About 270 Employment Pass holders suspected of being deployed as airport baggage handlers; about 45 firms under investigation

Foreign employees holding Employment Passes (EPs) who should have been doing professional or managerial work were instead deployed to handle baggage at Changi Airport.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is investigating about 45 companies involved in airport operations for suspected false declarations of foreign employees’ salaries and occupations, or illegal deployment of workers. About 270 foreign employees are involved.

In a statement on Monday (2 November), MOM said recent inspections at Changi Airport found that some EP holders had been deployed to perform baggage handling work.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the salaries and occupations declared to MOM for these EP holders were false. Other work pass holders were also found performing baggage-handling work, which was different from their declared occupations.

EPs are primarily issued to foreign professionals, managers and executives. Applicants must earn a fixed monthly salary that meets MOM’s minimum threshold, which rises with age.

For younger applicants outside the financial services sector, the current minimum monthly salary is S$5,600. Applicants must also score enough points under the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS).

Other work passes include the S Pass, mainly issued to mid-skilled foreign employees, and the Work Permit (WP), issued to foreign employees in specific sectors.

MOM said it had identified about 270 foreign employees whose work arrangements may not comply with work pass requirements. These employees work for contractors and subcontractors of SATS.

The authorities have directed SATS to strengthen its oversight of contractors, including verifying that the work foreign employees actually perform complies with the requirements of their work passes, and rectifying any non-compliant practices.

The authorities also reminded other companies involved in SATS’ operations of their responsibility to comply with the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA) and the relevant work pass requirements.

In response to queries from Lianhe Zaobao (LHZB) on Tuesday (3 November), MOM said it could not provide further details while investigations were ongoing, including the types of work passes held by the employees involved, their declared occupations and the breakdown of their nationalities.　　

MOM stressed that it takes breaches of work pass requirements seriously. Investigations are ongoing, and enforcement action will be taken against any company found to have broken the law.

The ministry will also continue inspections to ensure employers comply with the relevant requirements.

Responding to media queries the same day, SATS said a routine internal audit had uncovered work pass breaches involving outsourced workers employed by some of its contractors.

SATS said in a statement that it had taken immediate action against contractors that breached contractual requirements and the law, and had expanded its review to include other contractors. A list of the contractors and employees implicated in the internal audit has been handed to MOM.

The statement said: “SATS has been working closely with MOM and the relevant agencies to fully support investigations into such breaches.”

SATS also stressed that it had strengthened its internal review processes to ensure outsourced employees work strictly within the scope permitted by their respective passes. It is also rectifying non-compliant practices under MOM’s guidance.

Under EFMA, anyone who makes a false declaration in a work pass application can be fined up to S$20,000, jailed for up to two years, or both. Employers who illegally deploy foreign employees may face a fine of up to S$10,000 and may be barred from hiring WP holders.

MOM urged members of the public who discover suspected breaches of work pass requirements to report them through the Report an Infringement eService on its website. All information provided will be kept strictly confidential.