SINGAPORE: A Filipino woman who brought her maid from the Philippines to Singapore to work for her household of seven was fined by a court on Monday (Sep 2).
Fodor Janelle Joven, 32, was fined S$8,800 (US$6,730) after pleading guilty to one count of hiring a domestic worker without a valid work pass under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA).
The court heard that Joven had a Singaporean partner. They had two children and stayed in a three-room Housing Board flat with Joven’s in-laws, making a total of seven occupants in the flat.
Joven was in Singapore on a short-term visit pass.
Before coming to Singapore, Joven hired 45-year-old Belen Jennifer Parungao as her domestic helper in the Philippines.
In around early May 2022, Joven suggested that Parungao come to Singapore and work for her as a domestic worker.
Joven said they would not apply for a work pass. Parungao agreed and entered Singapore on May 19, 2022, on a short-term visit pass.
As Joven herself was on a short-term visit pass, she would make arrangements to travel out of Singapore together with her maid so they could renew their passes and stay in Singapore for longer.
They made a total of six such trips.
For about 11 months from May 19, 2022, to Apr 11, 2023, Parungao worked illegally as Joven’s maid, performing household chores and caring for Joven’s children.
She worked from 5am to 10pm daily, earning 10,000 to 12,000 Philippine pesos, or about S$240 to S$290, each month. She was not given any rest days.
Parungao’s salary was remitted to Joven’s mother in the Philippines, who would transfer the money to Parungao’s family.
On Apr 26 last year, employment inspectors from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) investigated the case after receiving information on the possible contravention of EFMA laws.
Joven married her Singaporean partner on Jul 11, 2024.
The prosecution sought a fine of S$9,000 to S$10,000 for Joven, citing the need for deterrence and the difficulty of detecting such cases.
“Such offences are typically only discovered upon inspections or receipts of complaints, as in the present case,” they said.
Joven had also avoided detection by extending Parangao’s stay in Singapore through six trips to countries in Southeast Asia, allowing her to remain in Singapore and work for Joven.
Visitors on short-term visit passes are not allowed to take on employment in Singapore.
The circumvention of MOM’s work pass framework has also undermined the framework’s integrity, said the prosecution.
“One of the main purposes of this framework is to safeguard more vulnerable foreign employees, such as (Parangao) who had no prior working experience in Singapore,” they said.
“Illegally employed domestic workers such as (Parangao) would not be able to avail themselves of the protection afforded by the work pass framework such as insurance.”
For employing a foreigner without a valid work pass, Joven could have been jailed for up to 12 months or fined between S$5,000 and S$30,000.