OWNERS of Housing Board flats can no longer rent them out to foreign construction workers, unless they are Malaysian.
The board made the decision - believed to be in response to complaints about foreign workers living in HDB estates - known in a circular sent out to real estate agents on Tuesday.
Flat owners currently renting their property to such foreigners can continue until the existing subletting approval expires, or up to Nov 6 next year - whichever is earlier.
The HDB said in the circular that the revision was 'in line with the Government's plan to house foreign construction workers in purpose-built dormitories or workers' quarters constructed on land that is approved for off-site housing'.
It told The Straits Times that Malaysians are exempt because the country is a traditional source of construction workers and 'HDB residents have grown accustomed to having them living in their midst'.
It added that the Ministry of National Development and the Ministry of Manpower agreed to allow Malaysians to continue living in HDB estates because of the 'current shortage of approved off-site housing in the market'.
The bulk of foreign construction workers here come from countries like China and India. Currently, there are about 420,000 work permit holders here, excluding maids.
Based on the amount of construction work expected for the next three to five years, up to 40,000 additional workers might be needed.
More land should be released to house these workers, said the Singapore Contractors Association Limited (Scal).
Its executive director Simon Lee said most existing dormitories are currently packed.
One Scal dormitory in Soon Lee Road, for example, has a waiting list of 100 workers from eight companies.
'I won't be surprised if the rest have a queue as well,' he said.
The Ministry of National Development told The Straits Times that it was identifying more sites to house workers and will release them when ready but it did not say when.
There are currently more than 20 workers' dormitories in Singapore, each able to house a few thousand workers.
A senior division director of property agency Propnex, Mr Eric Cheng, estimates that about 10 per cent of the 12,000 or so HDB flats being rented out are occupied by foreign construction workers.
Mr Lee said it costs about $120 a month to house a worker in a dormitory. An employer putting up eight workers in a four-room flat pays between $1,000 and $1,200 a month - or about $125 to $150 per worker.
Mr Chris Koh, director of Dennis Wee Properties, said the decision to disallow foreign construction workers from living in public estates may have come about because of the disturbance that some of them create.
MP Ho Geok Choo, who looks after the Boon Lay ward where many foreign workers live, disclosed in a recent interview that she gets frequent complaints of the noise foreign workers make when they congregate, and the litter they leave behind in parks and gardens.
But she said not all of the complaints may be justified as some could be due to Singaporeans being unfamiliar with the workers' culture.
Scal's Mr Lee said contractors can enhance relations between Singaporeans and foreign workers by providing more opportunities for interaction, while Madam Ho suggested that foreign workers living near an HDB estate be invited to its block parties.
tanhy@sph.com.sg
