SINGAPORE: Members of Parliament have urged employers of migrant workers who sustain injuries while on the job to promptly pay for their medical treatment, and provide proper food and accommodation during the compensation process.
According to MOM, 80 per cent of permanent injury cases are resolved within six months. The remaining 20 per cent, or 1,300 claims per year, take a longer time.The change reduces the waiting time for an assessment and allows workers to receive compensation earlier, MOM said, adding that a delayed assessment could increase outlays for employers.
Labour MP Patrick Tay said there have been reports in which injured workers could not seek medical treatment because employers did not provide them with a Letter of Guarantee , adding that they then had to go without treatment as they were unable to afford it. “In addition, the new WICA will allow the ministry to order insurers to pay medical expenses directly to the healthcare institution if necessary," said Mr Zaqy.
“They are aware the migrant worker will run into hardship and put the employers or insurers at an advantage to negotiate a lower quantum which the worker has little choice but to accept,” he said, noting that the CI assessment at six months will help overcome this. “They have to provide acceptable housing and adequate food - for example, three meals a day - for workers whose work injury claims are still pending,” he said.
While letters addressed to migrant workers are usually sent to the office address of their employer, Ms Ong noted that there have been cases where the employer had failed to pass the letters on. Mr Ng also asked if these workers could receive accident reports through existing mobile applications. When it comes to migrant workers, Mr Zaqy said MOM will explore how to provide other forms of notifications.