“Your injuries are very serious. I have written a letter to your employer to instruct him that you need to go to the hospital for treatment.” The doctor’s words rang through my mind. “But Sir, the doctor said…” I tried to argue. “Nonsense, a few painkillers are enough. Stop whining and man up for a change. Go!!” My employer pushed me out of his office and closed the door behind me. I looked at my aching wrist, ran my hand over my aching back, both which had yet to heal over the past week, and felt that little had changed. The doctor’s words rang through my mind once more. Was he truly lying like my employer had claimed, or did my situation call for such drastic action? I made up my mind to go to a polyclinic and resolve the issue once and for all. The next day, I went back to my employer’s office with the doctor’s letter asking him to pay for my operation at SGH, but to my surprise, my employer tore up my letter, and threatened to fire me. I could not believe my eyes, but cruel reality struck, and I was helpless to do anything.
Footnote:
This story depicts a violation of article 24 of the UDHR, which lists the right to rest, and in this case, the right to recuperate from an injury. The employer in this story fails to provide the appropriate care for his worker, by refusing to send him to get treated, and instead only provides the bare minimum in the form of painkillers. The employer is required by law to pay for the treatment of his workers, and this is thus a clear infringement of human rights as well as an illegal act. Although this situation might be unique to this case, there is still the fact that employers refusing to pay for their worker’s hospital fees is common practice in Singapore.
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Stories of Transient Workers in Singapore
Non-FictionNon-fiction adaptations of real life accounts of transient workers in Singapore who have been victims of the human rights violations
