Singapore Guest Worker Riot Fans Discontent Over Foreign Labor Reliance, Quick Population Growth
Singapore’s massive use of guest workers, and the country’s related quick population growth, have become hot political issues. The government has taken minor action to reduce the number of guest workers used but the recent guest worker riot is likely to spur further debate.
Singapore last experienced a riot in 1969. The trouble started in an area where guest workers gather every Sunday. A bus driver removed an allegedly drunk worker from India after he made a scene. The bus driver then turned a corner and heard a loud noise. He found the man dead under the wheel of his bus. Soon thereafter, at least 400 guest workers amassed and rampaged through the streets setting fires, overturning police cars and breaking windows. Clashes injured 27 police officers and firefighters. The government took action against 295 guest workers. Twenty-five charged with instigating the riot will likely see jail time. Fifty-seven others were deported to date.
Some reports suggest the riot was sparked by building grievances over guest worker housing, wages and amenities. The government is looking into measures to ensure that additional violence is avoided. But it’s uncertain whether the government plans to address the fundamental cause of the problem -- policies that permitted a huge influx of foreign workers within a short timeframe -- in the wake of growing discontent over the riot and guest workers in general.
Governmental policies allowed Singapore to become dependent on inexpensive foreign guest workers as the nation’s economy, and related construction, boomed. Out of its total population of 5.4 million, only 3.84 million are citizens and permanent residents. Among the guest workers, about 700,000 work in construction while 200,000 others are employed as domestic helpers.
The nation’s population grew by about 25 percent (1.2 million people) in the last 10 years. A government report released in January 2013 projected Singapore’s population will grow from 5.4 million to 6.9 million by 2030, with half the population being guest workers.
There have been reports of increasing public discontent over the growth of guest workers in recent years, mostly due to the perceived effect on wages, the availability of jobs, and overcrowding of public transportation. However, new reports have surfaced this year about the impact of quick and excessive population growth. Although the government had planned for population increases, it did not prepare for the huge influx of guest workers. As a result, healthcare accommodations, and a variety of public services, are now seen as grossly insufficient
The 800-bed Changi General Hospital has been forced to house patients in a big air-conditioned tent. The larger Tan Tock Seng Hospital (1,200 beds) set up beds along corridors next to overfilled wards. Some sick outpatients have had to wait months to consult a specialist.
Overcrowding of mass transit is causing trains to break down. One official noted, “So far, the root cause has not been addressed – overloading. The system built for three million now handles 5.4 million.”
Excess traffic also caused major problems on the opening day of Singapore’s biggest highway, which links roads from the Central Business District to the East Coast. It became a traffic trap as soon as it opened and stranded cars for hours.
Government has taken some action to slow the rate of hiring new guest workers. In 2012, Government adjusted its Dependency Ratio Ceilings, which specify the maximum proportion of foreign workers a company can hire. The percentage for manufacturing companies was lowered to 60 per cent from 65 per cent and the service industry percentage was reduced to 45 per cent from 50 per cent. As of this month, the government raised the minimum salary that an employer must pay guest workers. And as of August 2014, an employer must advertise a job vacancy locally before requesting a guest worker, although this does not apply to unskilled workers.