$60,000 fine for running an unlicensed employment agency

A man was today fined $60,000 by a district court for running an employment agency, even though he did not have a license to do so. 

According to court documents, 45-year-old Samuel Tang Yong Meng sourced from an agent in China, and placed, three Chinese Nationals in restaurants here. 

The offence took place between April and May last year. 

Tang also faced a second charge for committing the same offence between October 2010 and March 2011, but that charge was taken into consideration. 

The court heard that Tang would approach the restaurants, and ask if they needed any foreign workers. 

He did not have a license from the Commissioner of Employment Agencies that authorised him to carry on the business of an employment agency. 

When the restaurants said yes, Tang would source for these workers, and provide the restaurants with the bio-data needed for to make the work pass applications. 

He would also pick the Chinese Nationals up from the airport, take them for their medical checkups, and bring them to the restaurants to start work. 

Each time, he was paid between $800 and $1,200. 

Tang would use part of this sum to buy medical insurance for each worker, and pocket the rest of the cash as his 'service fee'. 

The court heard that Tang had previously been convicted in 2007 of a similar offence. 

For this offence, could have been jailed up to four years and fined $160,000. 

According to the Manpower Ministry Tang is the first repeat offender to be convicted for operating an unlicensed Employment Agency under the revised Employment Agencies Act , which came into effect in April 2011.