THIS week, I'm busy with shifting to the new office and failed to pose new ones. I needed to shift my belongings from the old office to new one which is just one level up. The common office belongings were being shifted by some Indian site workers. Seeing immigrant workers shifting office things make me recall my nightmare days of previous job. I was working in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia between early 2005 and early 2008. Fortunately I was assigned to do quantity surveying job at the head quarter. There are some fellow citizen working together with me at the office. I don't know it's proud thing or not that only Myanmar workers are selected to work at the office. Thus, we are the sole immigrant workers at the vicinity of head office. All other colleagues are locals.
In Malaysia, all employment pass to foreign workers are the same called work permit which is deemed for low skill workers imported from less developing and poorer countries of the region. I reached there by the help of agent as a site engineer. However, the formal document suggest that we were employed as a construction worker. We didn't understand what the government's IPA letter show because they all are written by Malay language. Let it be. As a result, we all are treated as the same class regardless of our post assigned. No matter where we came from. No matter what are we doing at work. We are deemed underdogs and we are not suppose to complain anything to our colleagues who are sometime less educated locals.
Since we are the only foreign worker group at the office, we were automatically assigned for those work which need to be carried or shifted around the office. Everyday, we need to carry construction materials supplied by supplier from ground floor to 3rd story store. Also we need to bring down those materials from the shafts of store to ground floor every morning. Even local drivers of lorry cars considered those carrying jobs are not theirs. What they need to do is just parking and inform to HR only. Then HR staffs will inform to all Burmese staffs to help them carrying things. They won't carry anything while we all are sweating out by carrying those heavy things. They just supervise us to ensure right things are placed in the right place only. In fact, those supervising staff are just office staff. We all are Engineers and working engineering jobs at the office. No matter, what post we are doing, we have to follow their instruction. It's very obvious we were bullied by locals. The problem is we were forced to sign employment contract as soon as we land KLIA and we were not allowed to go back home before fully entertaining those unfair and unlawful contract.
Sometime, we are fully concentration in the work we do while we received calls from those office staffs. We are suppose to act swiftly to all instructions. Otherwise we would be fined by those supervisor who will inform lady boss secretly. What a bitter experience is it? But we have to swallow those stupid things everyday. We sometime protest for early release by citing unhappiness at the work. We know that they won't agree with us and won't return our passport such easy. Despite we continue to show our unhappiness, they have no intention to change our relationship. The keep bully us and press by time. Sometime we even think that we were brainwashed by the horrible lady boss. She is so sweet in appearance, but so fox in her mind. We got life time lesson from the work of KL and it make us feel more comfortable in the workplace of city state.
That's why I said before that seeing Indian workers shifting office common things make me recall my past days. I was in the same position of them. I tried to escape from that prison alike workplace and seek a job in city state. Now I can enjoy fairer work environment in Singapore without being treated terrific. I am now able to feel that republic make me feel more security in term of lawful. I thank to my previous employer making me stronger man by setting a workplace of hell. I understood from this experience that life is ever changing as long as we do not stop moving forward. We have to believe that every single trouble is temporary and solvable. May all my fellow citizen able to find a comfort zone at their workplace.
In Malaysia, all employment pass to foreign workers are the same called work permit which is deemed for low skill workers imported from less developing and poorer countries of the region. I reached there by the help of agent as a site engineer. However, the formal document suggest that we were employed as a construction worker. We didn't understand what the government's IPA letter show because they all are written by Malay language. Let it be. As a result, we all are treated as the same class regardless of our post assigned. No matter where we came from. No matter what are we doing at work. We are deemed underdogs and we are not suppose to complain anything to our colleagues who are sometime less educated locals.
Since we are the only foreign worker group at the office, we were automatically assigned for those work which need to be carried or shifted around the office. Everyday, we need to carry construction materials supplied by supplier from ground floor to 3rd story store. Also we need to bring down those materials from the shafts of store to ground floor every morning. Even local drivers of lorry cars considered those carrying jobs are not theirs. What they need to do is just parking and inform to HR only. Then HR staffs will inform to all Burmese staffs to help them carrying things. They won't carry anything while we all are sweating out by carrying those heavy things. They just supervise us to ensure right things are placed in the right place only. In fact, those supervising staff are just office staff. We all are Engineers and working engineering jobs at the office. No matter, what post we are doing, we have to follow their instruction. It's very obvious we were bullied by locals. The problem is we were forced to sign employment contract as soon as we land KLIA and we were not allowed to go back home before fully entertaining those unfair and unlawful contract.
Sometime, we are fully concentration in the work we do while we received calls from those office staffs. We are suppose to act swiftly to all instructions. Otherwise we would be fined by those supervisor who will inform lady boss secretly. What a bitter experience is it? But we have to swallow those stupid things everyday. We sometime protest for early release by citing unhappiness at the work. We know that they won't agree with us and won't return our passport such easy. Despite we continue to show our unhappiness, they have no intention to change our relationship. The keep bully us and press by time. Sometime we even think that we were brainwashed by the horrible lady boss. She is so sweet in appearance, but so fox in her mind. We got life time lesson from the work of KL and it make us feel more comfortable in the workplace of city state.
That's why I said before that seeing Indian workers shifting office common things make me recall my past days. I was in the same position of them. I tried to escape from that prison alike workplace and seek a job in city state. Now I can enjoy fairer work environment in Singapore without being treated terrific. I am now able to feel that republic make me feel more security in term of lawful. I thank to my previous employer making me stronger man by setting a workplace of hell. I understood from this experience that life is ever changing as long as we do not stop moving forward. We have to believe that every single trouble is temporary and solvable. May all my fellow citizen able to find a comfort zone at their workplace.
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