SINGAPORE will not extend the temporary housing support to affected employers beyond March 31 although Malaysia is extending the Movement Control Order (MCO) period to April 14.
The republic’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM) had on March 17 announced that it would provide temporary housing support to help employers defray the additional costs of housing affected workers as a result of the MCO implemented on March 18.
The Singapore government is providing employers in the island country with financial support of S$50 per night for up to 14 nights for every worker affected by the order.
“For their own long-term sustainability and business continuity reasons, employers will need to decide on how best to house their affected workers in Singapore, and the sharing of additional costs with their workers,” it said in its website.
The ministry strongly encouraged all affected employers to look for more sustainable housing options in Singapore for these workers.
Over the past week, Singapore government has helped to facilitate accommodation for affected workers.
“As a whole, the government has helped around 2,000 firms with their requests for accommodation for over 10,000 affected workers,” said MOM, adding that other firms have made their own arrangements to accommodate affected workers.
Since then, MOM has been following up with employers to ensure that their affected workers are housed in temporary housing that is safe and appropriate.
MOM said it will now embark on the next phase, which is to work with employers to facilitate the transfer of their affected workers into more sustainable housing options in Singapore.
The ministry had said that the order has impacted both work pass holders and Singapore’s own citizens as well as permanent residents who commute daily from Malaysia. – March 26, 2020, Bernama
