Written Answer to PQ on Employers deemed unfit to hire MDWs

NOTICE PAPER NO. 447 OF 2025 FOR SITTING ON OR AFTER 4 FEBRUARY 2026
QUESTION NO. 934 FOR WRITTEN ANSWER

MP: Ms Eileen Chong Pei Shan

To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) what criteria currently disqualify individuals from hiring migrant domestic workers; and (b) whether individuals with criminal convictions for violent offenses are prohibited from hiring live-in migrant domestic workers.

Answer:

Employers can be debarred from hiring migrant domestic workers (MDWs) if they commit serious offences against an MDW. These include physical or sexual abuse, non-payment of salary, inadequate provision of food or rest and instructing their MDW to perform unsafe tasks. The debarment period varies with the severity of offences committed, and MOM will assess the suitability of the household to hire MDWs before lifting the debarment. Egregious offenders, such as those who inflict violent harm on their MDWs, will be permanently debarred.