in a warehouse, two in cleaning companies while one ended up in a 'tour coach agency',TWC2 said on its website last month.
The 13 people had turned to TWC2 over a period of about five months starting in December 2024.
'We have never before seen so many workers on this kind of work pass in such a short time,' TWC2 said.
The group added that nearly all the 13 complained about salary irregularities, including being paid below the $3,000 stated minimum, though at least one found long working hours to be the biggest problem.
'However, when we found out more about the circumstances which led to their working in Singapore, we could see the contours of a rapidly widening job scam,' TWC2 noted.
The workers had been designated as 'management executives' despite performing menial tasks such as washing dishes, it added.
They were often not sent to the MOM to have their TEP issued until nearly 30 days after arrival, effectively meaning they worked an additional fourth month without a pass being issued.
TWC2 executive director Ethan Guo told The Straits Times that a common feature was that most of the workers were coming to work for the first time in Singapore and had arrived relatively recently.
'This showed that these were young, impressionable and vulnerable foreigners with little or no knowledge of employment laws in Singapore,' Mr Guo noted.
He added that the group could not confirm if there has been a sudden uptick in the number of TEP holders reporting salary irregularities.
'What has happened of late was a concerted effort by TWC2 to educate migrant workers on the correct payment of their salaries, and this could have resulted in more workers with such problems coming forward to seek help from us,' he said.
They may have been many more victims in the past who did not realise they have been scammed, or did not have an avenue for assistance.
Mr Guo said TWC2's concern lies with workers who have been misled into jobs they paid huge sums to agents for and then put into 'legal jeopardy once they agree'.
He noted that the attempts to dodge the TEP requirements may have arisen as a work-around for industries 'desperate for cheap foreign labour'.
'A more holistic response would be a review of work permit quotas for these industry sectors like logistics, cleaning and food and beverage.'
However, Mr Guo added that TWC2 is not advocating a massive liberalisation in foreign workforce policy, as making cheap labour too easily available could blunt the incentive for employers to pursue automation and productivity improvements.
The MOM also said it performs additional checks and audits on selected TEP applications, such as requesting proof of training programmes and foreign offices or subsidiaries.
It noted that it will take action against errant employers, including suspending their work pass privileges, imposing financial penalties or even prosecution.
The ministry also encouraged affected workers to reach out for assistance.
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