The Bar Council’s Migrants, Refugees and Immigration Affairs Committee chairman, M Ramachelvam, said migrant workers were usually not in a position to change employers if they were involved in labour disputes.
“They can go to the labour courts or civil courts but they will not be in a position to change employers,” he said.
“What the Bar Council has proposed is to follow the Singapore example. If there is a dispute, these migrant workers should be allowed to change employers provided the director-general of the labour department or his appointed official agrees to that.”
Ramachelvam was speaking at a panel discussion after the launch of the Bar Council’s booklet, “A Quick Guide to Migrant Workers’ Rights”, in collaboration with the Swiss embassy.
The guide seeks to assist lawyers who handle cases involving migrant workers. It recommends that migrants be given meaningful access to justice and their rights to redress, among other suggestions.
Executive director of the North-South Initiative (NSI) Adrian Pereira said
there seemed to be different views as to how labour laws were interpreted in cases involving migrants.
“That is why it is important for migrants to have an ecosystem of support, which includes lawyers. Just having laws is not enough,” he said.
Pereira lamented the existence of communication barriers when it came to the interpretation of justice.
“It’s a challenge to present complex materials in a way that they understand, but this is vital. It is non-negotiable. When migrants understand, it will trickle down to their communities and they can fight for justice,” he said.
He also questioned the meaning of justice when it came to migrant workers in the case of repeated acts of abuse or forced labour by employers.
“Is it enough to just return their salaries, or give them their dues under the law?” he asked, adding that justice for migrant workers had to be more comprehensive.
“I also hope that legal aid funding will be good enough to attract young lawyers and others to take part in the fight for justice for migrants.”