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Foreign construction workers unskilled? That's unfair
I REFER to the report, 'Call to tweak foreign worker policy' (Aug 7).
We would like to clarify that the statement, 'about 870,000 are unskilled work permit holders labouring in construction and as domestic helpers', is an incorrect and unfair labelling of foreign construction workers, and it does not do justice to the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and employers managing this group of workers.
Each foreign construction worker in Singapore must pass a trade test to qualify for the Skills Evaluation Certificate that is invigilated and certified by BCA. Each worker also needs to pass the medical examination.
Upon compliance with these minimum requirements, plus others like security bond, insurance and quota, only then does MOM issue the work permit for each worker. In summary, the regulatory policy is that 100 per cent of foreign construction workers must be skilled.
On the issue of labour productivity, our view is that market forces dictate that employers maximise all the factors of production, including the productivity of their foreign construction workers, regardless of whether they are a cheaper or the only available option. All these workers are deployed in various trades and many experienced workers are often multi-skilled and multi-tasked.
Simon Lee
Executive Director
Singapore Contractors Association
Foreign construction workers unskilled? That's unfair
I REFER to the report, 'Call to tweak foreign worker policy' (Aug 7).
We would like to clarify that the statement, 'about 870,000 are unskilled work permit holders labouring in construction and as domestic helpers', is an incorrect and unfair labelling of foreign construction workers, and it does not do justice to the Building and Construction Authority (BCA), Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and employers managing this group of workers.
Each foreign construction worker in Singapore must pass a trade test to qualify for the Skills Evaluation Certificate that is invigilated and certified by BCA. Each worker also needs to pass the medical examination.
Upon compliance with these minimum requirements, plus others like security bond, insurance and quota, only then does MOM issue the work permit for each worker. In summary, the regulatory policy is that 100 per cent of foreign construction workers must be skilled.
On the issue of labour productivity, our view is that market forces dictate that employers maximise all the factors of production, including the productivity of their foreign construction workers, regardless of whether they are a cheaper or the only available option. All these workers are deployed in various trades and many experienced workers are often multi-skilled and multi-tasked.
Simon Lee
Executive Director
Singapore Contractors Association
