Stories of Transient Workers in Singapore

Rinse and Repeat

I rotated my wrist and attempted to squeeze the metal pipe through the confined space. My wrists hurt from the motion that I had repeated every day of the week. As October approached, my wrists were hurting continuously and I could take it no longer. The medicine and the medical leave did nothing for my wrists and it became obvious that the metal pipes were the problem. I was sent for an operation for my wrists twice, with 15 days of MC each and 30 days in total.

But when I returned to work, it became apparent that my boss was not happy with the cost of the operation and the month long leave. His attitude to me became cold and condescending, and one day he said to me, “I want to terminate your work permit.” I was reluctant to let the job go, but I knew that with our strained relationship there was no other choice. I sadly agreed and left.

Footnote:

This story depicts a violation of article 23 of the UDHR, which list the rights to just conditions of working, as well as protection from unemployment. The worker had sustained serious injuries from his work, yet the boss, rather than being understanding, took a more condescending attitude and viewed the worker as a burden to the company. Many employers view workers as dispensable labour, and often choose to ignore the health and well being of their workers, leading to cases like these popping up in society today.