Filipino domestic worker, employer fined for illegal employment on rest days

Dubai: A 64-year-old Singaporean woman has been fined S$7,000 (P310,000) for illegally employing a foreign domestic worker to perform part-time cleaning duties even on rest days.

Singapore's Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said the worker, 53-year-old Filipino national Pido Erlinda Ocampo, was also fined S$13,000 (P580,000) for taking on unauthorised employment with two separate households.

Working without a permit

Court documents revealed that the employer, Soh Oi Bek, hired Ocampo in 2018 despite knowing she was already under contract with another family. Ocampo cleaned Soh’s home two to three times a month for nearly two years, earning about S$375 (P17,000) monthly.

The arrangement was interrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic but resumed from March 2022 until September 2024. Throughout that time, Ocampo did not hold a valid work pass to legally work for Soh.

Fines issued for illegal employment

Investigations also found that Soh had introduced Ocampo to a colleague, Pulak Prasad, who later engaged her as a part-time helper. Ocampo worked for Prasad between September 2019 and February 2020, and again from March 2022 to September 2024, earning about S$450 (P20,00) a month. Prasad was issued an out-of-court fine of S$4,000 (P180,000).

During sentencing, the prosecution argued for a heavier penalty for Soh due to the extended period of illegal employment. The judge noted that the fine was based only on the months Ocampo had actually worked, not the full duration of their arrangement, which spanned several years.

Both Soh and Ocampo have since paid their fines in full.

MOM reminded the public that under Singaporean law, employers who hire foreign workers without a valid work pass can face fines of S$5,000 (P225,000) to S$30,000 (P1.300,000), imprisonment of up to one year, or both. Foreign workers caught working illegally may face fines of up to S$20,000 (P900,000), up to two years in jail, or both.