Min-Wei Lee
Transient Workers Count Too (TWC2)
Singapore
So many things have happened since the start of my internship that I hardly know where to begin. Having been thrust into the thick of casework on my very first day at the office, I knew a steep learning curve, characterized by the complex legislation and government systems revolving around foreign workers, lay ahead of me. That being said, the time I have spent with TWC2 thus far has been filled with meaningful hands-on learning experiences.
Though the days are long, stretching into the evenings, when I help out with the meal program, the fatigue I feel at the end of the day is never laced with any form of dissatisfaction or disillusionment. Hearing myriad stories from workers from all walks of life, I am constantly humbled by the sheer strength of will shown by people whose existence in Singapore is typified by hardship.
While TWC2 assists all low-wage migrant workers including foreign domestic workers, the majority of its caseload comes from construction and process sector workers from India and Bangladesh. Though this is a completely different focus group than the one I initially intended to study, I discovered that as a whole, there are key overlapping features regarding the rights violations of the various migrant workers I have encountered.
The fact that these individuals are foreigners whose first language is not English puts them at a great disadvantage. Unscrupulous employers and employment agencies take advantage of Singapore’s convoluted and ambiguous foreign worker legislation, while the workers themselves are ill informed of their fundamental rights. Although the country’s rigid bureaucracy provides a semblance of equality and justice, these workers often encounter great difficulties when trying to navigate the Ministry of Manpower’s reparations system. The degree of imbalance in employer-employee relationships is truly shocking and is deeply reminiscent of indentured slavery.
While the other social worker interns at TWC2 deal with individual cases pertaining to salary issues, work injury compensation, and employment scams, my primary job is to produce a “pre-departure” video aimed at workers who have yet to leave their home countries. This video, which will be made available on YouTube and TWC2’s website, will inform prospective workers of essential information that might not have been highlighted by their agents, such as the importance of retaining documents like salary slips and government letters, and the fact that their employment might not be guaranteed.
The constant stream of daily walk-in cases revealed patterns in commonly raised issues, which gave me an idea of the gaps in knowledge that need to be filled in. A key list of points to be addressed in the video quickly emerged with the help of TWC2’s senior staff, who contributed their extensive knowledge. I am currently in the final phases of production and should be able to produce a rough cut in a week’s time.
Though my own documentary on domestic workers has taken a backseat, my experiences with TWC2 have greatly furnished my understanding of these workers’ situation. Speaking to a few seasoned members of TWC2’s executive committee, as well as meeting domestic workers from the Indonesian and Filipino Family Networks, has affirmed my initial thought that my documentary stress the importance of understanding and respect. Once I have completed the pre-departure video, I will be able to fully dedicate myself to my documentary.