[Update on Mar. 19, 2020, 8:27pm: The Ministry of Manpower has released a statement in response to reports of Malaysian workers being affected by the lockdown.
The spokesperson said that "vast majority" of the workers have been properly accommodated.
You can read it in full here:
"In its report on 19 March 'With no place to stay, some Malaysian workers sleeping rough near Kranji MRT', TODAY did not present a full picture of the ground situation as a result of Malaysia’s Movement Control Order.
On the night of 17 March 2020, a record number of Malaysian workers normally residing in Malaysia crossed over to Singapore. The vast majority of them have been properly accommodated by their employers, through a variety of means, such as:
- Staying with relatives, friends or colleagues;
- Hotels and dormitories;
- Rooms or whole property in both the HDB flats and private residential property market
This was done despite employers and workers being given only 24 hours to react to the Movement Control Order (MCO).
To ensure that all Malaysian workers have proper accommodation, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) provided employers with a S$50 per day per worker housing support. In addition, since the imposition of the MCO, MOM and the Singapore Police Force have stepped up patrols across Singapore to check for workers that did not manage to secure accommodation.
The stepped up patrols over both nights picked up a small number of Malaysian workers without short-term accommodation. These included the 14 workers found at Kranji MRT station.
These workers were immediately brought to a Temporary Relief Centre managed by the Ministry of Social and Family Development at Jurong East, while arrangements were made for their longer term housing.
MOM reminds employers that if they do not need their Malaysian workers at this time, they should make arrangements for them to return to Malaysia. If they do need their Malaysian workers they must, despite the short notice and sudden circumstances, provide proper accommodation for them. We are glad to see that by and large, the vast majority of employers have succeeded in doing that for the vast majority of their Malaysian workers.”]
Malaysia's lockdown, which kicked in on Mar. 18, has left many scrambling for alternative arrangements.
Among those affected are Malaysians who work in Singapore.
To help these workers, the Singapore government is working with private and public sectors to provide a range of short-term housing options.
Manpower Minister Josephine Teo has also announced that the government will be giving S$50 per worker per night, for firms with employees affected by the lockdown.
SBS Transit and SMRT in the meantime, have been housing their bus drivers local hotels.
There are some workers though, that appear to have been either overlooked or forgotten.
Sleeping outdoors
In a few photos posted to social media, Malaysian workers unable to find accommodation have been camping out at Kranji MRT.
The workers can be seen sleeping on mats on the cold, hard floor, outside the gates of the station.
Their minimal belongings are either piled next to them or used as makeshift pillows.
Kranji MRT is a common transit point between Singapore and Malaysia, as numerous bus services ferry workers from Kranji to Johor Bahru.
Photo from G.K. Muni / FB
Photo from Eric Teoh / FB
Employers did not promise accommodation
According to a Today report on Mar. 19, there were about 20 Malaysian workers sleeping rough at the station.
Some workers Today spoke to stated that they were still waiting for their employers to find them accommodation.
Others though, revealed that their employers had not promised them accommodation — the workers interviewed were employed in the cleaning and manufacturing industries.
They thus had no choice but to sleep outdoors.
One Malaysian worker even admitted that she had been terminated from her job as a cleaner after she missed one day of work due to the lockdown.
Singaporeans offering spare rooms
Some generous Singaporeans have taken to offering spaces for lodging in a bid to extend a helping hand to Malaysian workers.
Activist Gilbert Goh has been acting as a liaison between Singaporeans with spare rooms and affected workers.
In a few posts on his Facebook, Goh displayed offers of temporary housing.
Today also reported that Goh was spotted giving out sleeping bags and bottles of water, and offering options for temporary lodging to Malaysians at Kranji MRT.
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Top photo from G.K. Muni / FB and Eric Teoh / FB