Filming Day 3 – Through the lenses of male migrant workers: Navigating life in a foreign climate

As of December 2017, there are approximately 1.4 million foreign work pass holders in Singapore, of which 332,800 were low-wage migrant workers in the construction, marine, manufacturing, process and services sectors. Hailing from diverse countries-of-origin such as China, Bangladesh, India and Malaysia, migrant workers often perform a portfolio of low-wage jobs that many local Singaporeans shun yet are wholly integral to sustaining Singapore's economy.

Through conducting in-depth interview sessions, our team explored the daily living circumstances of the migrant worker community in our latest filming episode. A community often subject to harsh public scrutiny and often the casualty of society's inherent biases, migrant workers are also challenged by exploitative workplace practices that potentially threaten their economic and social well-being.

Some of the common problems that were consistently highlighted by the three interviewed individuals can be categorised into the following:

1. Wage Exploitation

2. Poor housing and living conditions

3. Physical and verbal abuse inflicted by employers/superiors

4. Acute lack of emotional support

Several of these issues will be more comprehensively explored in the following section. Relevant figures and contextual information will also be provided to lend greater credence to these anecdotes.

On the physical and verbal abuse afflicted by their employers

“After boss angry, boss slapped me. After that I call (the) police and (the) ambulance (came), I go hospital, see the doctor, now my hearing loss already, then (now) the police case (is) running already. “

– Minju, a 26-year-old landscape gardener recounts his experience of dealing with an irate employer when he made compensation claims for the payment of his overdue salaries. His employer owed him two months’ worth of wages then.

On the threat of repatriation

“I hit my head and back, this one problem and this one (gestures to his head and lower back) (and spent) 15 days (in the) hospital. After that my boss don’t want to give (me) my special pass…he said no no, you go back Bangladesh.”

-- Piyas, a 23-year-old Bangladeshi migrant worker who is currently unemployed as a result of a severe workplace injury

According to a 2015 study conducted by researchers at the Singapore Management University of which surveyed 604 migrant workers, 64 percent of workers with an injury or salary claim with MOM said that they had been threatened with deportation by their employer. In addition, 10 percent of regular workers reported that their employers threatened to deport them back to their home countries.

With regards to workplace-sustained injuries, workers who are hurt on the job are covered by the Work Injury Compensation Act (Wica), which allows workers to claim compensation for work-related injuries and occupational diseases. MOM said most Wica claims take three to six months to resolve. 15,679 Wica claims were awarded in 2016, up from 14,221 in 2015. Injured workers can also sue their employers in court. They will need to hire lawyers and pay legal fees.

On wage exploitation and delayed salary payment

“(In) my old company, (the) main problem is the salary problem. So many times don’t give salary…for three months, four months, one dollar also no give.”

– Ashadul, a 26-year-old Bangladeshi migrant worker who works in the construction industry

Unpaid or the late payment of wages is a common industry problem faced by many migrant workers in Singapore. According to HOME, more than half of the workers who approached HOME between 2015 to 2016 sought assistance for unpaid or the late payment of their salaries.

On insufficient rest days and work fatigue

"I start(ed) at 7am and stopped at 1.30am in the night."

- Piyas on the long hours that he worked in his previous vocation in the construction industry

"Sometimes I work on Sunday, company need help, so I need to do (work)."

- Minju explains that weekly rest days are not necessarily a given

According to a 2016 study by the Transient Workers' Count Too, the overtime worked by more than two-thirds of foreign construction workers breaches the legal maximum of 72 overtime hours a month. Of these, one in three worked twelve and a half hours or more in a single day — which also violates the legal daily maximum of 12 hours.

On the emotional pressure of being a breadwinner for their families

“I coming Singapore, earn money after that send money (to) Bangladesh, my father, mother happy, I happy. Now I don't have work, how to send, my family also problem, I also problem already.”

- Piyas explicating how the lack of work and income has affected his family's financial situation back home in Bangladesh and its subsequent inflicted emotional distress

“My problems, I keep (in) my heart, I don’t tell my family, my parents. This (type of issues) I never talk, because my mother understand my feeling because she loves me, my mother (will be) very sad (if she knew of this), so I don’t share my problem.”

-- Minju shares a heartwarming account of how he consciously shields his family from the nature of his problems and on his personal significance of familial ties. His anecdote also explores the emotional isolation that migrant workers face when saddled with wage and employment disputes.

On interacting with Singaporeans

“(I remember) the first time I come to Singapore, I don’t understand the MRT… Then I ask some Singapore people, how to go back (to my dormitory), I no understand. First, two persons, three persons I asked already, and the last girl I asked, “Sister, how to go? I don’t understand.” This girl, she bring me to the MRT station, so good. So this day I’m thinking, Singapore people good.”

-- Ashadul when asked about his most memorable instance of interaction with locals in Singapore

After-thoughts and in retrospection

Despite the persistent framing of migrant workers as victims of errant employers by the mainstream discourse and media, all interviewees exhibited a consistent trait of agency despite facing significant challenges to their daily livelihood and overall well-being. All respondents spoke of actively seeking help from the MOM to change or improve their conditions of exploitation or mistreatment. In addition, they also exhibited optimism for a reversal of their fortunes despite the oft unfavourable circumstances they were mired in and expressed a willingness to continue their employment in Singapore.

However, the quality and depth of obtained migrant workers' anecdotes might have been compromised with the linguistic and communication difficulties encountered in the interview process. Most interviewees were seen to lack the necessary proficiency in spoken English to accurately express their thoughts and their responses to the questions asked often tend to be fragmented and disjointed. As such, certain nuances might not have been accurately captured through the interview sessions. A possible alternative would be to conduct the interviews in their native vernacular which they seem to be more fluent and comfortable in as opposed to using English as a standard medium of communication.