Foreign Employees Dormitories Act to be reviewed, and to cover all dorms

THE Foreign Employees Dormitories Act (FEDA) will be reviewed to cover all dormitories, regardless of size, to bring the regulation of all dormitories under a single Act, Second Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng said on Wednesday.

The review of the act will also enable the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to introduce housing standards and safe-living requirements in all dormitories through FEDA, he said.

"There will be a set of common requirements across the board such as cleanliness, space and ventilation, as well as additional requirements that depend on the size of the dormitory, such as recreational facilities in some of the larger dormitories," he told Parliament during MOM's Committee of Supply debate.

These requirements would enable MOM to prevent - and more quickly contain - disease outbreaks in the dormitories, he said.

The number of Covid-19 cases surged in foreign-worker dormitories last April, casting a spotlight on workers' close living conditions.

Dr Tan said requirements that there be more isolation bed facilities and stringent infection-control measures for dormitory residents' wellbeing had to be implemented on non-FEDA dormitories through the temporary Covid-19 Control Order for Foreign Employee Dormitories.

Expanding the scope of FEDA would thus empower MOM to directly and quickly impose safe-living and infection-control requirements, he said.

The ministry is planning to engage stakeholders in the coming months to review expanding the scope of FEDA and consider the details of the regulatory framework, he said. It is hoping to complete the review and provide more details in the second half of this year.

In response to MPs' questions on whether dormitory standards will be adjusted, Dr Tan noted that the government has progressively rolled out over 25,000 beds in Quick Build Dormitories (QBD) since September, with regulations to minimise transmission risks from shared facilities. For example, each room is capped at 10 residents, and amenities now cater to smaller groups of people to facilitate segregation during a pandemic.

"We are also conducting a holistic review on the improved standards to be applied to future new dormitories, keeping in mind that every new disease outbreak can be very different from the existing one," he said.

The ministry is consulting with the Ministry of Health, public health experts and stakeholders (such as employers, migrant workers, dormitory operators and non-government organisations) to gather their views on the new standards, he added.

These higher standards may result in higher costs for employers and dorm operators, he noted.

The government is hence studying the possibility of developing the upcoming purpose-built dormitories on a different model. Under the current system, land is released for the commercial operators to bid, build and operate the facilities, he said.

The government is also considering how to improve standards in existing dormitories, while ensuring competitive bed rental prices and a stable housing supply during the transition period.