Citation :

Maira Dahiya, "Language, Structure, and Vulnerability: The Role of Linguistic Distance in the Institutional and Economic Experiences of Low-Wage Migrant Workers in Singapore," International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, vol. 13, no. 5, pp. 32-43, 2026. Crossref, https://doi.org/10.14445/23942703/IJHSS-V13I5P104

Abstract

Despite the high proportion of migrant workers in Singapore, the structural significance of linguistic distance in migrant workers' institutional and economic experiences is not well studied. Using semi-structured interviews with seven migrant workers, this study investigated how limited English proficiency, compounded by the local variety of Singlish, affects low-wage migrant workers' understanding of their wages and contracts, their access to support mechanisms, and their overall well-being. These seven migrant workers were face-to-face interviewed and audio-recorded with their consent. Interview transcripts were analysed with Thematic Analysis and the results generated into 22 codes, which were summarised into 10 themes: Language proficiency, Contract comprehension, Communication difficulty, Grievance behaviour, Perceived safety, Payslip comprehension, Desire for a common language, Desire for English training by the employer, Pathway to recruitment, and Housing/living conditions. It found that language barriers had no equal impact on all areas of the workers' lives: in the context of payslips, workers with limited English reported them as understandable. At the same time, contracts remained poorly understood at the time of signing, particularly among workers recruited through agency pathways. Communication barriers were most pronounced in direct client interactions, not with the other migrant workers, and workers themselves often indicated that communication was the most critical and needed to be improved, viewing a common language and English training by the employer as something they desired. A near-universal rule of non-compliant behaviour was also found in the sample, existing across levels of tenure and levels of English fluency, implying a structural explanation, not just a linguistic explanation, related to Singapore's Work Permit system.

Keywords

Language barrier, Migrant workers, Singapore, Thematic analysis, Work permit system.

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