Student care operator Little Professors under investigation over unpaid wages, ‘anomalies’ in fee deductions
The Ministry of Education filed a police report after several parents were double-charged for their children’s student care fees.
The Little Professors Learning Centre logo on a student's uniform. (Photo: Facebook/Little Professors Learning Centre)
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SINGAPORE: Student care operator Little Professors Learning Centre is under investigation by the police and the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) after salaries were owed to 54 employees.
Several parents were also double-charged for their children’s student care fees.
Little Professors, a private operator, ran student care centres in eight primary schools - Anchor Green, Jing Shan, Kranji, Punggol Cove, Waterway, Westwood, Hong Wen and White Sands.
It also provides Kindergarten Care or KCare services for MOE Kindergartens in six of these primary schools.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) told CNA on Saturday (Feb 14) that Little Professors' "operational issues" surfaced in the past week, including the non-payment of salaries. The company director also became uncontactable.
"These have resulted in insufficient manpower provision to support SCC (student care centre) operations in the eight affected schools," the ministry said.
"Separately, the schools received reports from some parents on Friday, Feb 13, 2026, of apparent anomalies in their GIRO deductions by the operator," it added.
"Due to contractual breaches, MOE terminated LPLC’s service for the eight schools on Saturday, Feb 14, 2026. We have also filed a police report regarding the observed anomalies in GIRO deductions. Police investigations are ongoing."
MOE said over the past week, it worked with the affected schools to ensure that after-school care support, such as the provision of meals and homework supervision, was provided.
"Our schools will continue to deploy the required manpower to maintain the continuity of after-school care to take care of our students, until a new joint SCC and KCare operator is formally appointed," it added.
The interim arrangement will come at no cost to affected parents.
"Meanwhile, MOE staff at these eight primary schools are reaching out to the parents/guardians of affected students over the weekend to update them on the interim arrangements," the ministry said.
An affected parent told CNA that she did not notice the double charge until her child's school issued a notice about the contract termination with Little Professors.
The parent, who did not want to be named, said she was charged S$469.20 for one child, double the original monthly fee. A deduction of S$234.60 was made on Feb 2, then again on Feb 12.
The police said investigations are ongoing.
CPF BOARD TAKES ACTION
The CPF Board had detected outstanding contributions in December 2025, said the agency, MOM and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) in a joint response to CNA's queries.
Nineteen affected employees had lodged a report with the CPF Board.
"The CPF Board has taken prosecution action against Little Professors Learning Centre for the outstanding CPF contributions. The case is currently before the courts," said the authorities.
MOM is investigating Little Professors Learning Centre for possible offences under the Employment Act.
"MOM, the CPF Board and TADM will continue to assist the employees with their salary and CPF arrears," the authorities added.
They noted that employees who are not paid salaries on time can file their claims with TADM, which will assist them in recovering their salaries either through mediation or by referring the case to the Employment Claims Tribunals.
The union, meanwhile, has stepped in offer assistance to affected employees.
"ESU (Education Services Union) and the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) are working closely with the affected members to assess whether short-term financial relief and job referrals can be provided within ESU’s network," Mr Harry Lee, president of the ESU, said on Saturday.
Little Professors Learning Centre is a non-unionised company.
Affected workers can access career guidance and job matching support through NTUC's Employment and Employability Institute, Mr Lee said.
He noted that affected jobseekers who participate in e2i's job search activities can receivedemployment support via the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme, which provides temporary financial support of up to S$6,000 over six months.
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