Many foreign women working as maids in Singapore endure harsh working conditions, as well as severe abuse such as physical and sexual violence, and aren't protected adequately by labor laws, a human rights group said in a report yesterday.
Singapore said the report was grossly exaggerated.
The analysis by US-based Human Rights Watch said at least 147 migrant domestic workers have died in Singapore from workplace accidents or suicide since 1999, mainly by jumping or falling from residential buildings.
"Many domestic workers labor without pay for months to settle debts to employment agencies, work long hours seven days a week, or are confined to their workplace," Kenneth Roth, executive director of the international rights group, said in a statement.
"Singapore's refusal to extend ordinary labor protections to domestic workers is leaving them open to abuse," he said.
In a statement, Singapore's Ministry of Manpower disputed the report, saying foreign domestic workers receive "full protection" under the law, and that employers who abuse or exploit maids can face fines and jail terms of up to six months.
The ministry said it had stepped up efforts to educate maids about their rights, had raised the minimum age of new maids from 18 to 23 years, and that first-time employers were required to attend a compulsory orientation program.
Contrary to the rights group report, most maids enjoy "meaningful and safe employment in Singapore," the ministry said.
The Human Rights Watch report was based on more than 100 interviews with maids, government officials and employment agents. About 150,000 women, mostly from Indonesia, the Philippines, and Sri Lanka, work as maids in Singapore.
The rights group acknowledged that Singapore has instituted reforms in the past two years, including the creation of mandatory orientation programs for employers and domestic workers and prosecution of cases of unpaid wages and physical abuse.
But it said wages and work hours are left to employers and agencies, and maids have little or no bargaining power.
Human Rights Watch said authorities have excluded domestic workers from the country's main labor laws.
Beginning in January, domestic workers signing new contracts will be entitled to a single day off each month, it said.
"One day off a month is a poor solution," Roth said. "Domestic workers deserve a weekly rest day and protection under Singapore's Employment Act like other workers."
The group said Singaporean workers in similar occupations, such as cleaners or gardeners, earn double the wages of migrant domestic workers.
OPTIMISTIC: A Philippine Air Force spokeswoman said the military believed the crew were safe and were hopeful that they and the jet would be recovered A Philippine Air Force FA-50 jet and its two-person crew are missing after flying in support of ground forces fighting communist rebels in the southern Mindanao region, a military official said yesterday. Philippine Air Force spokeswoman Colonel Consuelo Castillo said the jet was flying “over land” on the way to its target area when it went missing during a “tactical night operation in support of our ground troops.” While she declined to provide mission specifics, Philippine Army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala confirmed that the missing FA-50 was part of a squadron sent “to provide air support” to troops fighting communist rebels in
PROBE: Last week, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against presidential candidate Calin Georgescu accusing him of supporting fascist groups Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the EU country last year. Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flags and chanting slogans such as “down with the government” and “thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), which organized the protest,
ECONOMIC DISTORTION? The US commerce secretary’s remarks echoed Elon Musk’s arguments that spending by the government does not create value for the economy US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that government spending could be separated from GDP reports, in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures. “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.” Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the US economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because
Hundreds of people in rainbow colors gathered on Saturday in South Africa’s tourist magnet Cape Town to honor the world’s first openly gay imam, who was killed last month. Muhsin Hendricks, who ran a mosque for marginalized Muslims, was shot dead last month near the southern city of Gqeberha. “I was heartbroken. I think it’s sad especially how far we’ve come, considering how progressive South Africa has been,” attendee Keisha Jensen said. Led by motorcycle riders, the mostly young crowd walked through the streets of the coastal city, some waving placards emblazoned with Hendricks’s image and reading: “#JUSTICEFORMUHSIN.” No arrest
RSS