Debated in Parliament on 2 Aug 2023.
Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the (i) average price and (ii) average annual increase in dollar and percentage terms per dormitory bed for each year over the last five years; (b) what is the average lease length for dormitory bed rental contracts; and (c) what measures are being introduced to mitigate against excessive rent increases for dormitory beds.
Commercial dormitory bed rental contracts are typically signed for one or two years. The median monthly rental rate of new contracts signed in the first quarter of 2023 was $420 per bed, compared to $280 in the first quarter of 2019, which was when the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) started tracking the bed prices of commercial dormitories.
Currently, strong demand for dormitory beds is contributing to the increase in bed rental prices. Other factors include the higher cost of manpower, utilities and bank financing. The number of migrant workers in the Construction, Marine and Process sectors in May 2023 was 18% higher than pre-COVID-19 levels to help companies catch up on projects delayed by COVID-19. However, this number cannot keep rising as housing is already tight.
The Government had taken a number of steps to facilitate more bed supply by adding nearly 17,000 beds since December 2022, which include: (a) relaxing the application criteria for building Factory Converted Dormitories (FCDs) to increase the number of workers in new and existing FCDs; (b) increasing the allowable Gross Floor Area in industrial buildings for dormitory use from 40% to 49%; (c) enabling existing dormitories with excess space to increase their occupancy load whilst keeping to the standards of the Foreign Employee Dormitories Act licensing conditions; and (d) conversion of facilities previously used for quarantine or isolation purposes during COVID-19 into commercial beds for rent.
Employers, too, must do their part to adopt productivity measures to reduce their reliance on foreign workers and build their own construction temporary quarters and factory converted dormitories to house their workers. MOM reminds employers to ensure housing has been secured for their workers before they enter Singapore.
PAPERCUTS