Built environment sector appeals for entry of foreign workers, more relief measures

DESPITE the government’s latest move to grant construction firms temporary flexibility to recruit workers from China, allowing these workers to enter and obtain their skills certification in Singapore “will only help to a small extent”, the Construction Industry Joint Committee (CIJC) told The Business Times on Monday.

“Chinese workers are usually specialised in certain trades, and they are typically skilled workers who command higher salaries. It is not feasible for companies to hire (these) workers to carry out general works. Besides, it is difficult to attract (them) to work in Singapore as many of them are earning similar salaries in their home countries,” added the committee, which comprises key stakeholders in the construction industry and built environment sector.

This was in response to queries from BT, following a statement CIJC released earlier on Monday, appealing to the multi-ministry taskforce to allow them to bring in foreign workers in a safe and controlled manner, as well as for the government to consider additional relief measures to help all stakeholders in the sector.

As it is, an average of about 1,000 workers per week return home due to family reasons. The “very limited inflow and high outflow” have thus further worsened the acute manpower shortage, and some contractors have turned to poaching workers to relieve their manpower shortage, which is “very unhealthy for the industry”, CIJC told BT.

In its statement, the committee said: "While we need to maintain tight border control measures to protect Singaporeans, we urge the government to adopt a balanced approach and work with industry to allow the recruitment and inflow of foreign manpower.

"We are prepared to work with the relevant agencies and stakeholders to establish a viable end-to-end system to bring in migrant workers in a safe and controlled manner so as to enable work to continue, while keeping Singaporeans safe."

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CIJC clarified to BT that it is appealing to the government to allow the entry of workers “from traditional as well as other sources, to go through an end-to-end stay-home notice (SHN) and stringent testing at source countries”. The workers will also have to undergo the SHN regime in Singapore to minimise the risks of imported cases in the Republic.

This is because the bulk of the foreign workers in the construction sector come from India and Bangladesh, and the current border restrictions imposed on these countries have completely stopped the inflow of workers. “As such, many workers are stuck and not able to return,” it noted.

Meanwhile, the requested additional relief measures would also help the stakeholders cope with increased challenges as a result of the tightened border measures, CIJC added.

With over 18,000 firms and tens of thousands of Singaporeans employed in the built environment sector, further impact to the sector will cause these jobs to be at stake, it noted.

"The reality is that the industry needs sufficient inflow of migrant workers, both returning and new ones to take over the place of those who have left Singapore for various reasons, in order to sustain the industry and ensure that we can deliver on our projects," said CIJC.

Members of the CIJC comprise the Association of Consulting Engineers Singapore, the Institution of Engineers Singapore, the Real Estate Developers' Association of Singapore, the Singapore Contractors Association Ltd, the Singapore Green Building Council, the Singapore Institute of Architects, the Singapore Institute of Building Limited, the Singapore Institute of Surveyors and Valuers, and the Society of Project Managers Singapore.

The statement also noted the "serious concerns" about the acute manpower situation for the construction industry in Singapore, given that the complexity and nature of construction work necessitate the deployment of workers from various trades, and since the current reduced workforce is already working at maximum capacity, this raises the risk of workplace incidents.

Between January and March this year, the number of workplace injuries increased slightly to close to 3,300, compared with about 3,100 during the same period last year, latest figures from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) showed. The data for injuries last month is not yet available, The Straits Times reported on Monday. More than 3,200 workplace safety and health contraventions were also found during inspections between January and last month, partially due to stepped-up enforcement efforts this year.

CIJC said that players have already been suffering from reduced productivity due to safe-management measures at worksites, along with many migrant workers planning to return home upon the expiry of their work permits.

It added that should borders be shut for a prolonged period, manpower challenges will be "seriously exacerbated". This will result in further delays to projects, such as residential projects including HDBs and private properties. Public infrastructure projects such as hospitals, MRTs, schools and industrial developments, which are "vital to the nation's economy and people's lives", would also be badly disrupted.

Last week, a third amendment to the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures Act) was passed in Parliament, allowing construction firms to seek adjustments for higher manpower costs from their contract partners.

Minister for National Development Desmond Lee said in Parliament last Tuesday that no single stakeholder group in the construction industry should bear "undue share" of the burden imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The amendment came just a few days after MOM announced that about 15,000 firms in the construction, marine and process sectors will receive higher foreign worker levy rebates of S$250 per month, up from the previous S$90 per month, between May and December, amid the manpower shortage and increased costs brought about by Singapore's tightened border measures.

READ MORE: 100,000 fewer workers in construction and services sectors had borders been shut to migrant workers: MOM