Strengthening Support and Dignity for Migrant Domestic Workers and Singapore Families

ADJOURNMENT MOTION

The Deputy Leader of the House (Mr Zaqy Mohamad): Mr Speaker, on behalf of Leader, I move, "That Parliament do now adjourn."

Question proposed.

Strengthening Support and Dignity for Migrant Domestic Workers and Singapore Families

6.58 pm

Ms Yeo Wan Ling (Punggol): Mr Speaker, most working families in Singapore today are doing two jobs: one that pays and one that cares – and that is the hidden reality of modern Singapore.

A young couple begins with infant care. Then, childcare. Then, a parent develops dementia. Then, a spouse needs help after surgery. Then, a child has special needs.

Caregiving is not a single chapter in life. It is a cycle. And holding that cycle together are more than 308,000 migrant domestic workers (MDWs) in Singapore today, up from about 247,000 just five years ago. They are not an add-on to our economy. They are the invisible workforce behind our workforce. When they function well, families work. When they fail, families can fall. That is why MDWs are not just a labour issue. They are a critical backbone of Singapore's care economy.

Mr Speaker, Singapore's care burden is growing, and it is growing fast. In 2024, Singapore had 1.46 million households and 27% had at least one resident aged 65 and above. Behind that statistics are real people.

In my Punggol constituency, I met a mother in her early 40s. She had two young children and she came to see me as there was an issue with processing her MDW's entry into Singapore. She shared that her father had just been diagnosed with early dementia. Her husband worked shifts. And she told me quietly, "Without my helper, I will have to resign. There is no other way. Please help me."

This is the reality for thousands of Singaporeans. If we want women to stay in the workforce, if we want families to remain financially stable and if we want our seniors to age with dignity, then we must get home caregiving right.

Mr Speaker, care works only when relationships work. Care does not fail because families do not care. It fails because relationships break down. When employers and MDWs understand each other, seniors are safer, children are calmer, families are stable and workers are treated with dignity. But when communication fails, when expectations are unclear, when skills are missing, that is when things unravel and plans fall apart. Indeed, I believe that our Singapore employers intrinsically care about their helpers, or "aunties", as we affectionally call our MDWs.

A few seasons ago, the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) started on a series of "Meet-the-Members Sessions", our labour version of the regular Meet-the-People Sessions that Members of Parliament (MPs) conduct. Members could speak with us on grievances in the workplace, unfairness and harassment issues. I had prepared myself on fronting these thorny issues, but I was surprised. In the weeks that I was the attending labour MP, the majority of our members who came to see me were MDW employers, sharing with me the issues that they had with their helpers.

Perhaps, it was because I am the only female labour MP, the sharing was passionate, but the issues were common across all who came. I was impressed and heart-warmed and indeed, inspired by how the sharing was not focused on complaints of MDW behaviours and strained relations but on how the Labour Movement could give practical tips and know-how on managing and improving MDW and employer relations.

It has been a while now, but I still recall how Mdm E, not her real name, a lady in her 50s, told me that after years of hiring helpers in their late-40s who were married with children, she was now the employer of a helper in her early-20s, who is single and carefree. And she had cheerfully quipped that she realised, in the same way that her children are called "strawberries", that there is also now a generation of "strawberry helpers". And in her careful observations, there are many differences in working well with the many different generations of helpers.

And the differences show in many everyday practices, for example, the use of handphones, personal spaces, sleeping hours and indeed, the use of social media. Mdm E wanted to hear from our session best practices, tips and cultural norms, so that she can better navigate and manage her relations with her affectionately nicknamed "strawberry helper".

Mdm E was not the only member who approached the session with this intent. In fact, the majority of the members who came to see me were like Mdm E. And this inspired the NTUC Woman and Family Unit to evolve these clinics and sessions into a series of highly-attended events, called "POW-WOW: Power of Women WOW". These sessions brought employers together with their MDWs to better access resources and strengthen relations. Indeed, during these sessions, our partners also organised an award ceremony for exemplary employer-MDW pairs, some working together for more than half their lives.

These events are very well attended and our partnerships well covered, from non-governmental organisations, like the Centre for Domestic Employees (CDE); trade associations, like the Association for Employment Agencies (Singapore); to Government departments, like the Ministry of Manpower (MOM); to private firms like Singtel and DBS. These events demonstrate the openness and desire of Singapore families and their helpers to strengthen their relationships, and the many parties coming forward to offer resources to co-create possibilities, safe spaces and ecosystems for MDW-employer relations to flourish.

Mr Speaker, what families really need is not just rules. They need certainty that care and trust will hold. The need for care is ever-growing, the will for better partnerships is strong and vast resources are available. I believe we can organise better to strengthen support and dignity for MDWs and our Singapore families. And that is what my proposals today are about.

First, train MDWs for real caregiving. Care today is not just only about housekeeping. It is about dementia care, post-hospital recovery, disability support, child development and senior well-being. Yet, many MDWs still arrive trained mainly for chores.

And this is why my first ask is this: the Caregivers Training Grant has provided excellent support for families with eldercare needs by affordably training helpers to take on caregiving duties. My ask is to expand the Caregivers Training Grant to include advanced home care as well as language training, particularly in Mandarin, Malay, Hokkien, Cantonese and other dialects, which are useful for eldercare.

Currently, the NTUC's CDE has partnered with the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan Cultural Academy and The Salvation Army to run conversational Hokkien and Cantonese language classes for our MDWs. This has been helpful in building strong bridges between our MDWs and their families. Because when an MDW cannot understand a senior, care becomes unsafe. Language is not just a "nice to have". It is actually a safety issue. If a grandma in her 80s cannot tell her caregiver that she is in pain, we will have all failed her in her care needs.

Second, professionalise employment agencies. Mr Speaker, I would argue that too many placements fail not because families are cruel but because they were badly matched. In my Meet-the-People Sessions, I have met many first-time employers who did not even know where to seek help when their MDW plans fail. They relied on their employment agency and many got it wrong.

Take, Ms T, not her real name, for example. She came to see me as she was in a bind. She could not get along with her helper and the language barrier caused deep rifts in everyday handling of chores. She had a young child and was also worried about her child's safety as her helper had different standards when it came to safety and care.

She sought the help of her employment agent but was told that there were no replacements available and if she insisted on having the agent take back the helper, she would need to pay an extra fee. This was not in the contract that she signed and she was actually covered for one free replacement. Not wanting to pay the additional fee, she forced herself to continue with the helper. In the end, they both got into a physical fight. It ended up being a viral clip, traumatising both my resident and her family and indeed, the helper.

This was not a good outcome for all involved and I felt that the employment agency could have stepped in to play a larger role in mitigating. Luckily, with an appeal, our friends from the Association for Employment Agencies (Singapore) stepped in and helped both the helper and my resident out of this situation. A good, responsible employment agency makes all the difference.

So, my second ask is this: raise professional standards for employment agencies, especially in handling complex care households. This is for families with frail seniors, special needs children or medical needs. Matching can be done by trained care assessors, not sales staff. A wrong match does not just only cost money; it can break a family and deeply hurt our workers.

I propose enhanced training and accreditation pathways for employment agencies focused on caregiving assessment, counselling skills and individual agents to empower trade associations to reward and recognise agencies that demonstrate lower transfer rates and better post-placement outcomes, and create a stronger feedback loop between families, MDWs, employment agencies as well as Government agencies.

Third, give MDWs affordable primary healthcare. Mr Speaker, our MDWs are frontline caregivers – they lift our parents, they bathe our seniors, they manage medications and yet, their own care can remain inadequately covered, especially if their employers are less resourced.

So, my third ask is this: to extend a Primary Care Plan (PCP)-type scheme to our MDWs. Our PCP for migrant workers could be a model worth studying as they afford primary healthcare for workers with low co-payments. MDWs today are not covered under the PCP and their mandatory insurance does not include outpatient care, which means employers and MDWs face high out-of-pocket costs for doctor visits.

This could encourage early care-seeking and can worsen health outcomes. Could the Government then consider a similar outpatient primary care scheme for MDWs? Even a modest co-payment structure for routine outpatient visits could prevent small ailments from becoming serious, thereby protecting worker welfare and reducing family anxieties.

Similarly, the current basic insurance of $60,000 annual limit for the hospitalisation of a MDW might not cover more severe cases, leaving our employers responsible for the excess and payment. Mr and Mrs T first came to see me at my Meet-the-People Session, looking both concerned and actually a little guilty. They shared that they are thinking of sending back their helper who has been with them for over 20 years. She has almost become family but as she was struck with cancer and required surgery and treatment, Mr and Mrs T, as retirees, were unable to afford the out-of-pocket expenses for this. With their appeals for subsidised medical fees rejected, the family had to send their helper home, feeling guilty that they could have made a difference since the cancer was caught early.

Ms W's experience caused her to fall into some financial duress. Her helper was with her for only one year, when she suddenly developed a fever and body aches. Her oxygen levels were dangerously low and Ms W had to rush her to the hospital. After several rounds of checks, her helper's condition remained undiagnosable and finally, she was certified unfit to work and was sent back to her home country. This entire episode caused Ms W to go past her insurance thresholds and, with the 25% co-payment, she had to pay a high five-digit sum out of pocket.

As such, would MOM consider getting employment agencies to be clearer on their advisories to employers on the medical and hospitalisation responsibilities for their helpers? As healthcare costs increase in Singapore, too, to mandate timely reviews of insurance coverage and co-payment levels, so that our Singapore families are adequately supported when their helpers need medical and hospitalisation care.

Healthy caregivers mean stable families and we need to re-focus mental health into our system. Unlike regular employees, many MDWs live relatively isolated lives, have no colleagues in the workplace and while living with families and their employers, they are separated hundreds of miles from their own families. Some are caring for sick parents back home via proxies and monthly transfers home while caring for ours here.

I welcome ground-up initiatives, like the Association for Employment Agencies (Singapore) partnering with The RICE Company, to provide recreational and social integration activities, and NTUC's CDE interviewing first-time MDWs within their first six months. These programmes and safety nets – social clubs, craft workshops, excursions, counselling – help build community and resilience.

So, my fourth ask is to make mental health screening and counselling part of a national MDW support framework, should the need arise, and to provide resources to scale up such social and recreational activities. To close the circle, our Singaporean families must also be encouraged to be stakeholders in this, as the care ecosystem can only be complete with our families as participants and beneficiaries alike.

Fifth, create regulated part-time care pathways. Mr Speaker, our households are diverse. Some families need part-time support. Others need specialised or back-up assistance. Some need backup support beyond the traditional live-in arrangement and yet, others guard privacy above everything else, preferring a few hours of help for just a few days in a week. The current ecosystem leans very heavily on the live-in helper model, which works well for many but not for all.

So, my fifth ask is to develop regulated, care-focused part-time MDWs and home care pathways. Flexibility must not mean exploitation. Protection must not mean rigidity. We need both. Building on schemes, like the Household Services Scheme, could we pilot care-focused extensions – part-time carers who are properly trained and fairly contracted or pooling arrangements where several families can share a trained worker on a regulated basis? Such models could serve our working parents, those with intermittent caregiving needs and families who cannot yet afford or require full-time live-in help.

Six, levies. Let us fix our levy rules for real caregiving burdens. Today, levy concessions are based largely on age as well as people with disabilities. But care is not just about that. Caregiver burden is heavier when family's needs are complex. Residents have asked about levy concessions and targeted financial support related to hiring an MDW. Consider single mothers or fathers with special needs kids who are also caring for their senior parents. Consider families where both parents work full-time to make ends meet. Currently, the $60 concessionary levy is available for households with a child below 16 years or an adult above 67 years old. There are gaps in the current levy framework.

So, my final ask is this: review levy and subsidy eligibility to reflect real dependency, not just age. This should include supervision-intensive but non-Activity for Daily Living (ADL) cases, such as early dementia, as well as youths above 16, frail adults aged 60 to 66, moderate dependency cases and families with multiple dependents that require care support. Because, really, being a single mother caring for a disabled teen and an elderly parent must feel supported as she loves and cares for her family.

Mr Speaker, our MDWs are not a side story. If we want Singapore to remain strong in an ageing world, we must invest in the people who keep our homes running. By strengthening training and communication, uplifting employment agencies, improving healthcare coverage, exploring flexible care models and refining support for families with heavier caregiving burdens, we can build a caregiving ecosystem that is fair, resilient and sustainable for both Singaporean families and the MDWs who support them. I thank the House and I look forward to MOM's reply.

Mr Speaker: Senior Parliamentary Secretary Shawn Huang.

7.15 pm

The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Manpower (Mr Shawn Huang Wei Zhong): Mr Speaker, I thank the Member for raising this important topic on the role of MDWs in the caregiving landscape in Singapore and her suggestions to better support employers in this regard.

In my response, I will cover three key aspects of how the Government is addressing these issues: first, measures to support MDWs in performing their caregiving duties, such as training and alternative care options by the Government; second, measures to support MDW employers in accessing affordable care services; and third, measures to strengthen MDW employers' working relationships with their MDWs.

Between 2011 and 2025, the MDW population grew by around 3% per year on average, to about 300,000 today. This is driven by various factors including demographic, social and economic changes: more elderly Singaporeans requiring care, as well as more dual-income families with less extended family support.

I share the Member's view that MDWs play an important role in supporting households with different caregiving needs. Their dedication to caring for the young and elderly in our homes are invaluable to many families in Singapore. Hence, we had introduced various measures in the last five years to support MDWs' well-being, such as having mandatory rest days, as well as interviews in the first year of employment to check that they are settling in well. These measures demonstrate our commitment towards improving employment conditions for MDWs, in line with international standards.

With increasing numbers of MDWs providing care to the elderly, we agree with the Member that training is important to enable them to provide quality care on a sustained basis. Both family caregivers and their MDWs may tap on the Caregivers Training Grant (CTG) to offset the costs of attending caregiver training courses organised by approved providers. The CTG was enhanced from 1 April 2024, increasing from $200 to $400 per year, per care recipient.

To support caregivers' training needs, the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) offers over 240 courses covering a range of caregiving training skills, which address the caregiving needs cited by the Member, namely dementia, elder disability and post-hospitalisation care. Home-based training is also available for caregivers to learn how to provide home-based care for their care recipients.

We agree with the Member that language skills by caregivers are important to communicate effectively with their care recipients, especially for MDWs. As mentioned by the Member, employers or MDWs can tap on courses offered by the CDE, the Singapore Hokkien Huay Kuan Cultural Academy and The Salvation Army for basic conversational Hokkien and Cantonese courses respectively. Non-profit organisations, such as the Archdiocesan Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, Brahm Centre and Aidha also conduct English and Mandarin courses for MDWs.

I also agree with the Member, that it is important to support the mental health of MDWs. Employers must provide at least one rest day per month, that cannot be compensated away, to allow MDWs to form support networks outside of the household.

MOM has a dedicated helpline with native speakers for MDWs in distress. We also partner with CDE, Alliance for Domestic Employees Outreach and Brahm Centre to provide psychological first-aid training, counselling and recreational activities for MDWs to improve their mental health.

Even as we strengthen MDW's caregiver support on training and mental health, we should recognise that care needs and family circumstances are diverse. As the Member has rightfully pointed out in her speech, live-in MDWs may not be the best care option for every household and we need to provide more alternatives that are better fit-for-purpose. Therefore, the Government has been working with the industry to offer a wider range of full-time and part-time eldercare and domestic services that are accessible and affordable for our seniors.

In lieu of relying on a live-in MDW, alternative care options such as the recently mainstreamed Shared Stay-in Senior Caregiving Services and the upcoming Home Personal Care enhancements, can help to support seniors with their activities of daily living.

Households that require part-time or ad hoc help with household chores can consider engaging companies on the Household Services Scheme (HSS) instead of hiring an MDW. Since formalising the HSS as a permanent scheme in 2021, the number of HSS companies has increased from about 80 to 240 today.

The Member also highlighted affordability challenges that MDW employers may face. Let me share about the financial support and protection that the Government provides today. First, we have the Home Caregiving Grant (HCG) that currently provides cash payouts of up to $400 per month to support those who are being cared for at home and require permanent assistance with at least three ADLs. The Ministry of Health has announced that it will enhance HCG by first increasing the monthly payout from up to $400 per month to up to $600 per month; and raising the per capita household income (PCHI) eligibility threshold, from $3,600 to $4,800. The enhancements to HCG will take effect from April 2026.

Second, to support families with greater need for MDWs, local households with caregiving needs enjoy a concessionary levy rate of $60 per month, instead of $300. Currently, around 72% of households hiring MDWs already benefit from the levy concession as they have either a child below 16 years old; or an elderly person at least 67 years old; or a person with disabilities living in the household.

Regardless of age or impairment type, persons who require assistance permanently to perform at least one ADL, would qualify for the Levy Concession. This includes persons with dementia or who have special needs, who may physically be able to perform the ADL, but require assistance or supervision to do so.

To better protect employers from high unexpected medical bills, MOM regularly reviews the coverage of medical insurance policies for MDWs. The minimum annual claim limit was raised to $60,000 in 2023. This was a significant increase from $15,000 prior to 2023, and covers 99% of inpatient and day surgery bills incurred by MDWs in the public healthcare institutions. Employers who prefer greater coverage can choose to purchase more comprehensive insurance plans.

On the Member's suggestion to extend the PCP to MDWs, I will highlight that the objective of the PCP is to provide migrant workers with accessible primary healthcare, including setting up of migrant worker medical centres near dormitories, and to strengthen public health resilience. The medical centres for PCP are, thus, largely located near migrant worker dormitories, which are in areas generally not adequately served by existing medical facilities. Employers of MDWs who prefer cost predictability of primary care may consider purchasing more comprehensive insurance claims without patient coverage on a voluntary basis.

I agree with the Member that employment agencies play an important role in the relationship between employers and MDW. Today, more than 80% of employers hire their MDWs with the help of an employment agency. Ensuring a good match between employers and MDWs can help to provide a good start in the working relationship. MOM has put in place process to regulate employment agencies and facilitate better matching of employers and MDWs.

First, employment agencies are required to comply with MOM's regulations and guidelines to ensure that they are professional in their dealings with their clients, both the employers and the MDWs. For instance, employment agencies should not mislead, or provide inaccurate information to their clients, or provide undue pressure on their clients. employment agencies found to have breached these guidelines will be issued with demerit points, which may result in the eventual suspension or revocation of the employment agency licence.

Secondly, we have adopted the approach of making information more transparent so that employers can assess the suitability of prospective MDWs based on their household needs. Employers may use the FDW eService portal to access information about MDWs' past work performance, length of each employment and reasons why MDW have left their past employment.

Thirdly, MOM provides an online employment agency directory to provide information to households looking to engage an employment agency's service, including the employment agencies' customer service ratings, years of experience, retention and transfer rates of their MDWs emplaced. The directory improves transparency by allowing employers to engage the employment agencies that best meet their needs.

Lastly, MOM has an education and outreach programme for both employers and MDWs to align expectations. First-time employers are required to attend the Employers' Orientation Programme, which educates employers on their responsibilities of care towards their MDWs. MDWs, in turn, must go through the Settling-in Programme which educates them on avenues to seek help when needed, on how to manage their own stress and communicate effectively with their employers. This further helps to foster a harmonious relationship between employers and their MDWs.

Mr Speaker, to wrap up, the caregiving landscape in Singapore will get more challenging with increasing demand for care services across different demographics. The Government has been expanding caregiving options and ensuring they remain accessible and affordable. We will continue to find ways to safeguard the interests of MDW employers while protecting the well-being of MDWs.

It takes a many-hands approach to create an ecosystem of support for MDWs and their employers. Our employment agencies, Association of Employment Agencies, CDE, the NTUC and non-governmental organisations play an important role in fostering harmonious relationships between MDWs and their employers. Let us continue to work together to sustain this ecosystem of support for MDWs and employers, and foster a culture of mutual understanding and respect within the community.

Question put, and agreed to.

Resolved, "That Parliament do now adjourn."

Mr Speaker: Pursuant to Standing Order 2(3)(a), I wish to inform hon Members that the Sitting tomorrow will commence at 12.30 pm. Order. Order.

Adjourned accordingly at 7.28 pm.