Statistics on Workplace Harassment in Last Three Years and Efforts to Set Up Watchlist on Employers

With greater awareness following the global #MeToo movement in late 2017, and TAFEP's establishment of a help & resource centre for managing workplace harassment in 2019, we have seen more reports of workplace harassment where employers have been the subject of such complaints.

In each of these cases, the employer had not properly followed up on allegations of workplace harassment. TAFEP engaged the employer to educate and ensure they implement measures in the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Workplace Harassment, including asking the employer to re-investigate the complaint, where necessary. Specifically in one of these 22 cases, as the employer was alleged to have verbally harassed the complainant, TAFEP additionally advised the employer to be more mindful of his behaviour and respectful when engaging his staff. So far, all the employers that TAFEP engaged have been cooperative and receptive to their advice.

A watchlist allows MOM to monitor specific workforce metrics of employers suspected of errant behaviours to see if they have improved their employment practices. However, workplace harassment complaints typically involve specific incidents and persons. There are no clearly identifiable metrics to monitor. A watchlist approach is therefore impractical. Instead, MOM's policy is to revoke the work pass privileges of egregious offenders, such as employers who fail to provide a safe environment for employees or refuse to improve their grievance handling processes. So far, we have not encountered a case of such severity.