Unfair practice in security industry
For a long time, it has been the industry practice for security agencies to enforce a “mandatory” 12-hour day or night shift on their employees (“Higher wages for security guards from September 2016″; Thursday).
One needs only to look at the agencies’ recruitment advertisements to know that such a practice is prevalent.
This practice seems unfair as many security guards yearn for shorter working hours in order to have more family time, and they should be allowed to opt for this.
Having enough rest would allow them to stay alert while on duty.
Not everyone wants higher pay at the expense of work-life balance.
This is another reason why SG employers like to employ foreign workers. Cause they generally won’t complain even if they are made to work more than the statutory limit of 44 hours a week without any overtime pay.
Foreign workers are generally afraid of employers cancelling their work passes forcing them to leave Singapore. Many are in debt, paying large sums of money to “middleman” and sometimes even to employer, in their attempt to get a job in Singapore. It’s a modern day “slavery” practice.
Syed Abdul Muneef Syed Muhammad
* Article first appeared on Straits Times Forum (1 nov 2014)