‘This is terrible,’ S’poreans condemn Agoda’s dismissal of SG employees, told not to report to gov’t agencies

SINGAPORE: It was reported on Wednesday (Sept 17) that the travel company Agoda had recently let go of employees in customer support roles in Singapore, Shanghai, and Budapest and would be hiring workers for these same roles in Foshan, China; Gurgaon, India; and Cairo, Egypt.

It was bad enough that around 50 employees in Singapore were affected by these retrenchments, which occurred in an unannounced town hall on Aug 4. What made matters worse is that in order for Agoda’s retrenched employees to receive a severance package, they were told that they could not file reports with government agencies, including the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

CNA, which has seen the said severance agreement, reported that the retrenched employees also could not file reports to either the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) or the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP).

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM), as well as the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and Singapore Industrial and Services Employees’ Union (SISEU), have all spoken up on the matter.

The joint statement from NTUC and SISEU was published on the social media pages of NTUC chief Ng Chee Meng and SISEU Executive Secretary Desmond Tan.

“It goes against a fundamental right of every worker — the right to seek redress when they face workplace issues. It also runs counter to the principles of fair and progressive employment practices that we expect of all responsible employers in Singapore,” it reads.

MOM has expressed similar sentiments, adding that the ministry and the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices are investigating the issue.

Singaporeans commenting online are equally as angry.

“This is terrible to read. I am [an] HR, and I am disgusted by Agoda’s leadership and management towards its workforce. Legally, the clauses are not enforceable. I am certain that this will be a top thing that MOM will look into. Kudos to that courageous staff who dare to share,” one wrote.

“Such companies have to be put under some kind of watch for a period of time so that employees do not sign unfair employment agreements,” added a Facebook user.

“If everything was just and in order, no need to ‘silence’ anyone with threats,” pointed out another.

Some netizens have called for a boycott of Agoda’s services.

“Shameless management,” wrote one, adding that they will get on LinkedIn to search out Agoda’s management.

“I will stop using Agoda,” they added. /TISG

Read also: CCCS flags Agoda’s ‘problematic’ website and app features that could mislead Singapore consumers