SINGAPORE - An annual report on employment standards released on Tuesday laid out data on salary and wrongful dismissal claims lodged formally in 2022.

Among other things, the report by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) said that more than eight in 10 salary claims were resolved with the help of trained mediators at TADM.

The Straits Times speaks to three employees who recovered their owed wages. Real names have been withheld for confidentiality reasons.

Salary withheld following incident over insurance report

After getting into an accident one afternoon in June 2021, Mr Tan asked for instructions from his then employer, a transport company, but received none.

“I found out that the repair fee quoted for the other vehicle was too high for me to settle privately, so I decided to report it to the motor insurance company that evening,” said the driver, who is in his 60s.

“My boss was very angry, and scolded me for making the claim, but I... decided to resign only in December 2021, as I started to question how he treated me,” he said in Mandarin.

After waiting for more than two weeks without receiving his final pay cheque of over $1,800, Mr Tan was at his wits’ end and submitted a salary claim to TADM’s online dispute-resolution portal with his daughter’s help.

A TADM mediator called him to establish the facts and calculate his claim amount, using his appointment and confirmation letters and payslips for reference.

Even after an agreement was struck, the employer grudgingly paid Mr Tan the sum owed to him only on the last day before the payment deadline, more than two months after his wages were due.

Mr Tan, who moved on to drive for a new employer in January 2022, said being able to make online submissions and talk to a mediator on the phone, if needed, is convenient for workers like him.

“We need to apply (for) leave and make an appointment to physically visit TADM at a specific time, whereas using the phone or Internet allows us to just take time out of our work day to speak.”

Cost of cruise trip deducted from salary

A few months after Amirah clinched her first full-time job as a pre-school teacher, she suddenly stopped receiving her basic salary, overtime payments and paid leave benefits in February 2023.

Three days after her payday came and went without her salary being deposited, she spoke to her employer, only for him to say deductions from her salary were needed.

“He even claimed that I actually owed the company money because I would have to bear the cost of some Teachers’ Day cruise trip that I did not go for.”

A colleague who had submitted a claim for her unpaid salary earlier on introduced Amirah to TADM and its online dispute-resolution portal.

Impressed by the speedy result, Amirah said: “I submitted my report on a Thursday, and TADM e-mailed my employer around the next Tuesday or Wednesday, and the payment was settled by the end of the week.”

She moved on to a different employer in March.

“I was paid my wages during the notice period, because (my former boss) knew I might try to file another claim otherwise.”

She advised workers in a similar predicament to document all conversations with their bosses, be it through screenshots or recordings, to attach as proof in the claim.

She added: “Don’t be scared. I was scared before this, but as long as you know you’re right, and you have all the evidence, just try.”

Migrant worker not paid correctly for working overtime, on weekends

Ali joined a construction firm as a driver in January 2023, but found out from his first pay cheque the next month that he was not paid correctly for working overtime and on weekends.

“I was paid only my basic rate on weekends, but I was supposed to be paid double on weekends and public holidays, and 1.5 times my basic rate for overtime,” said the work permit holder, who has lived in Singapore for 18 years.

“They also didn’t pay me for these in March, so I quit and submitted my claim online through TADM, after a Google search.”

Now a driver for another firm, he added: “I told my (former) employer I respected Singapore and MOM’s rules and regulations, and asked them to follow the rules too, but she gave me only $10 and told me she didn’t care.”

TADM’s assigned mediator assessed that Ali would be more comfortable sharing further information in an in-person setting, and scheduled a meeting with him and his former employer in April.

Within three days after the mediation session, Ali received full payment of about $1,000 for his owed salaries, after deducting taxes and wages forfeited in lieu of his two-month notice period.

Expressing his gratitude, Ali said: “I love Singapore and Singapore has let me support my family, and I would like to thank TADM and the mediator for supporting my claim.”