Woman charged for running employment agency without a valid licence

Ministry of Manpower

11 April 2017

1. In the State Courts today, the Ministry of Manpower (“MOM”) charged 60-year-old Singaporean Noor Hayah Binte Gulam (“the accused”), with one count of running an employment agency (“EA”) without a valid EA licence.
2. If found guilty, the accused can be fined up to $80,000, or imprisoned for up to two years or to both under the Employment Agencies Act (EAA).
   
   About the Case
3. Acting on a complaint, the investigation revealed that from November 2014 to March 2016, the accused performed employment agency work despite not having a valid EA licence. The accused had posted job advertisements in the web portal for job seekers, placed foreign domestic workers with their employers, collected bio-data and resumes, conducted interviews and sourced for potential employers. Agency fees were also collected by the accused from the employers for the services rendered. 
   
   Use the EA Directory to Verify if an EA is Licensed
4. MOM advises employers who intend to engage the services of an EA to first verify that the EA is licensed. They can do so through the EA Directory on MOM’s website at www.mom.gov.sg/eadirectory. 
5. The EA Directory also offers other information. This includes the EA’s retention¹ and transfer² rates, which reflect its ability to match FDWs and employers’ requirements; the placement volume of FDWs, the years of experience in the industry, violations committed previously, as well as the rating of the EA based on customer feedback. Such information helps employers to make an informed choice on the selection of which EA to use. 
   
   MOM Takes a Serious View of Unlicensed EA Activities 
6. It is an offence to perform EA activities without a valid EA licence. 
7. It is also an offence for any person or company to engage the services of an unlicensed EA. Offenders can be fined up to $5,000 per charge. 
8. Members of the public who have any information on unlicensed EA activities should report the matter to MOM at mom_fmmd@mom.gov.sg or call 6438 5122. All information will be kept strictly confidential.

FOOTNOTE

1. Percentage of FDWs placed by the agency who have stayed with the same employer for at least 1 year.

2. Percentage of FDWs placed by the agency who have transferred to 3 or more employers within 1 year.

Source information taken from https://www.mom.gov.sg/newsroom/press-releases/2017/0411-woman-charged-fro-running-employment-agency-without-a-valid-licence