Two foreigners arrested by MOM, worked illegally as riders for foodpanda and Deliveroo

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is currently investigating how two Malaysian nationals managed to work as food delivery drivers for foodpanda and Deliveroo in Singapore.

According to a report by The Star, a Malaysian national was caught during an operation conducted by the MOM at 313@Somerset on April 25, in response to a public tip-off.

One of the arrested workers was a 24-year-old Malaysian who held a social visit pass but was using his Singaporean friend’s Deliveroo account to work as a food delivery driver. Allegedly, the friend got a cut from the Malaysian driver’s earnings.

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In a subsequent operation conducted from Apr 30 to May 7, the MOM arrested a 21-year-old Malaysian national who also held a social visit pass but who had allegedly been hired by a Singaporean to work as an illegal delivery driver using the latter’s foodpanda and Deliveroo account.

Inspections during this second operation had been conducted at Plaza Singapura, Malacca Street, Tanglin Mall, Novena Square, Nex Shopping Centre, and Ang Mo Kio Hub.

Deliveroo has since suspended the accounts of the both workers in question. A spokesperson clarified that Deliveroo “require[s] all riders to be either a Singapore citizen or a permanent resident.”

To-date, foodpanda has yet to release a media statement.

According to numbers from the MOM, 900 social visit pass holders had been caught working illegally in Singapore from 2016 to 2018. Additionally, 500 employers had been caught illegally hiring foreigners to work for them.

Foreigners caught working without government valid workers’ passes can face a S$20,000 fine and/or be imprisoned for two years. Employers hiring illegal workers can be fined S$5,000 to S$30,000 and/or be imprisoned for 12 months./TISG