Article
Singapore strikes shed light on workers' woes
[L]abour unrest over low wages and appalling living conditions has…draw[n] attention to the…migrant worker community…Several groups of…migrant workers staged labour strikes, protests and sit-ins. [A] group of…construction workers launched a…sit-out to protest unpaid salaries and…dismal food…In response to a strike…in November, the…government deported 29 people and imposed $2,000 fines and jail terms for several others…[M]ore than one million migrant workers…provide cheap…labour in the construction, shipyard, transportation and garbage refuse industries...[L]abour strikes and protests are still "a comparatively new phenomenon"…[whereas] many foreign workers…see…strikes as ordinary…[T]he Humane Organisation for Migrant Economics…has questioned Singapore's way of dealing with migrant worker issues…Political campaigns in the country have often drawn on anti-foreigner sentiment…in an attempt to win votes…