Louis Ng Kok Kwang
Singapore
“It does not matter whether the report was made to the Police or the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau. Can the Senior Parliamentary Secretary clarify whether an individual who reports an offence under the Bill to the Police will be similarly protected by the whistle-blowing protections under section 53?”
“In my Adjournment Motion six years ago, I shared the story of Emma, a single unwed parent who came to see me at my Meet-the-People Sessions, together with her two-month-old daughter. They were both living in a shelter. As I shared previously, when I asked why Emma did not shed a tear, she told me that she no longer had any tears left.”
“It is not just Nee Soon East cleaners who pay kickbacks. This, again, is a widespread problem that we have not done enough to detect and tackle. To tackle this more effectively, we need to treat kickbacks as seriously as corruption. We need our laws to have a more deterrent effect to have any chance of wiping out kickbacks.”
“Sir, I thank the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for answering my cut on second-hand smoke. And I am sure he expects me to clarify further. But I think the Senior Parliamentary Secretary mentioned that there is no current technology to catch someone smoking at home and, so, because of that we cannot legislate a ban.”
“Madam, for years, I have spoken up repeatedly in this House, calling for the Government to take action to protect the lives of fellow Singaporeans from second-hand smoke. I have spoken up so much that Senior Minister of State Amy Khor once said that she is immune to me already. But on a more serious note, this is a serious issue.”
“We should end the discrimination and allow them to qualify for the PPHS. Mandate Sterilisation of Pet Cats I have spent a good part of my life calling for HDB to allow the keeping of cats in HDB flats. Many have called for this and I am glad the Government has finally changed our policies and allow the keeping of cats in HDB flats.”
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“Some have shared that, out of desperation, they sometimes express milk in the storeroom or in the toilet. One mother shared: "HR arranged a janitor room which is so small and stuffy with no chair at all for me to express breast milk. It is so inconvenient as the janitor will need to go in and out all the time and I am always only able to express halfway through." Why subject breastfeeding mothers to such an unhygienic and undignified situation? Will MND increase the minimum number of lactation rooms currently required and lower the GFA threshold? HDB Priority Schemes”
“I thank HDB for the change in our policies that now allow single unwed parents to rent and purchase HDB flats more easily. This has provided a lifeline for many of them. But we can do more and help reduce the stress and uncertainty for single unweds who already feel that they are at the end of the road at times. I understand that single unwed parents can only get their rental flat after the child is born. Assurance of having a roof over one’s head is as important as the roof. Single unweds need a clear timeline for their applications to be completed so they have the assurance and can plan for the future. Most of us here would know the chaos of settling into a new home. Let us not forget that single unweds have to do so alone while caring for a newborn and with a median salary of only $600 a month. Can MND provide a timeline for single unweds to obtain housing once they apply for it and also allow housing to be allocated to them by the third trimester of their pregnancy, so that they can welcome their newborn into their home from the day the baby is born? More Lactation Rooms for Working Mothers A survey by Singapore’s Breastfeeding Mothers’ Support Group found that the top reason for stopping breastfeeding was the challenges of expressing milk at work. One thing working mothers say they need the most is a lactation room. Currently, buildings with a Gross Floor Area (GFA) of 10,000 square metres and above are required to only have at least one lactation room. This is sorely inadequate. Expressing milk is not like using the toilet. It takes time. Unlike queuing up for a toilet which does not take that long, breastfeeding mothers are stuck when the only lactation room in the building is used.”
“Sir, our words in this House matter, so do our deeds. Let me start by thanking Members for their passionate speeches for our planet, for sustainability and for the health and livelihood of our people, and for Senior Minister of State Amy Khor's favourite topic of hawker culture. I also thank the Government for its strong, concrete and very significant steps forward in tackling climate change, in ensuring that we live and breathe sustainability and that we have fresh air to breathe – my most favourite and Senior Minister of State Amy Khor's second favourite topic of second-hand smoke. But as some of you might realise, many of us are wearing green in this House today. In fact, it is the first time I am not wearing my white shirt in this House. And I should thank Speaker, the Chairman, for also greening Parliament, for turning up the heat during our debates in this Chamber, and, by that, I mean turning up the temperature in the air-conditioning and also phasing out the use of single-use plastic bottles. I thank him for all these steps in greening Parliament. But we are not just wearing green today; I am glad and, hand on heart, we are truly going green. For that, I thank Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, Minister Grace Fu, Minister Desmond Lee, Minister Chan Chun Sing, Minister S Iswaran and Minister Gan Kim Yong for their strong leadership and commitment on this issue and all the other political officeholders from the different Ministries and Statutory Boards for all their hard work and dedication. And, with that, Sir, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Senior Minister for sharing that we will be doing some consultations when it comes to net-zero emissions. Could I ask that we consult with the NGOs and activists sooner rather than later because they have shared with me that they were consulted rather late when it came to the carbon tax increase?”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Senior Minister of State for the reply. I think many NGOs have been waiting quite some time for the implementation of the amendments. Could I ask whether we are still in consultation with the NGOs, with regard to extending FEDA to cover all dormitories? Two, what kind of support are we providing to the dormitories when it comes to implementation of these new rules?”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Minister of State for the reply. I understand he cannot provide a specific list. Then, could I ask whether he could at least provide the list of fund-raising activities that have got exemptions in the past few years, not including those for humanitarian disasters? Second, I really hope that the Government can take a more light-touch approach. We can trust Singaporeans to decide who they want to donate to. The Government, I hope, can take a step back but still have the check and balance in place, do audits to make sure that the funds go to the appropriate beneficiaries.”
“Sir, currently, carbon tax applies only to facilities emitting at least 25 kilo-tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent a year. This covers around 50 facilities that contribute to about 80% of our total carbon emissions. We should aim for a higher coverage. I understand that the Government sets a high threshold to limit compliance costs by smaller emitters. But smaller emitters, those emitting at least two kilo-tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, are already “reportable facilities” and have to pay the costs of monitoring and measuring their emissions. Given that any additional compliance costs would likely be minimal, it makes sense for the carbon tax to cover all reportable facilities. This would, after all, be in the spirit of a whole-of-nation fight against climate change. Emitters, small and large, have a role to play. Will the Government expand coverage of the carbon tax to include all reportable facilities?”
“Sir, I am glad we have announced our new target of reaching net-zero emissions by or around mid-century. Many activists in Parliament and outside, have been speaking up about this for many years. We are glad that our voices have been heard and that we have a much more ambitious target. We thank all the Ministries and agencies for their hard work. But I hope we can have a more specific target. Reaching net-zero emissions by mid-century would be good but around mid-century would not be that good. But around mid-Century will not be that good. Twenty-fifty is not just a random year. It is based on science; global emissions must be net-zero by 2050 if we want to have any hope of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. In Singapore, SIA, Temasek, and DBS have committed to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Singapore always punches above its weight on the international stage. We should also punch above our weight when it comes to climate change. Many other countries have made this very specific pledge. Can Singapore also reach net-zero emissions by 2050? Net-zero Climate Ambition and Nationally Determined Contribution”
“Thank you, Sir. I have two clarifications. Both relating to having roadmaps, which I think has been very useful that we have published the roadmap for carbon tax so companies and people can plan and adjust in advanced. First, for Minister Grace, I thank her for sharing details about the disposable carrier bag charge and I also thank her for not saying no to extending the disposable carrier bag charge to smaller convenience stores. I believe she said not now. So, could I ask whether we can have a roadmap in terms of expanding the disposable carrier bag charge. So again, companies and our people can plan and adjusting in advanced. Second, I thank the Senior Minister of State Amy Khor for sharing the details of the extension of the smoking prohibited areas. The same thing, could I ask whether we can have a roadmap in terms of expanding the no-smoking zone in Singapore. I really do thank the Senior Minister of State for all the hard work in addressing all my questions with regards to second-hand smoke. I sincerely wish and hope that would become her second most favourite topic after hawker culture.”
“Sir, there is no risk-free level of exposure to second-hand smoke. Breathing in small amounts can be dangerous. I have spoken up a lot about protecting people from second-hand smoke in their own homes. It is equally important to protect everyone in public areas. I am glad Orchard Road was designated as Singapore’s first No Smoking Zone (NSZ). Our surveys show that there is strong support for this. Last year, I asked if the Government will designate other areas as NSZ. It has been a year, and I hope MSE has monitored this space closely and will roll out more NSZ and prohibit smoking in more places. Expand No Smoking Zone”
“Using fewer plastic bags alone will not solve climate change or save the earth, but every bit counts. And making us conscious of our habits, and consider better alternatives, has value in itself.” I am glad the Government announced that it will proceed with this charge but why only for supermarkets? I understand we want to start small but this problem is urgent and massive. I hope we can extend this charge to smaller convenience stores. I am glad Cheers has already done this and I saw firsthand how this works. We usually make smaller purchases at convenience stores as compared to at supermarkets. This means the disposable bag charge is a relatively larger amount and people feel the pinch more. When cashiers say, “Do you want a plastic bag? It is now chargeable”, I have seen so many people reply, “In that case, I don’t want it.” Purchases at convenience stores are also usually of a smaller quantity. Many can simply hold or put the purchases in their own bags. Lastly, many of the disposable bags used at convenience stores are smaller and can’t be used to line our rubbish bins. They are usually wasted. Extending this charge beyond supermarkets can have a huge impact for this planet. I hope MSE will consider this positively. [(proc text) Question proposed. (proc text)] Packaging and Plastic Waste”
“We hope to strengthen our defences against public health threats, advance water and food resilience and security, make progress on our 30 by 30 plan and do more to support our hawkers, who have not had an easy two years during this pandemic. And we will of course debate my pet topic of second-hand smoke. I am sure Senior Minister of State Amy Khor is looking forward to it and I promise her, no more stealth mode. Let me be upfront. Second-hand smoke is another threat that we cannot ignore. I have been flooded with appeals for help, people fearing for their health and begging for fresh air. In the past two months, 2,475 people in Singapore have approached me for help as they are suffering from second-hand smoke in their own homes. What scares me is that almost 50% of them have been affected by second-hand smoke in their own homes for more than three years already. I hate to imagine what impact this has had on their health and the health of their loved ones. It is a race towards tackling this public health crisis, and like climate change, it is a race we should not and cannot lose. There are lots more questions and issues to raise and it is an incredibly diverse range of issues that we will be debating over the next six and a half hours. Sir, I look forward to a robust debate. Next cut. Extend Disposable Carrier Bag Charge Four years ago, in an Adjournment Motion, I urged the Government to implement a charge for single-use carrier bags of all materials. The call is not to eliminate the use of disposable bags but to reduce it. As Prime Minister Lee said: “It is a sensible approach: to make people conscious of the plastic bags they use, but not to ban plastic bags altogether.”
“Mr Chairman, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head L of the Estimates be reduced by $100". Sustainability is at the heart of everything MSE does. The MSE GPC is heartened to hear that Singapore will commit to achieve net-zero emissions sooner and will also raise the carbon tax significantly. It is code red for humanity and this race to zero is crucial. Climate change is an existential threat that we cannot ignore and simply adapt to. A recent UN IPCC report warned that if countries do not do more to fight climate change, the climate will change faster than we can adapt to it. So, we absolutely have to do more. Sir, I am glad we are doing more and responding positively to both calls in this House and outside for us to take concrete steps to tackle this climate emergency. We are especially heartened with this whole-of-Government and whole-of-society approach. I hope we will continue to work with businesses and citizens to co-create solutions to tackle climate change together. I hope we can share more about how we are increasing our climate ambition and action, how the revised carbon tax will support our inclusive green transition, how we will soften its impact on households and businesses, and how we are protecting our coastlines as well. As we chart the way forward, I hope we always remember that there is no Plan B because there is no Planet B. Beyond climate change, my GPC colleagues and I will be speaking on a broad range of issues. We look forward to updates on the Green Plan 2030, our Zero Waste Masterplan, the disposable carrier bag charge, GreenGov.SG and the lifespan of the Semakau Landfill.”
“A carefully curated learning experience will enable students to better understand local and regional culture, traditions, work ethics, people and history. We must also ensure that sufficient amount of time is spent in the region to enable one to form an assessment and better understanding of the region, develop useful engagements and relationships that would enable them to build up familiarity and courage to further engage the region in the future. How is the Ministry strengthening the diversity of experiences to better understand culture, people and history of the region? How can we give everyone an opportunity to have a immersive overseas experience?”
“One shared, "Many teachers are burning out, but seeking help is not an option because we are expected to show up for our students. I’ve had multiple anxiety attacks in school but I have to put up a front to go back to class." Will MOE consider setting limits for teachers’ working hours and workload? Other than enhancing the Parents Gateway, reducing coverage of national exams, removing some school-based exams, how else will MOE reduce teachers’ workloads? Next cut. Ensure All Teachers Have Flexi-work Arrangements Like many of us, teachers should enjoy flexible work arrangements (FWAs). Many are parents themselves. They prepare and send their children to school every morning before rushing to their own school. As a parent myself, I experience this chaos every morning. Some teachers struggled with this, including my resident who told me that her principal does not allow her to have staggered working hours. On the other hand, I know of teachers who do and I used to take the elevator every morning with a teacher who sends his child to school before going to his school late. We should ensure consistency across schools and all teachers should have FWAs, including staggered working hours. Another teacher shared with me about flexible working hours for teachers without children. She shared that her school allowed her to leave school after 11.30 am if there are no matters in school. However, another school only allow teachers to leave after 2.30 pm even if they have classes before that. Can MOE require all schools to offer FWAs, including staggered working hours and allow teachers to leave as long as there are no matters to take care of in school? Nurturing Leaders for Tomorrow Shawn Huang Wei Zhong (Jurong): It is important to have diverse experiences.”
“Sir, We should be fair to our teachers when reviewing their performance. In my Budget speech last year, I called for a performance management system or stack-ranking to be more standardised, transparent, fair and informative for teachers. We have done a lot for our students, we stopped ranking them and comparing them to their peers during PSLE, we tell them learning is not a competition. Why then do we make teaching a competition? It seems contradictory that teachers are the ones telling students that students are no longer ranked and compared with their peers when they themselves are ranked and compared with other teachers. MOE has bee engaging teachers on improving the performance management systems. After one year of further engagement, I hope MOE will remove the quota for grades, provide objective criteria for certain performance grades, starting with A, C and E; remove punitive implications of getting lower grades and allow for professional development leaves for those who get C- grades. 1.30 pm Like our students, our teachers deserve a nurturing environment. My next cut. Reduce Workload of Teachers Teachers wear many hats from teaching the curriculum, to holistic development, CCAs, and now COVID-19 regulations. We keep adding to teachers’ workload, but we still expect the same quality output from them. A 2019 study already found that working hours of Singapore teachers is higher than the OECD average. The working hours have increased over the pandemic and our overstretched teachers are reaching out for help. The average number of teachers seeking support through MOE's counselling services has almost doubled from before COVID-19. Teachers shared with me that they are stressed and overworked.”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Senior Minister of State for the reply. Could I just check, specifically, whether MOH has studied this issue further? In terms of overtime hours, how much are the nurses working overtime, the doctors as well during the past few months or two years in this pandemic? Two, I think it is really a manpower crunch. So, is MOH also studying the resignation rate, especially among the experienced healthcare workers, whom I understand are, leaving more as compared to the junior staff? And also, what is MOH doing to try and retain these workers?”
“Thank you, Sir. And I thank the Second Minister for the reply and the good work that UPLIFT has been doing. Could I ask, over the last two years, whether the correlation between PSLE scores and socio-economic status has been increasing or decreasing. And two, are we tracking whether the children involved in the UPLIFT programme are actually doing better as compared to their peers who are not involved in the UPLIFT programme? So, specifically, whether the Primary school students in the UPLIFT programme are going into Normal (Technical), Normal (Academic) or the Express streams after their PSLE?”
“If this reason is true, then why do civil servants with FWAs also have parent-care leave? If it is important for civil servants to have both FWAs and parent-care leave, then why not others? We are a family-friendly employer. Now, we need to be a family-friendly Government. We should introduce parent-care leave for all workers.”
“Working mothers who breastfeed need support at work. A survey by Singapore's Breastfeeding Mothers' Support Group found that the top reason for stopping breastfeeding was the challenges of expressing milk at work. For those still breastfeeding, they reported difficulty in finding time to express their milk at work. Sadly, the majority of working mothers surveyed could not express milk as much as they had wanted during work. Laws that guarantee breastfeeding breaks are not new or uncommon. A 2020 study of 97 countries found that 82% of countries had laws for paid and unpaid breastfeeding breaks. Singapore is in the minority of 18% of countries studied that do not legislate breastfeeding breaks. Countries, such as Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Japan, India, China, the Philippines, Thailand and South Korea, provide breastfeeding breaks at work or reduction of work hours daily. Will MOM support working mothers who breastfeed by legislating to guarantee breastfeeding breaks at work? Provide Parent-care Leave to Everyone Next, I miss my father very much and I regret not spending enough time with him. I especially regret that I did not take him for his many medical appointments in the year before he passed on. Spend time with those you love. One of these days, you will either say "I wish I had" or "I'm glad I did". We all need time to spend with our loved ones, especially when they are not feeling well. With an ageing population, many of us will need more time to look after our parents. The Government clearly agrees with this and introduced parent-care leave in the Civil Service more than a decade ago. It really was time we legislate the same leave for all other workers. Again, let us not use FWAs to justify not having parent-care leave.”
“Some say Singapore is the most fatigued country in the world. Working hard is important, but one cannot work hard without enough rest. Our minimum annual leave entitlement of seven days is not sufficient for many. Many other countries provide a higher minimum entitlement, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Laos, Qatar, Iran, Japan, South Korea and lots more. Many not only have a higher number of minimum days of annual leave, but also provide a higher number of paid public holidays. It is hard to see how raising the minimum entitlement will affect employability. Forty-seven percent of employees already get more than 14 days of annual leave. For many businesses which understand the importance of rest, nothing will change. Lower-income workers whose jobs are labour-intensive, are likely the ones with the minimum entitlement. It is ironic that those who need the most rest have the least rest and also have no access to FWAs. We work hard to increase the salaries of lower-income workers. We should also work hard to increase the time they have to rest.”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Minister for the response and I am glad it is a different reply. But can I just focus my clarification on low-income parents who, very often, cannot work-from-home or they have different kinds of FWAs. I agree with the Minister, I hope that employers can be more supportive. But I think we know, from the NUS study, this is not happening on the ground. So, could I ask the Government, specifically for low-income parents, what are we doing to help them to have some time off when their child is sick or, at least, when their child is born?”
“We need to do more to help lower-income fathers take their paternity leave. Why should they be denied the time to spend with their babies? Can the Government conduct a targeted study on the barriers to taking paternity leave for lower-income workers, look into policies to increase their usage of paternity leave and also look into incentivising employers who support their employees to take their paternity leave?”
“I know I sound like a broken record as here I am again asking for the Government to provide childcare sick leave. Why? Working parents need this, especially during this pandemic. Our frontline and essential workers and those who cannot work from home need this, especially during this pandemic. 4.45 pm The Government does not disagree with me when it comes to childcare sick leave. The Public Service already gives officers childcare sick leave and it is on a per-child basis. Civil servants are using this childcare sick leave. If the Government feels that childcare sick leave is important for the people who work for us, then why is it not important for the people we serve? Let us level that playing field. Let us also not use flexible work arrangements to justify not providing childcare sick leave. If this reason is true, then why do civil servants who have flexible work arrangements also have childcare sick leave? Will the Government consider providing childcare sick leave for all working parents on a per-child basis? I have raised this issue many times and I hope the reply would not be the same again. Provide All Fathers with Paternity Leave Paternity leave is important for our nation. An NUS study found that children whose fathers take paternity leave are significantly less likely to have behavioural issues. The study also found that these families have less internal conflict, lower likelihood of maternal depression, more marital satisfaction and more father-child closeness. The case for paternity leave cannot be stronger. However, the study also found that fathers in more labour-intensive jobs, such as machine operators and cleaners, were half as likely to take paternity leave as fathers working as legislators, senior officials and managers.”
“Sir, I would take my next two cuts together.”
“Thank you, Sir. Two quick clarifications. I think that is the worry on the ground, that we are only catching the runners and not making an effective dent on the illegal wildlife trade. So, could I ask the Minister of State whether NParks is looking into the money trail, doing financial audits for each of the wildlife crime cases that we are handling? Secondly, is NParks working with the financial institutions to ensure that they are filing suspicious transaction reports related to wildlife crime?”
“Thank you, Sir, I thank the Minister of State for the reply. Could I just ask how MOM will be monitoring and enforcing this mandatory rest day rule? Also, what action will be taken against employers who do not give their foreign domestic workers this mandatory rest day?”
“If we value our social workers, I hope MSF seriously considers the recommendations I have made on behalf of the social workers. We can and we must do more to help our social workers and empower them to help make Singapore a better place and more inclusive place for all.”
“I hope no other child has to go through what Allie went through. To do this, we need to help our social workers. In summary, I am asking that the Government introduce a cap on the number of cases each social worker can take on, provide funding for dedicated headcounts and resources for research work and provide more funding for dedicated headcounts and resources for community work. For all these recommendations, we need to make sure that it is not just rolled out as guidelines but that FSCs should follow and implement them, and MSF should help FSCs in the implementation. Sir, I recently met with MSF to discuss and share the concerns that social workers have shared with me. I appreciate the important work that MSF is doing and I could feel the passion in the room when they spoke about how they were helping FSCs and social workers. I thank them for their hard work and dedication. Let me end my speech with a quote, "Being a social worker is easy. It’s like riding a bike. Except the bike is on fire. You’re on fire. Everything is on fire". That is the reality. That really is what some social workers are feeling. In fact, I met up with social workers right after the Budget Statement. I shared this speech with them and one social worker shared with me in the most simple terms, "just tell everyone we are just very tired and frustrated". Sir, our social workers are our social safety net but they truly want to be more than that, to not just address the symptoms of the problem but address the root of the problem, to go down into the community to co-create solutions and address the real needs of the community. Social workers want to be the social safety trampoline that Senior Minister Tharman spoke about.”
“But why not empower FSCs to do the same? FSCs are located in the heart of the community and they have their finger on the pulse of their community. FSCs are already working with many of the people in the community, already meeting with them regularly and have the data on the trends and needs on the ground that many other NGOs do not have. There might be worries about duplication of work but there is so much to be done. We should be concerned but I think we hardly need to fear the duplication of work currently. About half of the FSC social workers I surveyed said their FSCs do not have dedicated manpower and resources for community work. About 84% wanted Government funding for headcounts dedicated to community work. I know MSF will agree that community work is important and, in fact, they already provide funding to FSCs for two headcounts for group and community work. But there is a lot more we need to do. First, social workers need to know there is existing funding for this. During my consultations with social workers, many were surprised to hear that funding for this headcount existed. Second, we need to increase the funding available. Many social workers shared that funding for two headcounts is hardly sufficient. Third, MSF needs to work closely with FSCs and ensure they use this funding available to them and hire the headcounts required to focus on community work. Sir, in conclusion, let me end my speech by returning to Allie’s story. She has been released from the Place of Safety and I brought her out for a meal and a day at the arcade with my daughter recently. I hope that one day Allie will be able to lead a stable and fulfilling life within the community in spite of everything she has gone through.”
“With funding support and dedicated headcounts, our FSCs can arm themselves with data about the vulnerable families and communities they serve and they can go upstream to solve these issues within the community. That brings me to my third and final recommendation today – to increase the time, resources and headcount for community work. I spoke earlier about how social workers do not have the time to do things like create community programmes. Indeed, when I met them, some social workers described community work as their CCA, as something secondary to case work, something they dabble in during their spare time. But it is something they feel is crucial. Sir, community work, in fact, has two important contributions. First, community work is prevention. It enables FSCs to reach at-risk families not yet clients of theirs. This improves outcomes as the families can receive support before their problems worsen significantly. Easier to put out small fires than raging infernos, after all. Second, community work builds social bonds. No man or woman is an island, and everyone needs a robust social network to succeed. Often, families working with FSCs lack friends and neighbours they can count on. Through community work, FSCs can link their clients with others in the same community and enable them to provide mutual support. This reduces the family’s reliance on institutions such as FSCs, helps them succeed in a sustainable way and also offers a way for families themselves to support others around them. Community work will also help to slow the inflow of new cases which will give social workers the space and time they need. It might help to break the vicious cycle some social workers are in. There are other NGOs that do community work and, indeed, many do excellent work.”
“This might sound like a miserable task but many social workers I spoke to talked about SSNet as a treasure trove of data. They think the rich information stored on SSNet could provide useful insights on the communities they serve. Some social workers have spent their personal time, after work hours, to trawl through and crunch the data in search of insights. One enthused to me about how it would be possible to run a sentiment analysis by applying natural language processing techniques to the data, to surface trends across cases in the same community. Sir, our social work degrees are rigorous. Their graduates emerge with research and technical skills. It would be a waste for them to let these skills atrophy. As I have mentioned, the only barrier is that FSCs often do not allocate time or staff to do research. The same social workers who beamed about unlocking the insights held in the SSNet data were also the ones frustrated by how they never had the time or support to do so. About half of the social workers that I surveyed shared that their FSCs do not have dedicated manpower for research work. About 85% wanted Government funding for headcounts dedicated to research. I know MSF is trying to help and recognises the importance of research work. It does provide FSCs with data from SSNet whenever a social worker request for it. But we can cut the administrative workload of social workers making these constant requests by having in-house researchers. I hope MSF will respond positively to this appeal by social workers. I know it can provide funding for this through the new Community Capacity Trust which will open for applications from 1 April 2022, and I hope MSF will ensure that all FSCs use this funding and hire in-house researchers.”
“It also denies them time to attend courses, mentor junior staff and create community programmes, equally important tasks that build organisational capacity, transfer knowledge and support communities. Ms Elizabeth Quek, a community social worker, shared about "the helplessness social workers feel when we don't have the time or resources for someone who needs more support." This is not a sustainable solution and many social workers are reaching or have reached their breaking point. We need to have a cap on the number of cases that social workers can take on. This is nothing new. In many industries, caps are set to ensure service quality remains high. Schools, for example, limit the number of students in each class so teachers can dedicate more attention to each student. In a survey I carried out, 87% of social workers felt that there should be a cap on the number of active cases a social worker handles. Ms Quek, whose quote I shared earlier, said that reducing caseloads will improve social workers' capacity to help their clients. I know this cannot happen overnight and it is not easy to implement. It will require changes in FSC human resources (HR) practices but this cap is absolutely necessary. The actual number of the cap should also be decided in consultation with social workers from across the profession and take into consideration the wide spectrum of cases – Group 2, Group 3 and Group 4 cases – a social worker handles. Sir, my second recommendation is to increase the time, resources and headcount for research work at FSCs. Social workers told me they spend a significant part of their work entering data from their cases into the Social Service Net, or SSNet.”
“It is no surprise that active cases handled by FSCs skyrocketed during the pandemic, increasing from 17,000 per quarter to 20,000 cases – and cases are also getting more complex. Sir, we need to do more for our social workers who are just as much at the frontline of this pandemic and are in a tight situation like our healthcare workers. Today, I have three recommendations to give our social workers the time, resources and support they need. My first recommendation is to set a cap on the number of cases that each social worker can take on at any given time. Currently, too many social workers are forced to juggle an excessive caseload. According to MSF data from the past five years, the average social worker at a FSC handles 22 cases a year. If 22 cases was the maximum, that might be fine. But 22 cases is the average. This likely means many social workers are out there working far heavier caseloads. I met many of them during my dialogues who told me that they often have 30 to 50 cases at any given time. This is a shocking number. Maybe they are outliers but their views are important too. Social workers have told me that excessive caseloads directly hurt their ability to do a good job. A FSC social worker shared with me that they feel that they are shortchanging their clients who so desperately need help and they feel bad. Another social worker shared this quote with me to explain how they feel, "If you ever wanna know what a social worker's mind feels like, imagine a browser with 2,857 tabs open. All the time." With a huge caseload, they obviously have to give less attention to each case. Often, they end up doing what they call "firefighting", which means tackling only the most urgent problems. This firefighting makes it hard for them to give 100% to each case.”
“But as we deep dived into the issues, I realised we have plenty of programmes. The issue might be that social workers had too much on their plate and many were burned out. Over the past year, I talked with many social workers. I met with social workers every month. I spoke to senior social workers and junior social workers. I spoke to those in the frontlines and those who have left the profession. I spoke to those from family service centres (FSCs) and from other voluntary welfare organisations (VWOs). I also carried out a public survey and reached out to over 120 social workers. I listened to their concerns, their worries and most of all, their deep passion in wanting to help others. But Sir, they too need help, especially during this pandemic. A study found that nearly 60% of frontline social workers were affected by anxiety at the height of the pandemic, with 45% facing depression. The study also found that social workers in FSCs faced higher depression rates. These findings mirror what I was hearing from social workers in my dialogues. One after another, social workers described their heavy caseloads and exhaustion. I heard the same requests over and over again: requests for more time, more resources and more help. Today, I want to focus on social workers at our FSCs. FSCs are often the first port of call for those in need. Many see them as a clearing house for all social services. They advise and support families with financial, housing, employment, social and emotional resources. Families rely on their support when applying for financial assistance, seeking housing assistance, requesting food donations, seeking new employment, solving marital problems and much, much more.”
“Sir, every year during Budget season, we ask ourselves how we can best support the most vulnerable members of our society. Let me start this time with one story of what vulnerability looks like. Allie – not her real name – is a girl who used to live in my constituency. When I first met her in 2016, she was just eight years old. She was like a big sister to my daughter Ella, and they used to play together. Her family had little and lived in a rental flat, but she gave what she could. She gifted Ella her toy car. She patted Ella on her back whenever she coughed. One could not wish for a sweeter, kinder child. But all this changed when in about a year later, Allie was sent to live in a place of safety – to protect her and to help her. But it also made her a completely different person. Torn from her friends, her family and her home, she shrunk into her shell. When I visited her, she barely spoke a word. She just sat in the room and stared into space. This was not the lively child I once knew, and it was heartbreaking to see how much she was affected and how she had her childhood ripped from her. It is hard to blame the social workers at the place of safety. I saw firsthand how much they cared. They tried their best with the limited resources they had. When I was there, I saw a little boy climbing the fence and the barb wires, trying to escape. The social worker was trying so hard and so gently to calm him down. Children like Allie need all the help they can get. I spent a lot of time thinking about what we can do to help children like her. I raised questions in Parliament about places of safety and about intergenerational incarceration. I thought, surely, we can launch new programmes, more programmes, to help.”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Minister of State for the reply. Could I follow up quickly on whether we would consider micro-chipping the cats? This is something I have pushed for for many years because I think that will help to reduce the abandonment of cats, as for example, like dogs that we now license and micro-chip. It is pretty hard to abandon them because we would be able to trace the owners quite easily.”
“Thank you, Sir. I thank the Senior Minister of State for the short reply. I do know there is no separate legislation. But the question is really why are we enforcing so much on high-rise littering and, of course, why so little on second-hand smoke when it is very similar? And second-hand smoke is actually easier to detect than high-rise littering?”
“Thank you, Sir and I thank the Minister for the reply. In the last two months, over 2,400 people in Singapore have approached me for help with regard to them being affected by second-hand smoke in their homes. I think the massive number is not worrying, what is worrying is that only about 2% actually approached the Community Mediation Centre (CMC) or CDRT for help. Could I ask Minister, what are we doing in terms of creating more awareness of CMC or CDRT option? Two, how can we make the whole process easier or more accessible to members of the public?”
“May I thank Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon for the reply. Let me just ask two clarifications then. One, we have a piece of legislation, quite a serious one, against kickbacks that is broken once every three days. Do we not feel that there is no deterrence and that maybe it is time to review it, at least to see whether it can serve as a deterrent? Two, I understand that the Retention Scheme expires on 28 February. I think the Senior Minister of State mentioned that they might be extending it a few months. Could I just ask whether that is confirmed just for the construction sector, or are we also going to look into expanding the Retention Scheme to all other sectors, not just the marine and manufacturing?”
“Sir, they miss their families and the least we can do is make them feel like they are a part of the Singapore family. The very least that we can do is to ensure that we treat them with the fairness and dignity that everyone in Singapore deserves.”
“I am not asking for any special treatment for our migrant workers. I am only asking that they be treated fairly and equally, like the rest of us. I am also not proposing anything new. My proposals merely extend to migrant workers protocols we already have in place for dealing with corruption in the corporate sector, with health risks in military dormitories and with exhaustion among foreign domestic workers. Sir, at the start of the pandemic, Ministers and Members of Parliament stood in this House, broadcasting our support for the sacrifices of our migrant workers. Our words matter, but so do our deeds. Migrant workers are members of our society and builders of our nation. Sir, I started this speech stressing about how difficult it must be for them to live so far from their home and their loved ones. Today is, actually, my daughter Ella’s birthday. Honestly, I feel bad and it does break my heart that I am not able to be there with her today and to spend time with her on this special day. By the time I get home, probably, she will be asleep. I will do my best to make it up to Ella tomorrow and spend some precious time with her. It is a painful feeling to not be there for your children, a feeling that migrant workers who are fathers must feel each and every day. Sir, it is a long speech but I do not think any amount of words can adequately describe the difficult lives migrant workers lead – being in debt, being exhausted from the backbreaking work they do, the confinement, earning so little and yet having to pay kickbacks, never being able to hug their own children, some of whom they have never even met. I do not think any of us can truly understand what they go through.”
“Our foreign domestic workers need rest. Our low-wage migrant workers need it, too. My proposed solution to this problem is to provide one mandatory rest day a month to all migrant workers. Workers should not be allowed to sell these rest days back to their employers; they should be required to rest. This aligns with what we will apply to foreign domestic workers. If we all agree that foreign domestic workers need one mandatory rest day a month, then how can we not agree that migrant workers also need one mandatory rest day a month? Sir, in conclusion, let me summarise the three problems I have highlighted today and the solutions. First, many migrant workers face forced kickbacks. There need to be much harsher penalties against such law-breaking employers and individuals. Workers also need a universal and permanent programme that allows them to switch employers, with salary limits, to ensure labour costs do not spike. Second, the vast majority of migrant workers living in dormitories remain without access to the community. Vaccinated and boosted dormitory residents should be allowed to enter the community, subject to all of the intense safe practices and frequent testing that they already face. Small-scale releases should not be seen as the solution. Third, migrant workers should be given at least one rest day every month that they cannot sell back to their employer. They should be required not to work for that day, similar to foreign domestic workers, so they have some minimum level of rest. This keeps them healthy and would also improve workplace safety. Kickbacks, confinement and exhaustion. These are core problems facing too many migrant workers in Singapore, and there are feasible, workable, research-based solutions for each of them.”
“Would we all sitting here accept letting only 2% of our NSFs into the community? This drip-drip offering of tiny community visits does not help the vast majority of workers. A broad-based relaxation of movement controls is needed and small-scale community visits are not an adequate substitute. Sir, our NSFs live, work, shower and eat in a communal setting and are allowed into the community with appropriate safe management measures, such as taking regular tests and being cohorted into smaller groups. These measures allow NSFs to remain part of our community. If there are any additional assurances required before our migrant workers can be allowed into the community, can we apply the same measures for NSFs to our migrant workers? The third and final problem I will highlight today is exhaustion. Workers need rest, whether they think they need it or not. We already accept this by mandating holidays and leave entitlements to workers covered under the Employment Act, and by soon requiring foreign domestic workers to take at least one rest day a month. But this benefit has not been extended to other migrant workers. It is not just a matter of consistency; it is a matter of safety. The year 2021 has been an awful year for workplace safety. The latest statistics from the first half of 2021 showed a higher level of major injuries and fatalities, compared to 2019 and 2020. It should be no wonder to us that burned-out, overworked workers, pushed to their limits, break the rules and get sloppy. To some extent, we can blame errant individuals, but we also have to accept the biological fact that a worker’s body, eventually, hits a limit. Workplace fatigue has been known as a contributing factor of workplace injuries. Our office workers need rest. Our frontline workers need rest.”
“Healthy, tested, audited and vaccinated. What more could we ask from our migrant workers? I do understand that dormitories are communal places that carry a heightened level of risk. But we do not place residents of military dormitories under nearly the same kind of restrictions. Would it be acceptable to bar NSFs from booking out for their entire two years of National Service, in the spirit of protecting them? Why do we treat migrant workers living in dormitories differently? Sir, my recommendation is straightforward: we should allow all vaccinated and boosted migrant workers to enter the general community as long as they comply with their intensive regimes of safe practice and frequent testing. When in the community, dormitory residents will have to comply with all existing safety measures that the general public already have to comply with, such as mask wearing and dining group sizes. Workers should be required to demonstrate understanding of these measures prior to leaving their dormitories by completing quizzes on the FWMOMCare app. Those found in breach of these measures should face a graduated scale of penalties, including restricted access to the community. I know that Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon will share that MOM already has some limited programmes for allowing dormitory residents into the community. Up to 3,000 vaccinated migrant workers may visit the community on weekdays and up to 6,000 on weekends and public holidays. In addition, they are working with community partners to plan and organise events and activities for workers. Three thousand workers on weekdays and 6,000 on weekends. This means on any given day, only about 2% of dorm residents are free to enter the community. Surely, we will all agree that this is not nearly enough.”
“Another worker, Sharif, said, "This is prison life. This is a captive's life." Sir, some feel that RCs are a solution. But as Zakir shares, going to the RC only helps a little. Like all of us, migrant workers want to meet friends who are living in other areas in Singapore. They miss one another, a feeling we all understand. MOM has said that the movement restrictions are "to protect the health of our migrant workers and to mitigate the risk of further transmission". But, for Sharif, he feels more like he is being punished than being protected. Sir, socialisation, entertainment and physical freedom are basic needs. But these are needs that migrant workers living in dormitories have been denied for far too long now. Our lockdown of migrant workers is also not grounded in risk management principles. Migrant workers, by and large, are at very low risk of putting our healthcare system under a strain. This is based on four factors. First, they are exceedingly healthy. Last year, 99.9% of COVID-19-infected migrant workers had either no or mild symptoms. Second, they are tested very frequently. Dormitory residents today have to undergo the Fast and Easy Testing-Rostered Routine. This means they are tested once every seven days. By contrast, the vast majority of Singaporeans do not undergo routine testing. Third, their place of residence is audited and enforced with health controls. All dormitories are configured to implement Safe Living Measures. Large dormitories face Infection Prevention and Control audits at least once a week. Residents must also complete mandatory COVID-19 education programmes. Fourth, nearly all of them are fully vaccinated: 98% of dormitory residents are fully vaccinated. By contrast, only about 87% of Singapore's overall population is fully vaccinated.”
“This scheme reduces COVID-19-related labour shortages, but also can allow workers to leave abusive employers. It is an age-old solution that all of us already benefit from. If your boss abuses you and steals from your pay cheque, your first step is surely not to stick around. It is to say I quit and find a new job. Why should migrant workers not get this same opportunity? My proposal here is not only to make the Retention Scheme a permanent one, but to make it better. MOM said last October that there are plans to cover the manufacturing and marine sector. I hope we can do more and cover all sectors that employ Work Permit holders. The scheme also needs salary controls. Workers should not face a decreased salary, employers should not see bidding wars and Singaporeans should not expect price inflation. Sir, forced kickbacks trap workers in abusive workplaces. But there is a second problem that traps workers, literally: physical confinement. In a few weeks' time, we will reach a two-year anniversary. This anniversary is not a happy one. It marks two years since our migrant workers have been free to leave their dormitories. For two years, most of the 300,000 workers living in dormitories have not been able to walk free. They leave their dormitories almost exclusively for work. They do get to use recreation centres (RCs), but these are hardly any substitute for the community, with their limited physical amenities and, most importantly, the absence of the workers' social network. In the words of Bangladeshi worker Zakir: "It's like we are inside a cage." He described the mental torture of being allowed out of the dormitory only to go to work. Dormitory and work. That is it. He shared how the continued confinement will lead to mental health issues amongst our migrant workers.”
“Forced kickbacks are just as damaging to Singapore's rule of law as corruption cases punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act. To put things in context, CPIB received 239 reports of corruption in 2020. This means MOM's 960 kickback reports are more than four times of all corruption cases in Singapore. It is a massive number. For a nation founded and built on the principle of zero tolerance for corruption, forced kickbacks are an equally severe problem that we have not adequately tackled. I propose two solutions to this problem. First, we need to treat kickbacks as seriously as corruption by sharply increasing penalties against employers and individuals caught collecting kickbacks. I agree with Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon when he said that strict penalties and a strong stance against employers who collect kickbacks are key and that deterrence should be on the side of the employers. But the current maximum sentence of two years of imprisonment and a $30,000 fine under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act is far too low to be a deterrent. Kickbacks are just as damaging as bribes to the integrity of Singapore's systems. They should be treated as severely as bribes. I propose that the maximum sentence be raised to five years of imprisonment and a $100,000 fine, matching the maximum penalty for bribery cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act. My second proposal is to create a permanent scheme that allows migrant workers to change employers. Currently, we have a temporary programme called the Retention Scheme. This was introduced last year by MOM and the Singapore Contractors Association Limited, or SCAL. Under this scheme, migrant workers who leave their employers get a 30-day window in which SCAL will try to match them to a new employer.”
“These are workers earning the lowest salaries in Singapore, forced to return their pay cheques to their bosses just so they would not be fired. If any Singaporean were in their shoes, they would be outraged. I recently met some migrant workers who had been asked to pay about $3,000 to be allowed to continue their employment. For some, this is more than four times their salary. For these men, being sent home is to be sentenced to financial ruin. They would have no way to repay the loans each of them took to make their way here in the first place. These workers were terrified when they spoke to me. They feared the repercussions of reporting their bosses. What would happen to their job, family and debts? What would happen to them? I could see their hands trembling as they spoke. A crime had been committed against them, yet their first emotion was not anger but fear. One of the workers told me, "When I came to Singapore in 2016, I paid $14,000, then in 2018, I paid $1,500 for my Work Permit. Now they said that if I don’t give them $3,000 they will fire me. I am a really poor man, I have no money to give them. In this situation, I am really helpless and feeling depressed. I am an honest and hardworking man." Sir, hearing these stories first-hand reminded me that these 960 cases are not just a statistic. They are humans with mothers, fathers and families, suffering a grave injustice. But let us, for a moment, talk about numbers. MOM says that these cases form "only about 10% of all complaints that MOM receives." This is the wrong comparison. We should be clear about what a forced kickback is. It is a criminal act. It is employers forcing migrant workers, who have no choice but to pay money.”
“But deep inside, I know how painful it must be for him to not be there with his family. I am sure our migrant workers all wish to be home with their loved ones. Who does not wish to be? But they know that working here gives their family a chance at a better life. Hanif's wife, Tania, shared quite painfully: "Sometimes, I think, if he can come back to Bangladesh, how amazing that would be. I feel sad and I miss his presence. However, reality is very tough, so he has to work hard abroad for us. Obviously, I feel sad for my son that he will be deprived of his dad's love and affection". As Hanif sums it up, "We are poor people. To survive, we have to make these kinds of sacrifices." Sir, our migrant workers make extraordinary sacrifices to be here in Singapore. They deserve to be treated with fairness and dignity like anyone else. Unfortunately, this has not been the case for many migrant workers. Today, I will outline three major problems they face: kickbacks, confinement and exhaustion. I will also propose feasible and impactful solutions to solve these problems. The first problem is forced kickbacks. Today, many workers are forced to pay kickbacks to their employers. MOM has said that it receives about 960 reports of kickback offences a year, with an average of 102 employers taken to task each year. Senior Minister of State Koh Poh Koon might not feel this is a widespread problem, but if you break it down, that is one employer every three days in Singapore being taken to task for collecting kickbacks from their migrant workers. One every three days. Sir, let us also start by being clear: 960 cases is 960 too many. This does not even include the unreported cases and could just be the tip of the iceberg.”