SINGAPORE: Eleven people have been arrested for allegedly providing the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) with false employment information, the ministry said on Friday (Jan 24).

They are believed to have done so to inflate the hiring quotas for foreigners at eight construction firms.

The suspects were arrested on Tuesday after officers from MOM carried out raids at 37 locations.

Among those arrested were five Singaporeans – aged between 42 and 57 – who are directors of the eight construction companies.

Four other Singaporeans and two permanent residents were also arrested for allegedly abetting the directors in making false declarations of employment.

"These eight construction companies had allegedly made Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions to Singaporeans and permanent residents who were not under their employment in order to inflate their quota to hire foreigners," MOM said in a media release.

"Some of these Singaporeans and permanent residents are suspected to have been approached by the directors for their personal details in return for monetary incentives."

The ministry added that another 16 individuals are being investigated for similar offences.

On its website, MOM says that a company's foreign worker quota is calculated based on the number of local employees it has, and this is determined through information from the company's CPF account.

For the construction sector, foreign workers must not make up more than 83.3 per cent of a company's total workforce.

Under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, employers and work pass applicants must make accurate and truthful declarations to the controller of work passes, and employers can only hire foreigners with valid work passes.

Those convicted of making false declarations in work pass applications face up to two years in prison, a fine of up to S$20,000 (US$14,800), or both.

"Errant employers may have their work pass privileges suspended, and the work pass applicant may be barred from working in Singapore," said MOM.

"Anyone who colludes with an employer by providing his particulars for use in making fraudulent CPF contributions in order to meet the requirements of work permit applications may also be prosecuted," it added.