Written Answer by Mrs Josephine Teo Minister for Manpower to PQ on the Requirement for Employers to Declare Reasons for Salary Reduction from Amount Stated in In-Principle Approval Letter

NOTICE PAPER NO. 2004 OF 2020 FOR SITTING ON 2 MARCH

QUESTION NO. 1618 FOR WRITTEN ANSWER

MP: Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang

To ask the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will consider requiring employers to declare the reasons for the salary reduction from the amount stated in the In-Principle Approval letter of a foreign worker when they notify the Ministry and the foreign worker of the reduction.

Answer

1. When there is a dispute involving salary reduction from the amount stated in the in-principle approval letter, the onus is on the employer to show that he obtained the work permit holder’s (WPH) written agreement and notified the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) beforehand. If the employer fails to prove either of the two requirements, the original declared salary holds and the employer will be required to make good any salary shortfall, regardless of reason for the salary reduction. In addition, MOM will also impose a fine of up to $10,000 per worker on the employer.
2. The requirement for employers to obtain their workers’ written agreement ensures that the WPH can refuse to give his consent. WPHs whose contracts are terminated by their employer for refusing to provide consent should seek help from MOM. MOM allows such WPHs to find a new employer and we work with the Migrant Workers’ Centre to facilitate the process.
3. The suggestion by the Member to make employers declare the reason for the salary reduction when notifying MOM is redundant. Even if the employer did so, he would still need to obtain the written agreement of the WPH. In addition, it could have potentially unintended consequences, such as causing the worker to believe that the mere fact of notifying MOM regularises the salary reduction, even if the worker did not give his consent.