A CHECK with the Manpower Ministry (MOM) revealed that Sun City was one of two cleaning companies convicted on 6 Oct for failing to provide statutory benefits to its employees.
The company was fined $4,800 for eight charges, with another 18 charges taken into consideration.
Sun City's managing director, Swee Peng Koon, was also convicted and fined the same amount as he was deemed responsible for the offences.
Mr Quek Jen Juan, MOM's senior assistant director at the labour relations and workplaces division, said she hoped that the Sun City case would serve as a 'wake-up call' for all employers.
The findings came to light during an audit on the company, conducted on 6 Dec last year. MOM discovered workers were given only two rest days a month, instead of one rest day a week as required under the law.
The workers were also not granted any annual leave.
In addition, some cleaners were found to have worked beyond 72 hours of overtime a month.
Failure to provide statutory employment benefits such as annual leave, rest day and sick leave in accordance with the law are offences under the Employment Act.
It is also an offence to make employees work more than 12 hours a day or work more than 72 hours of overtime in a month.
Those found guilty may be prosecuted in court and fined up to $1,000 for each offence.
For a second or subsequent offence, those convicted can be fined up to $2,000 or jailed up to one year, or both.
Since 2007, MOM has prosecuted six cleaning companies for violations of the Employment Act.
Another three cleaning companies now face pending prosecution for failing to pay salaries.
This article was first published in The New Paper on 1 Dec 2008.
