“Beyond the unpaid wages: What 400 migrant workers taught me”, 28 July 2026

Most of the over 400 migrant workers who sought help over alleged unpaid salaries at the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) have since been placed in new jobs, according to the Migrant Workers' Centre (MWC)…more than a month after the news broke…

More than 100 migrant workers from KPA Engineering and SK Industries turned up to seek help over alleged unpaid salaries…

The workers told me that delayed salaries had happened before.

Previously…payment eventually arrived. That history seemed to explain why some waited before seeking help…

One worker…said he was owed almost $7,000 in salary that had not been paid since April…

Many had borrowed heavily to secure employment in Singapore. Some said they still owed more than $10,000 in agency-related debts…

Several workers told me they had not been able to send money home for months. One…worker said his children had stopped attending school because the family could no longer afford the costs…

MWC…went to various dormitories to engage other affected workers who had not gone to MOM earlier…

By going to the dormitories, MWC brought the support closer to the workers…