A man was convicted by the State Courts of Singapore for operating an employment agency without a valid licence, according to the Ministry of Manpower.

He was sentenced to four weeks' imprisonment and fined the maximum of SGD 80,000 (in default, two months' imprisonment) for an offence under the Employment Agencies Act. The man, Ng Chai Hock, was convicted on 9 February 2021 and then appealed against his conviction and sentence.  The High Court dismissed his appeal on 20 October 2021.

The investigation by the Ministry of Manpower found that Hock had operated an employment agency, JOBSINSG.COM, illegally between March 2016 and June 2017. He posted advertisements that purported to offer employment opportunities to job seekers. When job seekers responded to these advertisements and showed up at his physical office, he collected their physical CVs. 

He charged up to SGD 450 (USD 329.12) from each job seeker. After receiving payment, Hock informed the jobseeker that his services would only entail the distribution of their CV.

It is an offence for any person or company, directly or indirectly, to engage the services of an unlicensed employment agency. If convicted, an offender can be fined up to SGD 5,000 (USD 3,656) per charge. MOM advises individuals who intend to engage the services of an employment agency first to verify that the agency is licensed.