BY DAY, they cared for 160 elderly people at the Econ Nursing Home services at Bukit Timah Avenue.

When their shift ended, the 33 women - nursing aides and health-care attendants from the Philippines, Myanmar and Sri Lanka - retired to their rooms - two 20-foot containers and a makeshift pre-fabricated room stacked on them.

The temporary quarters, similar to those found at construction sites, had been home for the women, most of whom have been here for two to six years, with a few living in them for about 10 years.

That ended two weeks ago. When alerted to their plight by The Straits Times, Ministry of Manpower (MOM) officers visited the grounds and told the Econ management that the workers had to be moved.

An MOM spokesman said: 'Apart from overcrowding, the living quarters do not meet the standards imposed on employers of foreign workers.'

The workers' living quarters were cramped with about 20 double-decker beds placed close to one another, leaving the workers little space to store their belongings.

Staff also had to share toilets and bathrooms with the residents.

The women in their 20s, who bathe, feed and care for the 160 elderly patients at the home, earn about $300 to $410 monthly, after about $300 is deducted to pay for their food and lodging.

Asked why they had lived in those conditions for years, some said their complaints to management were not acted on.

They also alleged that they are subject to a daily 10pm curfew, and had been denied days off and not been properly fed on some occasions.

MOM said it has warned Econ about the living conditions at Bukit Timah and is investigating the other complaints. It will also check on other homes run by the company.

The Bukit Timah Avenue home - which has been operating since 1990 - is one of seven run by the listed China Healthcare Group, formerly known as Econ Healthcare Group.

When contacted by The Straits Times, a company spokesman said it regretted the incident, the first in its 21-year history here, and had carried out remedial action immediately.

The workers have been moved into the main building and the containers are now used as staff rest areas.

On why staff needed to live on-site, the spokesman explained that housing them elsewhere would lead to higher operating costs.

Also, for the safety of the elderly residents it was good to have the staff on site to help in any emergency evacuation.

He added that the problem was largely linked to the lease for the land, which is renewed on a monthly basis.

A permanent solution would be a longer lease to make upgrading an economically viable option, which was the company's intention from Day 1.

Yesterday, the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) said a longer tenure for the premises could not be given as the site was under study for development.

These plans have since been finalised, and SLA as well as other public agencies are working with Econ to help move the residents out.

Added the SLA: 'Our focus is to ensure that alternative arrangements can be made for all the existing residents and sufficient time is given for the transition.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times on April 25, 2008.