Prevalence of Deliberate Under-reporting of Overtime Hours by Employers of Non-domestic Migrant Workers

Ms He Ting Ru asked the Minister for Manpower (a) whether the Ministry tracks the prevalence of deliberate under-reporting of overtime hours by employers of non-domestic migrant workers; and (b) what penalties are typically meted out against employers who provide inaccurate payslips.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) tracks non-compliance with overtime pay requirements that are detected through complaints or inspections. These include cases where the employer under-reports the overtime hours worked or underpaid for the overtime worked. For breaches of overtime regulations due to lack of knowledge, MOM will generally take an educational approach and employers will cooperate to rectify the breach. For egregious cases, we take a strong stance against any infringements. We will take enforcement action, which can include fines and prosecution. For employers who provide inaccurate payslips, MOM can issue caution letters or impose administrative penalties of $100 for the first breach and $200 for the subsequent breach.

In the past five years, on average per year, MOM took action against about 40 employers for under or non-provision of overtime pay and against about 10 employers for issuing inaccurate payslips. Employees who are not paid for their overtime work or who are given inaccurate payslips are advised to approach MOM for assistance or the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management to file claims.