Foreign Workers' Dormitories

Mr Yaw Shin Leong asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Manpower (a) what were the unacceptable living conditions found in the two foreign workers' dormitories visited by the Minister of State for Manpower in November 2011; (b) how does the Ministry plan to expedite the construction of additional purpose-built housing for foreign workers; and (c) when are these housing expected to be ready.

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Housing foreign workers in proper accommodation is a multi-faceted issue involving close collaboration between various Government agencies. The Foreign Worker Housing Coordinating Committee (FWHCC), co-chaired by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and the Ministry of National Development (MND), coordinates proactive enforcement efforts by Government agencies with respect to foreign worker housing as well as the release of new sites for workers' dormitories.

Since 2010, MOM, NEA, SCDF and URA have inspected more than 8,600 premises suspected of housing foreign workers in unacceptable conditions. These inspections have resulted in about 17,000 foreign workers being relocated from unacceptable accommodation into proper accommodation.

Of the three industrial premises inspected in November 2011 and visited by the Minister of State for Manpower, one had conditions which were particularly egregious. The premises had been illegally converted into foreign worker housing without the required approvals, including those relating to structural and fire safety, and workers were found housed on makeshift mezzanine floors, accessible only by unsecured ladders. Investigations for this case have concluded and we will be taking enforcement action commensurate with the severity of the offence. Of the remaining two industrial premises, one also did not have approvals to house workers, while the other was found to be housing more workers than allowed under the occupancy load approved by SCDF for fire safety purposes. Enforcement action has been taken on the errant employers in the latter two cases. For all three cases, the employers housing their workers in these premises have since relocated their workers to proper accommodation.

The Government has been launching new sites for purpose-built dormitories to meet the demand for foreign worker housing since 2007. There are now over 150,000 foreign workers living in such dormitories. The speed at which new dormitories can be launched and completed depends on a number of factors, such as land availability and the time required to prepare the site and infrastructure. Besides purpose-built dormitories, employers have other options to house their workers. These options include converted industrial properties and workers' quarters in construction sites. Such premises must comply with requirements to safeguard the well-being of workers, before they can be used as foreign worker housing.

The Government will continue active enforcement to ensure that workers are housed in acceptable accommodation. We will also continue to expedite the launch and construction of new dormitories, with a view to address both immediate and longer-term demand for foreign worker housing.

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