Batam hard pressed to list expatriates

Batam hard pressed to list expatriates

BATAM: The local manpower office is encountering difficulties
in tracing illegal foreign workers on the tiny island due to the
reluctance of many companies to release information and the
shortage of its own personnel.

"Worst of all, most of the illegal foreign workers at many
businesses here try to run and hide when our staff arrive at
their offices for a raid," head of Batam's manpower office
Sulaiman Yusuf said on Tuesday.

He noted that data on legal foreign workers differed between
his office and the local immigration office.

His office recorded a total of 1,415 licensed foreign workers
in Batam, but immigration records showed 2,030, mostly citizens
of neighboring Singapore.

There is no precise estimate on the number of illegal foreign
workers, Sulaiman said.

He added that most of the illegals worked in temporary
positions, such as managers and consultants, at many companies.

Aliens found guilty of violating immigration regulations could
face three months in jail, Antara said.