Singapore Expats

Terminated before joining

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vijaykrishh
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Terminated before joining

Post by vijaykrishh » Thu, 07 Apr 2016 2:23 pm

hi All, i came down to Singapore from india on feb 1 had my return ticket on feb 29th , i was previously interviewed over skype and asked to come down to singapore . for the second test on my own expense


i went to the interview place on feb 4 and got selected and they offered me a intend of offer letter and a S pass application form on Feb 4 through email .

Below are the details.
2 year renewable contract under XXX Singapore.
Monthly Salary: SGD 2400
7 days Annual Leave
14 days Medical leave (as per MOM standards)
Medical coverage (Prudential)
2 months written notice

We need your formal acceptance and details for preparing your contract

Full Name as in Passport
Passport Number
Address in Singapore
Date of Birth
Bank account details (Where salary will be credited)

*Offer valid subject to work pass approval from the MOM Singapore and passing of the required tests.


And they had some constraint like Passing in Entrance , test , passing in some test which will be conducted after the 1 month training period


i was informed tat most probably joining on Feb 15

And i gave them all the documents on FEB 5th

but unfortunately the person who has to apply s pass for me was on medical leave and Chinese new year was also in tat week

so my pass was only applied on FEB 12 , and it has got approved on FEB 17 , it was a delay from their side so i wasn't able to join on FEB 15 so i was moved on to the next month training batch

after tat i was asked for medical certificate and i took the medical test which was mentioned by employer and gave the the result and then on march 3 i went to the mom and gave my finger prints and other details for the card formalities everything in my own expense

so mom formalities are over . and i was waiting to join on march 15 ,

and i was asked to go for a Entrance test in my client place ( there conducted the same test before a month itself and i cleared the test and the same ques paper was given to me on) march 7 and i was expecting the result next day
and since there was no response for about 3 days i mailed them on march 11th

and they replied me on march 14th 10:00AM tat they have not received my result yet so
only if i pass the test i can proceed further if not they will be cancelling my pass , and returning the card to MOM,

after some time around 1:00 pm i received a mail from them tat

""" xxx ( client ) has closed the tests. We will be cancelling your pass today and will sending you the cancellation letter together with your social visit pass to you via email """".


i am almost broke

i have spend about 4000$ in this past two months with the hope of joining in their organization
And i cant go back to India to my last job too it's already filled by someone else

my house rent is almost 500$ along with pub , and other phone, food , transport and living in Singapore is the most expensive
and i have made an 6 month agreement with house owner near the client location office too , which i can't get it back right now


i dont have any options right now , i have nothing to lose right now , i cant go and face my family like this ..
can any one gimme a good suggestion ,
they have cancelled my pass and given me a SPV till april 21st so expecting a reply from local expertise asap

i tried emailing the Hr saying this is not my fault then why did you hire me in first place , but now they changed the issue as i failed in tat test and they tried to arrange a re-test and the client company closed the test , and before they could arrange a re-test , but up to my knowledge wen i inquired with people trained in my previous batch , there should be minimum and 8-10 people for the client to start a training batch at tat time only me and one more Philippine(same reason given to him and cancelled his pass too) guy was only available .

And other thing was my employer ( sub vendor ) of client they were not in good terms at tat moment. i came to know this through a friend of mine who referred me to that company

*i just have intend of the offer letter in my email they have not given me the original offer letter in written and mom have approved my pass and delivered my card on march 9th and march 14th they informed me about cancelling my pass and cancelled it on march 21st "

should i consult this thing with the lawyer or i should report it to MOM

what could be the solution for me

thank you
vj
Last edited by vijaykrishh on Thu, 07 Apr 2016 2:46 pm, edited 3 times in total.

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PNGMK
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by PNGMK » Thu, 07 Apr 2016 2:32 pm

VJ,

That is absolutely awful but not an uncommon story.
I not lawyer/teacher/CPA.
You've been arrested? Law Society of Singapore can provide referrals.
You want an International School job? School website or http://www.ISS.edu
Your rugrat needs a School? Avoid for profit schools
You need Tax advice? Ask a CPA
You ran away without doing NS? Shame on you!

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rajagainstthemachine
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by rajagainstthemachine » Sun, 10 Apr 2016 9:06 am

this appears to be a scam thats resurfaced quite a few times, you should contact MoM immediately,
To get there early is on time and showing up on time is late

vijaykrishh
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by vijaykrishh » Sun, 10 Apr 2016 6:18 pm

I have fixed an appointment with mom on monday apr 11th so let see MOM could help me in this case or not

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Wd40
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by Wd40 » Sun, 10 Apr 2016 8:06 pm

Hi VJ,

Sad to hear your story. It definitely sounds like a scam but may or may not be scam. This is how Singapore is. It is very employer friendly and there is not so much of protection for the employee. You must be smart enough to cut your losses and realize that you took a big risk and it back fired. The employer, might have scamed you, but may or may not have done it within legal limits.

Your complaint to MoM will probably teach the employer a lesson or may not, if they did everything within legal limits. At best, you may receive some compensation if you file a law suit or something, but that too may be a far shot. But finding a job in Singapore may still be impossible.

Dont worry about facing family etc. They are your family, they will understand you. Your still have a long life ahead and there is a saying in Hindi, "Jaan hai to jahaan hai"(If you are alive you have the whole world, or something like that). So just move on, and look at the positive things you have in life and work hard, you will definitely make it big in life.

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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by BBCWatcher » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 12:28 am

Briefly, you have two important legal rights in these circumstances:

1. Since your Work Permit was approved, your employer is obliged to pay you at least your fixed monthly salary (as stated in the WP application), pro-rated starting from February 17 through the WP cancellation date even if your employer had no work for you. You took a big risk coming to Singapore without an In Principal Approval (IPA), but in this case you're lucky since you had a WP starting from February 17.

2. Your employer is also obliged to pay for your return ticket home, almost always to the airline served airport nearest your home in your home country or to a mutually agreed alternative airport.

Make sure MoM is aware of your issues and that, working with MoM, you recover at least these two amounts from your employer. (The latter should be in the form of an actual, fully paid ticket home.) Although disappointing, you should be made reasonably financially whole for your troubles.

I'm assuming Work Permit holding here, by the way, not an Employment Pass.

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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by vijaykrishh » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 8:44 am

NO this is not a scam , some of the person who was interviewed before me joined on feb 15th they had their training till march 10th and out of 8 , 3 passed and they where all started working and they got their 1st month salary along with training period stipend

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PNGMK
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by PNGMK » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 8:49 am

BBCWatcher wrote:Briefly, you have two important legal rights in these circumstances:

1. Since your Work Permit was approved, your employer is obliged to pay you at least your fixed monthly salary (as stated in the WP application), pro-rated starting from February 17 through the WP cancellation date even if your employer had no work for you. You took a big risk coming to Singapore without an In Principal Approval (IPA), but in this case you're lucky since you had a WP starting from February 17.

2. Your employer is also obliged to pay for your return ticket home, almost always to the airline served airport nearest your home in your home country or to a mutually agreed alternative airport.

Make sure MoM is aware of your issues and that, working with MoM, you recover at least these two amounts from your employer. (The latter should be in the form of an actual, fully paid ticket home.) Although disappointing, you should be made reasonably financially whole for your troubles.

I'm assuming Work Permit holding here, by the way, not an Employment Pass.
In addition to 1 & 2 I would also prepare a letter of demand outlining reasonable expenses incurred (accommodation, meals) and present that to MOM for enforcement on the employer as well.
I not lawyer/teacher/CPA.
You've been arrested? Law Society of Singapore can provide referrals.
You want an International School job? School website or http://www.ISS.edu
Your rugrat needs a School? Avoid for profit schools
You need Tax advice? Ask a CPA
You ran away without doing NS? Shame on you!

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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by BBCWatcher » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 9:32 am

Agreed, PNGMK, especially with the key word "reasonable." Those two financial elements are the minimum legal requirements in these circumstances, not the maximum.

Looking at the WP dates, it appears that VJ is legally entitled to a minimum of one month (or a bit more) of the fixed monthly salary as listed in the WP application, plus a fully paid airline ticket home regardless of whether he actually worked or not. I should also point out that the employer still has a legal obligation to take care of VJ's legitimate medical needs until he's repatriated, plus medical expenses already incurred. VJ, you should not be out of pocket on medical expenses unless your employment agreement says otherwise, and then only up to a maximum of 10% of your fixed monthly salary. You mentioned there was a medical exam. If you had to pay anything for that exam (or for other medical expenses, such as vaccinations) make sure MoM and the employer know about those expenses, too, since you're legally entitled to recover them as I understand it (or at least a minimum of 90% of those expenses if there's an employment agreement that speaks to medical expenses). Insurance limits do not apply -- your employer is financially responsible, whether below or above insurance limits.

"Know your rights," basically, and work with MoM to make sure your rights are fully respected, preferably exceeded.

vijaykrishh
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by vijaykrishh » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 9:40 am

Thank you very much guys for the advice should i need write any formal letter and take it to the mom or else i can explain them everything during my appointment

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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by PNGMK » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 9:44 am

vijaykrishh wrote:Thank you very much guys for the advice should i need write any formal letter and take it to the mom or else i can explain them everything during my appointment
Prepare a formal letter outlining the expenses. Make sure you have original receipts and a copy of each.
I not lawyer/teacher/CPA.
You've been arrested? Law Society of Singapore can provide referrals.
You want an International School job? School website or http://www.ISS.edu
Your rugrat needs a School? Avoid for profit schools
You need Tax advice? Ask a CPA
You ran away without doing NS? Shame on you!

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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by BBCWatcher » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 10:28 am

Very important reminder: we're still assuming a Work Permit and associated legal rights.

With respect to paid travel home, the employer is required to pay for a check-in luggage allowance, if the airline charges for checked baggage. The Ministry of Manpower isn't specific about how much that allowance should be, but industry standard economy class allowances (up to two pieces, up to 23 Kg each) would be a very reasonable request. Make sure you ask for that if that's what you want/need. Or ask for less if you need less.

On the other hand, the employer is not legally required to pay for ground transportation from the destination airport to your home. You can ask, but you may not get it. You should ask for an air ticket to the airline-served airport with the most convenient and affordable ground transportation to your home. MoM will arbitrate any dispute if your employer tries to send you to another airport.

Your employer was supposed to send you home within 7 days of Work Permit cancellation (assuming you're not Malaysian), so you're somewhat less likely to recover expenses incurred after those 7 days (e.g. April's expenses). However, if the employer simply failed to buy you a timely air ticket, then the burden can shift back to the employer. If staying beyond that 7 day period was not your choice, and you've been waiting for your employer to fulfill their legal requirements, including purchase of your return air transportation -- if that's the truth -- then say so in your letter.

vijaykrishh
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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by vijaykrishh » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 10:33 am

work permit ( work pass general and s pass ) it come under right
i am an s pass holder with my basic salary 2400sgd

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Re: RE: Re: Terminated before joining

Post by ecureilx » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 11:58 am

BBCWatcher wrote: With respect to paid travel home, the employer is required to pay for a check-in luggage allowance, if the airline charges for checked baggage. The Ministry of Manpower isn't specific about how much that allowance should be, but industry standard economy class allowances (up to two pieces, up to 23 Kg each) would be a very reasonable request. Make sure you ask for that if that's what you want/need. Or ask for less if you need less..
With reference to "Industry Standards", the 2x 23 kilo policy doesn't apply in intra Asian routes. That's for US/Western Hemisphere fare rule.

For regular economy/Y, It's 20 or 30 kg maximum, that's it. Your suggestion is-Pushing your luck comes to my mind.

And for flight ticket, MOM won't blink of the employer gets a LCC ticket with 10 kilo luggage allowance. I know a work pass holder who was repatriated with no luggage and MOM didn't do much when the worker decided not to fly once checked in and passed immigration, other than get the employer to pay for a replacement ticket. A NGO stepped in to ship his stuff.

I would suggest VJ focus on his 30 day compensation plus air ticket as priority. Anything else would be bonus.

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Re: Terminated before joining

Post by saran » Mon, 11 Apr 2016 12:41 pm

vijaykrishh wrote: And they had some constraint like Passing in Entrance , test , passing in some test which will be conducted after the 1 month training period
you did not prepared for failure situation. In your side, you took risk hoped everything will go fine. I suggest you seek for other opportunities in SG since you have got approval for S PASS once. you can talk to your employer and try to get some compensation like air ticket, housing contract expense, etc.

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