Another video showing another Chinese migrant worker attempting suicide at an undisclosed dormitory was circulated on social media earlier today (24 July).
In the video, a Chinese migrant worker can be seen standing on top of the railing outside of the dormitory corridor while other migrant workers were trying to persuade him to step down from the railing.
The man was then approached by a security personnel to dissuade him from taking a step further.
When asked why he was contemplating suicide, the man noted that he was not allowed to return home despite purchasing the flight ticket using his own money. He questioned why he was unable to leave for home.
In response, the security personnel said that it is not his fault for disallowing the man to return to his homeland, as he tried to persuade the man to come down and solve the issue another way.
Meanwhile, other migrant workers at the resident block can be heard yelling “Just make a phone call!” and ”Nobody wants to come out to settle this issue!” – most likely referring to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) or the employer.
After a while, three police officers arrived at the scene and spoke to the man. One of the officers persuaded him to step down from the railing, assuring him that they will inform his employer about this issue.
“Now you wanted to go back to your home country, right? I will inform your employer and asked him to sent you back,” said the police officer.
This incident came after a commotion on Wednesday (22 July) in which a Chinese migrant worker residing at the S11 Dormitory @ Punggol attempted suicide as he was unable to afford the S$2,000 return ticket to China after encountering issues with his employer.
The migrant worker was seen standing on top of the railing on the fourth floor of the dormitory building. Many other migrant workers whipped out their mobile phones to record the scene.
Fortunately, the migrant worker was successfully persuaded to step off the railing safely.
On this, the MOM clarified that the worker’s employer had complied with advice to facilitate the employee’s return to his homeland.
It disclosed that the worker — who was staying at the PPT Lodge 1B dormitory block — did not discuss with his employer the option of leaving the cleared dormitory, which led to a dispute.
“Investigations revealed that the worker purchased a flight ticket to his home country on his own and became agitated when his employer was not facilitative of his return.
“When the incident happened, the FAST team on site managed to calm the worker down and resolve the issue after contacting his employer,” said MOM.
The Ministry encouraged all migrant workers to contact the Migrant Workers’ Centre (MWC) 24-hour helpline at 6536 2692 or via MOM’s feedback form in the event that such employment disputes arise.
