The following letter was published in The New Paper on 21 May 2009.
Make travelling safer for everyone alike
AS A Singaporean I must strongly voice my anger and disgust at the sad news that four more workers have been killed in a road accident, 'More deaths to come at back of other lorries?' (The New Paper, 19 May).
I feel the pain and anguish of the workers who met with this unfortunate accident. My deepest sympathies to their families who have lost their fathers, sons, brothers or uncles.
The question is: Do we allow our own children and office workers to travel to schools and offices in open top buses?
Do we allow our people to travel in trains without doors? Do we want to be transported to our destinations like animals?
Are these foreign workers treated shabbily because they are less worthy and dispensable? Will we take action only if it involves our own valuable citizens?
The idea of travelling in receptacles without roofs is seen only in roller-coaster rides or other speed thrill-seeking rides. Even those have safety considerations.
But there were no safety considerations for these poor souls who have sacrificed their lives in the hope of finding a better life in another country.
They and their families may have thought highly of our standards of living and security. That's why they chose to work here. But we have let them down.
This is one tragic example. There are many other cases.
Just look at the way we house them.
We need foreign workers to do the dirty job, but do not want them to enjoy the same standard of living like us.
How many more must die before the authorities take concrete and responsible action to make working and travelling to work safer for everyone alike, local or foreign?
No more playing with people's lives.
It must stop. I urge a ban on transporting workers in lorries.
FROM READER STEPHEN GEORGE DE SOUZA
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Saving money by keeping them safe
The following article was published in the New Paper on 23 May 2009.
Saving money by keeping them safe
23 May 2009
The New Paper
Some construction firms feel workers keep healthy and safe travelling in buses
IT'S COMMON to see construction workers travel to work in open-air lorries in Singapore, but these batch of workers are different.
They travel to and from their worksite in Clementi in an air-conditioned bus hired by their company, Straits Construction.
And the company has been doing so since 2002.
Said Mr Alex Lim, 35, a human resource consultant with Straits Construction: 'We could choose to ferry them by lorry, but in Singapore, we are likely to meet with rain 50per cent of the time. Then most of them will get theflu or catch a cold.
'What's the point if we save money but get lower productivity?'
The workers, mostly in their 20s, are grateful.
While their compatriots have to brave the weather and face the danger of accidents and falling off the lorry,the men at Straits Construction can catch a quick nap, chat or drink coffee during their daily journey.
Mr S B Alagesan, 23, who has worked in Singapore for two years, said: 'Buses are better, at least when it rains. We have cover and won't have mud flowing all over our body.'
Fellow worker R Panchanathan, 25, said he was grateful for the increased safety of buses.
He said: 'Last time I used to travel by lorry. When it stops, I sometimes jerk forward and fall but the driver will continue to speed very fast.
'No one cares. In buses we won't fall down.'
Currently, it costs a company about $4,000 to hire a bus for a month. The sum is for two trips a day, to and fromthe work site, including public holidays.
Typically, each bus can carry about 45 workers.
In contrast, hiring a lorry for a month costs about $3,000.
'We have about 800 workers and need to hire about 20 buses. The workers need to be safe and healthy for work,' said Mr Lim.
Mr Lim estimates that hiring a lorry to transport workerswould save his company about $20,000 every month.
Another company that ferries workers to and from their dormitories to their various worksites in air-conditioned buses is Keppel Fels.
When contacted, it declined to comment.
Buses too expensive
But not everyone is convinced that buses are better. At CP Ong Construction, workers are still ferried to work by lorries owned by the company.
Said Ms Sharon Qiu, 27, a purchaser: 'It will definitely be more expensive if we have to hire a bus company. We own the lorries, so there's no external costs.'
Ms Marie Palma, an administrative manager at Chuan-Yu construction company, said that their workers have always been transported on lorries and this is unlikely to change.
'We have had no problems sending the workers to workon lorries and I don't think we will switch to buses,' said Ms Palma.
Meanwhile, companies who are using buses have adapted well.
For example, workers are told to change out of their typically muddy work boots and sweaty clothes before they get on the bus to prevent them from dirtying thevehicles too much.
Said Mr V Pichau of Straits Construction, 37, who has worked in Singapore for more than five years: 'We change into our workclothes and boots only when we reach the site and back into our home clothes when we are going back.
'Still, we are very sweaty. Sometimes, we complain among ourselves that the bus is smelly, especially withthe air-conditioning.'
Bus driver Chan Ah Soon, 58, who has been ferrying the workers for about two years, said that the men are generally well-behaved.
He said: 'Sometimes some of them forget to change their clothes and shoes, but it's just dirt, I can wash it away.
'I've seen lorries ferrying workers involved in accidents and I pity them. No matter what, buses are definitely safer than lorries.'
Mr Chan said he takes about two hours to clean the bus every evening.
Workers who have travelled in lorries told The New Paper that it was scary.
Said Mr S Koorthilkeyam, 28: 'When it rains, we get wet and the floor is slippery and because we sit on chairs, we will slide around.'
Another worker, who was waiting for his company lorry, admitted that he dreaded every ride he took.
Said Mr Kibria Sarker, 38: 'Every time I take the lorry, I am scared.
'Whether it rains or it is sunny, it is also no good. We siton the chairs at the back of the lorry and it's like dancing, any time can fall over, only for us it's onto theroad.'
As The New Paper team waited for the Straits Construction bus to pick the workers up from their dormitory, we witnessed a group of about 60 men rushing forward to board a large lorry.
They climbed and pushed one another to get on. Some stumbled but quickly picked themselves up to try to geton again.
The workers seemed to understand that the lorry could not stop by the roadside for too long as the heavy traffic rushed by.
In less than five minutes, the men were packed into thecargo deck on plastic chairs and the lorry moved off.
Pearly Tan, newsroom intern
Copyright 2009, Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Saving money by keeping them safe
23 May 2009
The New Paper
Some construction firms feel workers keep healthy and safe travelling in buses
IT'S COMMON to see construction workers travel to work in open-air lorries in Singapore, but these batch of workers are different.
They travel to and from their worksite in Clementi in an air-conditioned bus hired by their company, Straits Construction.
And the company has been doing so since 2002.
Said Mr Alex Lim, 35, a human resource consultant with Straits Construction: 'We could choose to ferry them by lorry, but in Singapore, we are likely to meet with rain 50per cent of the time. Then most of them will get theflu or catch a cold.
'What's the point if we save money but get lower productivity?'
The workers, mostly in their 20s, are grateful.
While their compatriots have to brave the weather and face the danger of accidents and falling off the lorry,the men at Straits Construction can catch a quick nap, chat or drink coffee during their daily journey.
Mr S B Alagesan, 23, who has worked in Singapore for two years, said: 'Buses are better, at least when it rains. We have cover and won't have mud flowing all over our body.'
Fellow worker R Panchanathan, 25, said he was grateful for the increased safety of buses.
He said: 'Last time I used to travel by lorry. When it stops, I sometimes jerk forward and fall but the driver will continue to speed very fast.
'No one cares. In buses we won't fall down.'
Currently, it costs a company about $4,000 to hire a bus for a month. The sum is for two trips a day, to and fromthe work site, including public holidays.
Typically, each bus can carry about 45 workers.
In contrast, hiring a lorry for a month costs about $3,000.
'We have about 800 workers and need to hire about 20 buses. The workers need to be safe and healthy for work,' said Mr Lim.
Mr Lim estimates that hiring a lorry to transport workerswould save his company about $20,000 every month.
Another company that ferries workers to and from their dormitories to their various worksites in air-conditioned buses is Keppel Fels.
When contacted, it declined to comment.
Buses too expensive
But not everyone is convinced that buses are better. At CP Ong Construction, workers are still ferried to work by lorries owned by the company.
Said Ms Sharon Qiu, 27, a purchaser: 'It will definitely be more expensive if we have to hire a bus company. We own the lorries, so there's no external costs.'
Ms Marie Palma, an administrative manager at Chuan-Yu construction company, said that their workers have always been transported on lorries and this is unlikely to change.
'We have had no problems sending the workers to workon lorries and I don't think we will switch to buses,' said Ms Palma.
Meanwhile, companies who are using buses have adapted well.
For example, workers are told to change out of their typically muddy work boots and sweaty clothes before they get on the bus to prevent them from dirtying thevehicles too much.
Said Mr V Pichau of Straits Construction, 37, who has worked in Singapore for more than five years: 'We change into our workclothes and boots only when we reach the site and back into our home clothes when we are going back.
'Still, we are very sweaty. Sometimes, we complain among ourselves that the bus is smelly, especially withthe air-conditioning.'
Bus driver Chan Ah Soon, 58, who has been ferrying the workers for about two years, said that the men are generally well-behaved.
He said: 'Sometimes some of them forget to change their clothes and shoes, but it's just dirt, I can wash it away.
'I've seen lorries ferrying workers involved in accidents and I pity them. No matter what, buses are definitely safer than lorries.'
Mr Chan said he takes about two hours to clean the bus every evening.
Workers who have travelled in lorries told The New Paper that it was scary.
Said Mr S Koorthilkeyam, 28: 'When it rains, we get wet and the floor is slippery and because we sit on chairs, we will slide around.'
Another worker, who was waiting for his company lorry, admitted that he dreaded every ride he took.
Said Mr Kibria Sarker, 38: 'Every time I take the lorry, I am scared.
'Whether it rains or it is sunny, it is also no good. We siton the chairs at the back of the lorry and it's like dancing, any time can fall over, only for us it's onto theroad.'
As The New Paper team waited for the Straits Construction bus to pick the workers up from their dormitory, we witnessed a group of about 60 men rushing forward to board a large lorry.
They climbed and pushed one another to get on. Some stumbled but quickly picked themselves up to try to geton again.
The workers seemed to understand that the lorry could not stop by the roadside for too long as the heavy traffic rushed by.
In less than five minutes, the men were packed into thecargo deck on plastic chairs and the lorry moved off.
Pearly Tan, newsroom intern
Copyright 2009, Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Lorry Load of Trouble
The New Paper ran this article on 26 May 2009:
Lorry load of trouble
Foreign workers speak about perils of being 'back-seat' passengers
By Ho Lian-Yi
Alarming: (Top) Workers are squeezed with equipment. (Below) Crowded together in a lorry without handles to grasp or shelter to protect them from rain.
(Below) Workers sit among piles of broken branches. TNP Pictures: Jonathan Choo
It's common to hear Singaporeans gripe about having to be packed like sardines on trains and buses during peak hours.
But take a look at these pictures - and see how foreign workers are being transported daily.
They put up with bumpy rides and battle the elements. Worse, it is dangerous.
Four workers were killed last Monday after the lorry that was carrying them crashed into a trailer at Tuas.
We spoke to a few foreign workers to find out what it's like to travel on the back of a lorry.
Mr Arman, 29, a Bangladeshi, told The New Paper that he gets to sit in the front of the lorry these days - one of the perks of being a supervisor.
But he still remembers vividly the "scary" rides at the back.
The ride from his workers' quarters in Yishun to his worksite in Haig Road takes 25 minutes.
When the drive brakes suddenly, "those behind also come to the front", he said.
He has also seen workers getting hit by low-lying branches - causing injury in some cases.
What is really dangerous, Mr Arman said, is when companies carry equipment and men on the same lorry. When it's overloaded, workers have to sit on the machinery.
He said his workers bought a 5m-long canvas sheet to protect themselves from the rain. When it pours, they huddle under the sheet, holding hands.
Despite the recent accident, nothing has changed, Mr Arman said.
Another Bangladeshi workers, 38, who declined to be named, said that recently, one of his colleagues injured his leg falling off a lorry when it surged forward before he had properly climbed onboard.
Although he has worked in Singapore for 19 years, he said he had to take lorries only in the last two years. Previously, he lived onsite.
The lorry rides are very bumpy, he said. And that hurts his spine.
"One year, two years, so much damage to my back," he said.
Sometimes, when the lorry ends up behind a rubbish truck, the stench is unbearable, he said.
He added that when the workers get caught in the rain and fall sick, some foremen are unsympathetic.
Other workers though, had better experiences.
Indian national Muthu Senthil, 28, who has worked in Singapore for five years, takes the lorry from Tuas to Marina Bay at 7am every day. It's a 45-minute ride.
While there are no seat belts, he said everyone holds on to the handlebars at the side tightly. And people do not fall off as the driver moves off only after the workers have told him that everyone is secure.
No mixing
They also do not mix equipment with workers.
"If they need to get equipment, they'll make a second trip," Mr Senthil said.
Singapore roads are straight, he added, and not dangerous.
Mr Bala Supramaniam, 27, said his driver, a Singaporean, was "very good" and cleans his lorry every day.
"He follows the speed limit, even on the highway," he said.
His lorry has plywood planks securely bolted to the sides for the workers to sit, and handles to grasp.
Mr Bala deals with the dust and smoke of the roads with a handkerchief over his mouth.
What he is unhappy about is the way many workers get on or off a lorry while it's still moving.
All the foreign workers we spoke to said they preferred to be transported by bus. But most were not optimistic that there will be changes any time soon.
Said Mr Arman, "If I tell my boss, buy a bus for us, he'll say, 'waste money for what?'"
Lorry load of trouble
Foreign workers speak about perils of being 'back-seat' passengers
By Ho Lian-Yi
Alarming: (Top) Workers are squeezed with equipment. (Below) Crowded together in a lorry without handles to grasp or shelter to protect them from rain.
(Below) Workers sit among piles of broken branches. TNP Pictures: Jonathan Choo
It's common to hear Singaporeans gripe about having to be packed like sardines on trains and buses during peak hours.
But take a look at these pictures - and see how foreign workers are being transported daily.
They put up with bumpy rides and battle the elements. Worse, it is dangerous.
Four workers were killed last Monday after the lorry that was carrying them crashed into a trailer at Tuas.
We spoke to a few foreign workers to find out what it's like to travel on the back of a lorry.
Mr Arman, 29, a Bangladeshi, told The New Paper that he gets to sit in the front of the lorry these days - one of the perks of being a supervisor.
But he still remembers vividly the "scary" rides at the back.
The ride from his workers' quarters in Yishun to his worksite in Haig Road takes 25 minutes.
When the drive brakes suddenly, "those behind also come to the front", he said.
He has also seen workers getting hit by low-lying branches - causing injury in some cases.
What is really dangerous, Mr Arman said, is when companies carry equipment and men on the same lorry. When it's overloaded, workers have to sit on the machinery.
He said his workers bought a 5m-long canvas sheet to protect themselves from the rain. When it pours, they huddle under the sheet, holding hands.
Despite the recent accident, nothing has changed, Mr Arman said.
Another Bangladeshi workers, 38, who declined to be named, said that recently, one of his colleagues injured his leg falling off a lorry when it surged forward before he had properly climbed onboard.
Although he has worked in Singapore for 19 years, he said he had to take lorries only in the last two years. Previously, he lived onsite.
The lorry rides are very bumpy, he said. And that hurts his spine.
"One year, two years, so much damage to my back," he said.
Sometimes, when the lorry ends up behind a rubbish truck, the stench is unbearable, he said.
He added that when the workers get caught in the rain and fall sick, some foremen are unsympathetic.
Other workers though, had better experiences.
Indian national Muthu Senthil, 28, who has worked in Singapore for five years, takes the lorry from Tuas to Marina Bay at 7am every day. It's a 45-minute ride.
While there are no seat belts, he said everyone holds on to the handlebars at the side tightly. And people do not fall off as the driver moves off only after the workers have told him that everyone is secure.
No mixing
They also do not mix equipment with workers.
"If they need to get equipment, they'll make a second trip," Mr Senthil said.
Singapore roads are straight, he added, and not dangerous.
Mr Bala Supramaniam, 27, said his driver, a Singaporean, was "very good" and cleans his lorry every day.
"He follows the speed limit, even on the highway," he said.
His lorry has plywood planks securely bolted to the sides for the workers to sit, and handles to grasp.
Mr Bala deals with the dust and smoke of the roads with a handkerchief over his mouth.
What he is unhappy about is the way many workers get on or off a lorry while it's still moving.
All the foreign workers we spoke to said they preferred to be transported by bus. But most were not optimistic that there will be changes any time soon.
Said Mr Arman, "If I tell my boss, buy a bus for us, he'll say, 'waste money for what?'"
Saturday, May 23, 2009
S'pore drivers can be selfish & reckless too
The following letter was published in the New Paper on 23 May 2009.
S'pore drivers can be selfish & reckless too
I WOULD like to comment on the statements by Mr Elangovan and Mr Rehmat Kiwon in the article 'It's the fault of foreign drivers' (The New Paper, 20 May).
I am from Scotland and I have been living here for the last two years. I think their comments against foreign drivers are rather offensive.
As foreigners here, we do know how to drive, and also follow the same rules while we are on the road.
From my experience, I think driving in Singapore is scary.
Some Singaporean drivers are selfish, they show no courtesy at all on the roads.
When I signal to the left or right to go to the next junction, they should let me go, but unfortunately they speed up and pass my car.
This could lead to an accident if I am not cautious while making the turn.
Courtesy does not cost anything, but unfortunately this is not the case.
My opinion about driving in Singapore is supported by comments from taxi drivers as I take taxis regularly.
Regarding the recent accident where four workers were killed - the companies which transported the foreign workers should be asked to pay a heavy fine.
I often see a lot of heavy equipment being carried at the back of the lorry, along with the workers.
If an accident occurs, the workers will be crushed to death instantly.
The authorities should ban this practice and improve ways to transport foreign workers to their workplace.
 They are hard-working people and deserve a proper mode of transport while they work in Singapore.
I am sure the company can afford a proper minibus with seat belts for them.
These amenities could save lives in the event of an accident.
But these companies find the cheapest way to transport them, as they do not want to spend the money on the workers.
I suggest that the Land Transport Authority take quick steps or decisions to avoid more unneccesary deaths.
This form of transport should have been banned a long time ago, and companies should be encouraged to use the proper form of transport.
FROM READER HERLIEN HUGHES
S'pore drivers can be selfish & reckless too
I WOULD like to comment on the statements by Mr Elangovan and Mr Rehmat Kiwon in the article 'It's the fault of foreign drivers' (The New Paper, 20 May).
I am from Scotland and I have been living here for the last two years. I think their comments against foreign drivers are rather offensive.
As foreigners here, we do know how to drive, and also follow the same rules while we are on the road.
From my experience, I think driving in Singapore is scary.
Some Singaporean drivers are selfish, they show no courtesy at all on the roads.
When I signal to the left or right to go to the next junction, they should let me go, but unfortunately they speed up and pass my car.
This could lead to an accident if I am not cautious while making the turn.
Courtesy does not cost anything, but unfortunately this is not the case.
My opinion about driving in Singapore is supported by comments from taxi drivers as I take taxis regularly.
Regarding the recent accident where four workers were killed - the companies which transported the foreign workers should be asked to pay a heavy fine.
I often see a lot of heavy equipment being carried at the back of the lorry, along with the workers.
If an accident occurs, the workers will be crushed to death instantly.
The authorities should ban this practice and improve ways to transport foreign workers to their workplace.
 They are hard-working people and deserve a proper mode of transport while they work in Singapore.
I am sure the company can afford a proper minibus with seat belts for them.
These amenities could save lives in the event of an accident.
But these companies find the cheapest way to transport them, as they do not want to spend the money on the workers.
I suggest that the Land Transport Authority take quick steps or decisions to avoid more unneccesary deaths.
This form of transport should have been banned a long time ago, and companies should be encouraged to use the proper form of transport.
FROM READER HERLIEN HUGHES
Friday, May 22, 2009
Foreign workers lives at risk in Singapore
The following radio program was broadcast on ABC Radio Australia on 22 May 2009. To listen, click here.
Foreign workers lives at risk in Singapore
Updated May 22, 2009
Apart from doing the tough jobs that nobody wants, foreign workers in Singapore also face danger getting to and from work.
The transportation of foreign workers, mainly in the construction and manufacturing sectors, has long been a controversial area. This is because of safety issues, as they are ferried about on the trays of pick-up trucks.
Presenter: Sen Lam
Speaker: Bharati Jagdish at Radio 938-LIVE in Singapore
Foreign workers lives at risk in Singapore
Updated May 22, 2009
Apart from doing the tough jobs that nobody wants, foreign workers in Singapore also face danger getting to and from work.
The transportation of foreign workers, mainly in the construction and manufacturing sectors, has long been a controversial area. This is because of safety issues, as they are ferried about on the trays of pick-up trucks.
Presenter: Sen Lam
Speaker: Bharati Jagdish at Radio 938-LIVE in Singapore
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Ferrying Workers Safely
The following article was published in the Straits Times on 20 May 2009.
Ferrying workers safely
By Teh Joo Lin
20 May 2009
A good solution has to be found quickly so more lives are not lost
IT'S happened again.
On Monday, three foreign workers sitting in the back of a lorry died after it crashed into the back of a trailer. A fourth man in the front seat also died.
How many more must lose their lives before a solution to ferrying workers is found?
It took less than six months for the public outcry over the death of an eight-year-old boy last April to lead to action: minibuses must have seat belts installed. Now, 6,400 small buses are being fitted with safety harnesses. It was Singapore-style efficiency at work.
But the authorities seem to be in a bind on the issue of ferrying workers - usually foreigners - in the backs of lorries. There are many more of these workers than students and any solution will have to satisfy more interest groups.
Last year, an average of four workers a week never reached their destinations in one piece. Casualties have mounted but thankfully, fatalities have not been high: five in 2006 and two each in the next two years.
The issue of where and how foreign workers should be housed has been a subject of intense discussion every now and then, with plenty of ideas thrown up. But the question of how they should be ferried has received less attention. That is, until the next accident occurs.
A workgroup co-chaired by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and the Manpower Ministry (MOM) has been labouring since its setting-up was announced last March to come up with solutions to this problem.
While a report is expected to be completed by the year's end, no finding has been made public so far. That is perhaps an indication of the complexity of the problem, and the difficulty of having to satisfy the interests of several stakeholders.
In the minibus issue, the biggest concern was how much operators would have to pay to equip their vehicles with seat belts. This was resolved when the Government contributed $35 million for a five-year plan. Six-month window periods were scheduled so as to accommodate the worries of operators that they would lose business while their buses were retro-fitted.
All this was done to satisfy one big, clear and important constituency: parents with school-going children.
The big stakeholder in the foreign worker transport issue, besides the workers themselves, is the employer. Small-time contractors and some big-name companies too are likely to complain about any solution that puts pressure on their bottom lines in these turbulent economic times.
Perhaps the most obvious solution is to ban riding in the back of lorries altogether - as Bahrain, which has about 500,000 foreign workers, did from May 1 this year.
The alternatives? Public transport for the workers is one option, with workers equipped with a prepaid fare card.
But this means adding to the commuter crush during rush hour. Some segments of the local population may complain about having to share standing space in trains and buses with foreign workers.
Having them ride in chartered buses, which some employers are already providing for their workers, is more feasible.
Mr Neo Tiam Beng, president of the Singapore School and Private Hire Bus Owners' Association, says that the operators who run some 4,000 private buses for hire here, have the capacity to provide transportation to foreign workers.
This option, however, comes at a price, with each one-way trip estimated at $40 to $50 for about 40 workers, or roughly $1 a head at current oil prices. That's still a lot considering that employers with trucks pay near zero for using them to transport both equipment and people. There is likely to be a cry for government subsidies, which can run into the millions.
Rules on ferrying workers on cargo decks might be tightened up, with harsher penalties imposed for contraventions.
The rules now include allocating each worker at least 0.372 sq m of sitting space - slightly bigger than a full page of this newspaper. Workers are also not allowed to sit more than 3.2m off the ground, among other things.
Introduced in 2003, these measures have probably saved lives, but the LTA still caught 352 lorries overladen with workers last year, up from 226 in 2007. The maximum court penalty for those who ferry more workers than allowed is a $1,000 fine or a three-month jail term.
So perhaps it comes back to installing seat belts, as the Singapore Armed Forces has done for its trucks. Except that army trucks are designed for passengers to sit in, while the private trucks we are talking about are built only to carry cargo.
There may be other solutions to this problem: no travelling on expressways, for example, or having as many workers as possible stay on or near worksites.
Or the LTA could tie requests to hire foreign workers to providing them with adequate transportation. In other words, if you need more than 20 workers, tell LTA how you are going to get to them to work and back.
All these suggested solutions have their costs and trade-offs - and Singapore isn't alone in grappling with the issue.
In the United States, 30 of the 50 states have some form of restriction on how people can be transported on the cargo beds of pickup trucks. Britain has gone further with a blanket ban on passengers sitting on the decks of heavy goods vehicles.
Bahrain's move came despite claims from businesses that the cost of ferrying workers in buses could set the construction industry back by as much as $1 billion Bahraini dinars (S$3.9 billion).
At the end of the day, each country will have to weigh the life of a foreign worker against the economic and even political costs of not doing anything.
It's time we grappled with this problem - before the next accident occurs.
(c) 2009 Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Ferrying workers safely
By Teh Joo Lin
20 May 2009
A good solution has to be found quickly so more lives are not lost
IT'S happened again.
On Monday, three foreign workers sitting in the back of a lorry died after it crashed into the back of a trailer. A fourth man in the front seat also died.
How many more must lose their lives before a solution to ferrying workers is found?
It took less than six months for the public outcry over the death of an eight-year-old boy last April to lead to action: minibuses must have seat belts installed. Now, 6,400 small buses are being fitted with safety harnesses. It was Singapore-style efficiency at work.
But the authorities seem to be in a bind on the issue of ferrying workers - usually foreigners - in the backs of lorries. There are many more of these workers than students and any solution will have to satisfy more interest groups.
Last year, an average of four workers a week never reached their destinations in one piece. Casualties have mounted but thankfully, fatalities have not been high: five in 2006 and two each in the next two years.
The issue of where and how foreign workers should be housed has been a subject of intense discussion every now and then, with plenty of ideas thrown up. But the question of how they should be ferried has received less attention. That is, until the next accident occurs.
A workgroup co-chaired by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and the Manpower Ministry (MOM) has been labouring since its setting-up was announced last March to come up with solutions to this problem.
While a report is expected to be completed by the year's end, no finding has been made public so far. That is perhaps an indication of the complexity of the problem, and the difficulty of having to satisfy the interests of several stakeholders.
In the minibus issue, the biggest concern was how much operators would have to pay to equip their vehicles with seat belts. This was resolved when the Government contributed $35 million for a five-year plan. Six-month window periods were scheduled so as to accommodate the worries of operators that they would lose business while their buses were retro-fitted.
All this was done to satisfy one big, clear and important constituency: parents with school-going children.
The big stakeholder in the foreign worker transport issue, besides the workers themselves, is the employer. Small-time contractors and some big-name companies too are likely to complain about any solution that puts pressure on their bottom lines in these turbulent economic times.
Perhaps the most obvious solution is to ban riding in the back of lorries altogether - as Bahrain, which has about 500,000 foreign workers, did from May 1 this year.
The alternatives? Public transport for the workers is one option, with workers equipped with a prepaid fare card.
But this means adding to the commuter crush during rush hour. Some segments of the local population may complain about having to share standing space in trains and buses with foreign workers.
Having them ride in chartered buses, which some employers are already providing for their workers, is more feasible.
Mr Neo Tiam Beng, president of the Singapore School and Private Hire Bus Owners' Association, says that the operators who run some 4,000 private buses for hire here, have the capacity to provide transportation to foreign workers.
This option, however, comes at a price, with each one-way trip estimated at $40 to $50 for about 40 workers, or roughly $1 a head at current oil prices. That's still a lot considering that employers with trucks pay near zero for using them to transport both equipment and people. There is likely to be a cry for government subsidies, which can run into the millions.
Rules on ferrying workers on cargo decks might be tightened up, with harsher penalties imposed for contraventions.
The rules now include allocating each worker at least 0.372 sq m of sitting space - slightly bigger than a full page of this newspaper. Workers are also not allowed to sit more than 3.2m off the ground, among other things.
Introduced in 2003, these measures have probably saved lives, but the LTA still caught 352 lorries overladen with workers last year, up from 226 in 2007. The maximum court penalty for those who ferry more workers than allowed is a $1,000 fine or a three-month jail term.
So perhaps it comes back to installing seat belts, as the Singapore Armed Forces has done for its trucks. Except that army trucks are designed for passengers to sit in, while the private trucks we are talking about are built only to carry cargo.
There may be other solutions to this problem: no travelling on expressways, for example, or having as many workers as possible stay on or near worksites.
Or the LTA could tie requests to hire foreign workers to providing them with adequate transportation. In other words, if you need more than 20 workers, tell LTA how you are going to get to them to work and back.
All these suggested solutions have their costs and trade-offs - and Singapore isn't alone in grappling with the issue.
In the United States, 30 of the 50 states have some form of restriction on how people can be transported on the cargo beds of pickup trucks. Britain has gone further with a blanket ban on passengers sitting on the decks of heavy goods vehicles.
Bahrain's move came despite claims from businesses that the cost of ferrying workers in buses could set the construction industry back by as much as $1 billion Bahraini dinars (S$3.9 billion).
At the end of the day, each country will have to weigh the life of a foreign worker against the economic and even political costs of not doing anything.
It's time we grappled with this problem - before the next accident occurs.
(c) 2009 Singapore Press Holdings Limited
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)