FOREIGN DOMESTIC WORKERS

Parliament of Singapore · 28 February 2003

Official Report, 28 February 2003, Vol 76, Issue 1 · Open in the reader (summaries, search, filters)

Halimah YacobLee Boon Yang

Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Manpower (a) how many foreign domestic workers are employed as at 1st January 2003; (b) how many of them have approached the Ministry for help in recovering arrears in salaries and other claims and what is the success rate; and (c) how many employers have been prosecuted for maid abuse.

Dr Lee Boon Yang: There are currently more than 140,000 foreign domestic workers (FDWs) in Singapore.

214 FDWs filed claims with the Ministry last year. This was an increase compared to the 181 claims in 2001 but substantially lower than the peak of 406 in 1998. We were able to resolve their disputes amicably with their employers.

Last year, there were 19 substantiated cases of FDW abuse involving employers, spouses and members of the household. All offenders were prosecuted.

Source: Singapore Parliament Official Report (Hansard) for 28 February 2003. Republished on SGParliament.