SINGAPORE: A Singapore football club was fined S$26,000 by a court on Tuesday (Jan 11) for failing to pay more than S$110,000 in salaries to a coach and several players.
Warriors Football Club was also penalised for failing to notify a licensing officer about the employment of four security officers, mistakenly thinking that it was enough to notify the S-League.
A representative for the club pleaded guilty on Tuesday to seven charges, mostly under the Employment Act, with another 127 charges taken into consideration.
The court heard that the club owed salaries of between S$11,995 and about S$20,255 to five players in the proceeded charges: Behe Jonathan Henri Desire William, Ignatius Ang Yu Heng, Muhammad Fadhil Noh, Poh Yi Feng and Yeo Hai Ngee.
Warriors FC also owed more than S$33,200 in salary to coach Lee Bee Seng. The salaries were owed to them in November or December 2019, but the club failed to pay them.
In total, including charges taken into consideration, the club did not pay more than S$300,000 in salaries to 35 employees.
A Ministry of Manpower officer carried out investigations in May 2019 after receiving information on the matter. The club has since made full restitution to its employees.
Separately, the club had hired four security officers on an ad hoc basis to conduct bag checks and a pre-admission security sweep at Jalan Besar Stadium on Mar 18, 2016, before a match against Albirex Niigata Singapore Football Club.
It was a requirement to implement enhanced security measures for matches, and this was communicated to the club by the operations director of the S-League in March 2016.
The four security officers were trained and licensed, but the club failed to notify the licensing officer under the Private Security Industry Act of their employment.
The club notified only the S-League, in the "mistaken belief that this sufficed for legal purposes", court documents said.
A compliance management and audit officer with the Police Licensing & Regulatory Department lodged a report in May 2016 against the club and later sent a letter to Warriors FC, offering to compound the offences for S$4,000 to be paid within 14 days.
However, the general manager of the club wrote an appeal letter, seeking a waiver. The department rejected the appeal and reiterated the composition offer with payment to be made by Apr 25, 2019.
The club did not respond and did not make payment by that date.
Lawyer Azri Imran Tan of IRB Law asked for a fine of S$20,000 to be paid in instalments. He said the club is "the most successful football club in Singapore history", winning the S-League a record nine times and "lifting the Singapore Cup on four occasions".
The club began encountering financial difficulties in September 2018, he said, adding that it had a net capital deficit of around S$1.1 million.
The club was later directed to sit out the 2020 Singapore Premier League season and missed the following season as well, but "continues to soldier on".
Mr Tan said it was financial issues that led to the offences in the first place, and that these worsened due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The club "is not here to make excuses for its conduct" and has done its best to rectify matters, including making full restitution to its staff, said Mr Tan.
"What the club hopes to impress upon this honourable court today, however, is that the outcome of today’s proceedings affects the future of the club and the football community in Singapore as a whole," he added.
"The club is far more than a corporate entity, it is an institution of Singapore football and hopes to continue being a bastion of local football in the years to come."
The judge allowed the club to pay its fine in instalments by May 2023.
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Warriors Football Club was also penalised for failing to notify a licensing officer about the employment of four security officers, mistakenly thinking that it was enough to notify the S-League.
A representative for the club pleaded guilty on Tuesday to seven charges, mostly under the Employment Act, with another 127 charges taken into consideration.
The court heard that the club owed salaries of between S$11,995 and about S$20,255 to five players in the proceeded charges: Behe Jonathan Henri Desire William, Ignatius Ang Yu Heng, Muhammad Fadhil Noh, Poh Yi Feng and Yeo Hai Ngee.
Warriors FC also owed more than S$33,200 in salary to coach Lee Bee Seng. The salaries were owed to them in November or December 2019, but the club failed to pay them.
In total, including charges taken into consideration, the club did not pay more than S$300,000 in salaries to 35 employees.
A Ministry of Manpower officer carried out investigations in May 2019 after receiving information on the matter. The club has since made full restitution to its employees.
EMPLOYMENT OF SECURITY OFFICERS
Separately, the club had hired four security officers on an ad hoc basis to conduct bag checks and a pre-admission security sweep at Jalan Besar Stadium on Mar 18, 2016, before a match against Albirex Niigata Singapore Football Club.
It was a requirement to implement enhanced security measures for matches, and this was communicated to the club by the operations director of the S-League in March 2016.
The four security officers were trained and licensed, but the club failed to notify the licensing officer under the Private Security Industry Act of their employment.
The club notified only the S-League, in the "mistaken belief that this sufficed for legal purposes", court documents said.
A compliance management and audit officer with the Police Licensing & Regulatory Department lodged a report in May 2016 against the club and later sent a letter to Warriors FC, offering to compound the offences for S$4,000 to be paid within 14 days.
However, the general manager of the club wrote an appeal letter, seeking a waiver. The department rejected the appeal and reiterated the composition offer with payment to be made by Apr 25, 2019.
The club did not respond and did not make payment by that date.
Lawyer Azri Imran Tan of IRB Law asked for a fine of S$20,000 to be paid in instalments. He said the club is "the most successful football club in Singapore history", winning the S-League a record nine times and "lifting the Singapore Cup on four occasions".
The club began encountering financial difficulties in September 2018, he said, adding that it had a net capital deficit of around S$1.1 million.
The club was later directed to sit out the 2020 Singapore Premier League season and missed the following season as well, but "continues to soldier on".
Mr Tan said it was financial issues that led to the offences in the first place, and that these worsened due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The club "is not here to make excuses for its conduct" and has done its best to rectify matters, including making full restitution to its staff, said Mr Tan.
"What the club hopes to impress upon this honourable court today, however, is that the outcome of today’s proceedings affects the future of the club and the football community in Singapore as a whole," he added.
"The club is far more than a corporate entity, it is an institution of Singapore football and hopes to continue being a bastion of local football in the years to come."
The judge allowed the club to pay its fine in instalments by May 2023.
Continue reading...