Employers Should Let Helpers Have Off Days On Weekdays
To curb Covid-19 transmissions in Singapore and keep everyone safe, residents have been advised to stay home as much as possible during Phase 2 (Heightened Alert).
Stay Home For The Next 4 Weeks, Only Go Out For Essential Purposes: MOH
The advice is applicable to everyone in Singapore, including domestic helpers with whom many of us share a home.
On Wednesday (19 May), Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang urged employers to let their domestic workers have their rest days on weekdays.
They should also encourage their helpers to rest at home and avoid crowded areas.
Employers should advise helpers to avoid crowds on off days
In light of the recent surge in community cases, residents in Singapore have been advised to refrain from heading out.
To keep domestic helpers safe, employers should also make adjustments to their work arrangements.
Besides allowing them to take their rest days on weekdays, Ms Gan also encourages employers to advise helpers to rest at home instead of going out.
Should they insist on heading out, they must keep interactions brief and to groups of no more than 2.
To ensure compliance, officers from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and other agencies have been patrolling popular hotspots over the weekends.
Similar operations to raise awareness in Mar 2021
Source
Fortunately, most domestic helpers appear to adhere to prevailing safe management measures.
Others who may have failed to do so were reportedly cooperative when approached by officers.
Important to keep domestic helpers safe too
The safety of domestic helpers – who many Singaporeans share their homes with – should be taken into account during this crucial time.
We hope employers would heed the advisory and allow their helpers to have their rest days on less-crowded weekdays.
Just like how they take care of us at home, we should also take care of their health and safety during the pandemic.
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Featured image adapted from Gan Siow Huang on Facebook.
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