About 400 migrant workers in Singapore face months of unpaid wages at three linked firms

Around 400 migrant workers employed by VVR Plant Engineering, SK Industries, and KPA Engineering — three Singapore companies sharing the same director, Indian national Ramu Palani Velu — have gone up to three months without wages, with the director now assisting the Ministry of Manpower with investigations. Workers paid agent fees of up to $13,000 to secure employment, and have filed wage claims with the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management. One affected worker, Indian national Kandha Samy Ragupathy, 50, who has worked in Singapore for 27 years, said his daughters, whom he came here to support, now send him money to survive.