“If the company is really not taking it seriously at all, then we have no choice and will not hesitate to issue a stop-work order.” That was Singapore’s Manpower Minister, Josephine Teo, speaking at a press conference on March 31, 2020.
Her target was employers who keep staff in the office when the work could be done from home. The Ministry of Manpower estimated that only 40 percent of workers in the Central Business District were telecommuting, a figure based on inspections and other information the ministry had gathered.
“Employers must allow your employees to work from home, as far as reasonably practicable,” Teo said. “If the nature of work can allow for work to be done from home, companies should ensure that all the employees work from home.”
More inspectors, tougher penalties
The ministry plans to put more than 100 officers on the job of checking companies that have not set up flexible work arrangements. That is five times the current number. Teo said the ministry is also weighing fines and other penalties for firms that do not make a serious effort.
Stop-work orders are not hypothetical. MOM had already issued them to 34 companies for failing to put safe distancing measures in place at their workplaces.
Where staff can’t stay home
Teo accepted that some sectors, manufacturing among them, cannot easily move work out of the workplace. Those employers still have to keep distance between staff, and between staff and outsiders such as customers or vendors. She also asked them to stagger working hours.
“Don’t create a situation where everyone has to arrive at the same time, take the same lifts, and create also this kind of situation where everyone has to leave at the same time and go to the bus stops at the same time,” she said.
