On 29 January 2010 from 07.30 to 09.00 p.m., Ambassador Nopadol Gunavibool led a team of five officers – including Ms. Nutcha Tritanyapong, Minister Counsellor of the Office of Labour Affairs in Singapore, Ms. Lupthawan Walsh, Labour Affairs Counsellor, Ms Tanya Laohathai, Consul, Mr. Watcharakrit Yaem-Ot, Consular Officer at the Royal Thai Embassy and Mr. Rungroj Teekamongkol from the Office of Labour Affairs – to pay a visit to Thai workers at View Lodge which is a dormitory for foreign workers situated on View road, Woodlands Avenue 4.

Ambassador Nopadol and his team received a warm welcome by the management team of View Lodge, led by Mr. Daniel Tong K.M. and Mr. James Poon, both of whom are Director of the Tonga Engineering Pte Ltd and in charge of overseeing the welfare of foreign workers now residing at View Lodge as well as Mr.Lew Kok Seng, Director, who is also manager of this dormitory.

The objectives of Ambassador Nopadol’s visit View Lodge are twofold – to observe welfare of the Thai workers residing at this particular dormitory , and also to listen to their problems both relating to their work and personal lives. In his speech, the Ambassador gave his New Year blessings to all fifty four Thai workers who were present at the meeting and urged them to take good care of themselves.

Ms. Nutcha and Ms. Tanya then went on to brief the role of the Office of Labour Affairs and the Consular Section at the Royal Thai Embassy respectively. Thai workers were encouraged to take part in a number of activities which have now been made available in Singapore by the Thai Workers Association in order to better their standard of living here. Examples of such activities include the annual Football Tournament for Thai workers all over Singapore, language courses and long distance learning programme available at the Golden Mile Complex. Thai workers were also informed of the hotline telephone numbers they may wish to call should they need help or advice from the Office of Labour Affairs and the Embassy.

All Thai workers were then asked to fill in a registration form for Thais residing in Singapore so that the Consular Section can keep its database of Thai citizens now residing in Singapore updated. The workers were also given the Manual for Thais living in Singapore, together with a set of information that are often asked by Thai workers in Singapore as well as a booklet for them to keep track of their personal incomes and expenses.

In response, the workers said that they were very happy to meet with the Thai Ambassador and his team and expressed thanks to the Embassy’s effort in trying to improve their living condition.

The View Lodge Dormitory was formerly used as a hospital. It was then converted into a dormitory for foreign workers since July 2008. It comprises four main buildings, each of which has four storey. Currently, it houses eight hundred workers from Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar and Thailand. They now work for thirty Singaporean employers. At present, there are seventy Thai workers staying there. Facilities which are currently being provided at View Lodge include 24-hour security guard service, one minimart, one barber shop, two kitchens, one television room, the sport ground and one sick bay.