THE H1N1 flu bug has invaded schools, nightspots and army camps - but not the dormitories of foreign workers so far. And operators want to keep it that way.

Those returning to Avery Strategic Investments' four dormitories now have to go through temperature checks before they enter their lodgings. Anyone found running a temperature of 37.5 deg C and above will be isolated. If a worker's fever persists after 30 minutes, his employer will be notified.

Said worker Perumal Maheswaran, 32: 'Sometimes I have to wait up to 20 minutes to check the temperature but it's OK. It's better than being sick.'

The dorm operators are following 'infection control measures' put out by the Manpower Ministry (MOM).

These include: disinfecting common areas, advising the workers to maintain high standards of hygiene and setting aside rooms within the dorm for isolation purposes. Flu prevention posters in languages such as Chinese, Tamil and Bengali have also been put up in their dormitories.

Avery's director, Mr Vernon Chua, said security turnstiles, where the workers gain entry to the dorms, are disinfected daily. Another operator, MES Group of Companies, disinfects common areas such as gyms and canteens three to four times a day, up from just once or twice a day more than a month ago.

The 33 commercial dorms listed on the MOM's website house up to 8,000 workers.

Given how densely packed they are, dorms have traditionally been hot spots for contagious diseases, including dengue and even malaria.

So far, the H1N1 flu bug has given the dorms a miss but Mrs Bridget Lew, president of foreign worker advocacy group Home, said she is afraid that some workers who caught the virus may have ignored it, and treated it as a regular illness.

She also hopes employers will not penalise workers if they are quarantined.

Read the full report in Saturday's edition of The Straits Times.