Ker Eng Kiat, a 52-year-old Singaporean, and his brother, Ker Eng Hock, a 53-year-old Singaporean, have been convicted of illegal employment offenses under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act 1990 (EFMA). Eng Kiat, previously convicted in 2013 for similar offenses, received a sentence of one month’s imprisonment and a $23,000 fine (with a default of 46 days’ imprisonment) for unlawfully employing five foreign workers without valid work passes. Eng Hock was convicted and fined $6,000 on September 7, 2023, for illegally employing one foreign worker without a valid work pass.
In a separate case, Tan Hoe Soon, a 70-year-old Singaporean, and Ker Yong Sen, a 41-year-old Singaporean and the younger brother of Eng Kiat and Eng Hock, were convicted for conspiring to hire two foreign workers without valid work passes. Tan and Yong Sen each received fines of $8,500 on September 14 and 19, 2023, respectively.
In another case, Sao Wei Loon, a 47-year-old Singaporean, was convicted and sentenced on October 3, 2023, to two months’ imprisonment and a $45,000 fine (with a default of three months’ imprisonment) for illegally employing 11 foreign workers without valid work passes.
All 19 foreign workers employed by the aforementioned individuals have been barred from working in Singapore.
Details of the Cases:
Eng Kiat and Eng Hock:
Ministry of Manpower (MOM) officers conducted an inspection at the Geylang Serai Bazaar on April 4, 2023. Investigations revealed that Eng Kiat and Eng Hock had rented food stalls at the Bazaar from March to April 2023, employing six foreigners as stall assistants during this period. The job roles included the preparation and sale of food products, as well as cash collection from customers. These six foreign workers, on social visit passes, lacked valid work passes for their roles as stall assistants and were not provided proper lodging, with some sleeping on the floor of the food stalls after closing.
Tan and Yong Sen:
MOM officers conducted separate inspections at the Ang Mo Kio Pasar Malam on March 31 and April 4, 2023. Investigations revealed that Tan and Yong Sen had rented a food stall at the Ang Mo Kio Pasar Malam from March to April 2023, employing two foreign workers as food stall assistants. Similar to the first case, these workers were on social visit passes and lacked valid work passes. Proper lodging was not provided.
Sao:
An earlier inspection on October 26, 2022, at a temporary fair outside Hillion Mall revealed that Sao had rented food stalls to sell products in October 2022. Sao hired 11 foreign workers on social visit passes without obtaining work passes for any of them.
Advisory:
Under the EFMA, individuals employing foreign workers without valid work passes face conviction with fines ranging from $5,000 to $30,000, imprisonment up to 12 months, or both. For second or subsequent convictions, individuals may be fined between $10,000 and $30,000, along with imprisonment for a term not less than one month and not more than 12 months.
If you have any company-related queries, you may email us at [email protected]. When in doubt, seek legal advice or consult an experienced licensed Employment Agency with the Ministry of Manpower.
Yours Sincerely,
The editorial team at Singapore Employment Agency
For more useful articles and videos, visit the Singapore Employment Agency resource page.
If you would like to submit a question or would like us to do an article on certain topics, please email us at [email protected].
Little Big Employment Agency Pte Ltd is a licensed Employment Agency with the Ministry of Manpower with license number 19C9790.