The next-generation foreign workers’ dormitory

to take care of these workers,” said Minister Lawrence Wong, co-chair of the Multi-Ministry Taskforce on Covid-19, in Parliament on May 4.The infections among the migrant workers are mostly concentrated amongst workers in the construction sector The infections among the migrant workers are “mostly concentrated amongst workers in the construction sector”, adds Wong.

The total population of foreign work permit holders living in dormitories is 323,000. There are 43 purpose-built dormitories , which house 3,000 to 25,000 workers each. Out of the 43 PBDs, 25 have been gazetted as isolation areas, according to the Ministry of Manpower . The biggest cluster is at S11 Dormitory at Punggol, with more than 2,400 cases as at April 30. The second highest cluster of infections is at Tuas View Dormitory, which has over 1,000 reported cases as at May 4.

“Typically, dormitory rooms will house 12 to 20 workers,” says Steven Tan, Colliers International’s senior director for capital markets. “So a 20-worker room will have a minimum floor area of 90 sq m.” That is the size of the average four-room HDB flat which has three bedrooms. Since May 15, 2017, the maximum number of sub-tenants allowed in a four-room or larger flat is nine.Shamkumar: Managing the Covid-19 outbreak in these dormitories is a great challenge.

Beyond design, issues such as liveable space, social and cultural aspects have to be taken into consideration too. After all, the dormitories house workers from many different countries, such as Bangladesh, China, and India. “That means mega dorms will not be on the cards in the future,” says Shamkumar. “In terms of design, it will still be about communal living, but the limit will be 5,000 to control the amount of interaction.”Pioneer Lodge — last of the mega dorms or first of the new-gen dorms?At a pivotal point right now is Pioneer Lodge, a PBD with 10,500 beds, where construction has already started.

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