I thank The Sunday Times for raising awareness of the plight of some foreign workers in Singapore, and the Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home) for taking steps to help these workers ("Cheated out of a job... in S'pore"; last Sunday).

Foreign workers have contributed significantly to the development of Singapore, and the Government can do more to help these workers. Instead of repatriating these victimised workers and leaving them in a state of impoverishment, the Government should arrange for them to be re-employed by companies here. This approach will give the foreign workers a new lease of life and provide local firms with a readily available pool of foreign workers, thus also saving time and costs for these firms.

Many foreign workers are exploited by employment agencies in their home countries which charge exorbitant fees. The Government should take steps to prohibit firms in Singapore from recruiting foreign workers referred by employment agencies that charge exorbitant fees. The steps could include setting an agency fee cap and dealing only with accredited agencies.

Home has done a great job in providing help to these foreign workers. The Government should provide it with more funding so that it can provide even more help to these foreign workers.

Kor Bing Keong