False Declaration to Hire More Foreign Workers.
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This is really hilarious.
Last few months, there was a copious discussion between stupidissmart and eagle about phantom workers and how these employers exploit the loophole to employ more FTs. stupidissmart vehemently defended his point saying that no such loopholes exist, whereas eagle said stated that employers have been exploiting this loophole.
Today there was a case regarding the employment of phantom workers by a local eatery. I wonder what has stupidissmart got to add to this.
Local eatery owner charged with making false declarations
By Cheah Yean Ti, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 24 November 2008 1731 hrsSINGAPORE: A local eatery owner was charged last Friday, November 21, with falsely declaring the number of Singaporeans hired by him.
Sambnani Anil Pritamdas, the owner of Spize – The Makan Place, allegedly made the false declarations so that he could qualify for more foreign workers.
Under the work pass framework, companies have to employ a certain number of local workers before they can apply to employ foreign workers. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said this is to prevent employers from over-relying on foreign workers at the expense of local ones.
Investigations showed that Sambnani had inflated the number of Singaporeans hired by him when he applied for 15 work passes between February 2007 and March this year.
The 34-year-old was slapped with ten charges of making false declarations and another five for abetting his brother and manager to make false declarations.
If convicted under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, he can be fined up to S$15,000 or jailed up to 12 months, or both.
Aw Kum Cheong, divisional director of the Foreign Manpower Management Division, MOM, said: "Payment of CPF contributions to such 'phantom' workers is a serious breach of the integrity of our work pass framework and creates an unequal playing field by disadvantaging law-abiding employers.
"Therefore, the ministry will investigate and prosecute such cases and on conviction, bar employers from employing foreign workers."
MOM said it is currently investigating several other similar cases.
- CNA/sohttp://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/391896/1/.html
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Today's straits times
Sun, Feb 22, 2009
The Straits Times
By Shuli Sudderuddin
Mrs Josephine Teo, an MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, recently met a retired woman in her 60s at her Meet-the-People session.
'She wasn't working but discovered that money had been deposited in her CPF account,' she said.
The woman was puzzled about this and brought it up to the MP.
Quotas in different sectors
Construction sector
For every full-time Singapore citizen or permanent resident employed by a company which makes regular full-month Central Provident Fund contributions, it can employ seven foreign workers.
Service sector
(Includes financial, insurance, real estate and business services, and restaurants, coffee shops, foodcourts and other approved food establishments.)
Up to 50 per cent of a company's total workforce can be foreign workers on work permits.
It strives to maintain the quota but it is no easy task.
The Must Eat coffee shop in Toa Payoh Central has three workers from China and three workers from Malaysia out of its 12 employees there.
This is within the quota for the service industry, where up to 50 per cent of the company's workforce can be foreign workers.