Since we are neighbours, why is it illegal to work Grab in both countries?
It is no secret that Singapore and Malaysia have not had the best relations over the past few decades but at the end of the day, both countries have immense respect for one another so it is still possible for many Malaysians to work in Singapore and vice versa, but apparently this is not applicable for Grab and Foodpanda, why?
Well, apparently, Singapore Minister of State for Manpower, Zaqy Mohamad, said in parliament recently that it is illegal for foreigners to work as riders for food delivery applications such as Deliveroo, Foodpanda and Grabfood. Considering there are so many Malaysians living in JB and working in Singapore, why is this illegal?
Moreover, Zaqy also said the Singaporean ministry has taken action against social visit pass holders who work illegally as food delivery riders. The penalties for doing so are a fine of up to SGD20,000 (approximately RM68,652), a jail term of up to two years, or both.
Okay, so first things first, while under most other circumstances, once a person is registered as a worker in one country, working in another country, even in the same industry, would be cause for extradition, arrest or blacklisting, however, as previously mentioned, many already go back and forth from here to Singapore for work anyway.
This also leads me to question, why Singapore is so against getting what is essentially free manpower. After all, many Malaysians who lost their jobs during the frequent lockdowns during the pandemic turned to Grab and Foodpanda to become Grab drivers or delivery riders, so we have a surplus of riders here anyway.
Singapore on the other hand is a small country with far less manpower than Malaysia but it is a busy metropolitan city so prevailing wisdom suggests that most people there would rely on Grab and Foodpanda delivery so why not just be grateful for the extra help? I know we Malaysians certainly would not have a problem with that.
Well, more likely than not the answer is probably that Singapore does not want Malaysian registered Grab and Foodpanda riders taking away job opportunities from Singaporeans. Just because we as a country are lazy and prefer letting foreigners take our jobs does not mean all countries share this sentiment so there is your answer.
We got all this from Mothership Singapore and their full article is linked here. Thank you Mothership for the information and image.
