A director of a local contracting firm was charged by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) last Thursday with 21 counts of collecting kickbacks, amounting to $3,650 from six of his foreign workers, as a condition for their continued employment with the company.
Yuan Shungao faces a fine of up to $30,000 or imprisonment for up to two years, or both, if he is convicted. Additionally, his firm will be banned by MOM from ever again employing foreign workers.
Investigations by MOM revealed that Yuan received a monthly sum of $200 each from two foreign workers between March and July 2016, and deducted a monthly sum of $150 each from another four workers between April and July 2016 as financial guarantee for their employment. Had they failed to pay the agreed upon amount, their work passes would not be renewed.
Yuan had collected kickbacks amounting to $3,650, all of which was returned to the workers upon MOM’s intervention.
Under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, demanding or receiving money or other benefits from a foreign employee as a condition for their employment is illegal. Employers are also prohibited from recovering employment-related costs such as levies and other fees from foreign employees.
MOM has had a long history of cracking down on employers collecting kickbacks from foreign workers. In December 2016, a 53-year-old Singaporean, Mui Chee Mun, was sentenced to 24 weeks’ imprisonment for collecting $46,000 in kickbacks from 37 foreign workers.
“These are serious offences as they severely undermine our work pass controls,” said
Kandhavel Periyasamy, Foreign Manpower Management Division’s director of employment, commenting on the 2016 case. “We will continue to investigate and take strong enforcement action against such individuals.”
Yuan’s case will be next heard in court two weeks from now on Sept 8, 2017.
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