Comments on: Budget should be more inclusive, change workplace culture to boost productivity, NMP says

By: JW

JW — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 04:15:29 +0000

The shocking thing is that the leaders of the GIC, Temasek and, top level executives and admin staff are still with the company and the heavy losses.
I believe that Lee KY, Tony Tan, Dhanabala, Ho Ching are still with these companies. They should make public how much we have and the losses, then resign from these companies and get real experts to run them.
Why not get George Sorrows or Warren Buffet to help out?

By: theforgottongeneration

theforgottongeneration — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 23:43:50 +0000

“…..Citing the Department of Statistics’ most recent Household Expenditure Survey, Sadasivan said that from 2002/3 to 2007/8 lower-income households have had to reduce their monthly spendingCiting the Department of Statistics’ most recent Household Expenditure Survey, Sadasivan said that from 2002/3 to 2007/8 lower-income households have had to reduce their monthly spending…”

Err, wasn’t this the period which saw our ministers pay ballooning to the highest in the world?

“…The truth is we need both – technical measures as well as ways to shift attitude and culture…”

The fact remains we have not been able to achieve BOTH for the last maybe 20+ years. Look at the centerpiece of the budget debate — foreign worker levy. How does that directly bring about either? We are simply paying idiots millions just to state the obvious.

By: Ajax

Ajax — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 17:33:46 +0000

I felt the Budget was not ambitious enough (in setting out what it wants to do and its limits). Yes, I think it’s high time we have a work-culture revolution, which we need more than monetary initiatives to solve our problems.

By: Citizen evil

Citizen evil — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 10:08:52 +0000

What a joke. The sucky workplace culture was already found in Singapore for very long no wonder productivity dropped. Follow the western countries. Implement min wages and worl life balance policies

By: humane

humane — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 08:39:06 +0000

angry reservist, those incompetent fools only know how to cover each other backside and booklicking one another. I already lost all hope on them.

By: angry reservist

angry reservist — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 07:35:36 +0000

There’s the best piece of report i readed .
Too bad non of the white pricks in parliment have the intelligence or guts to mention it.

By: cgn

cgn — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 05:38:16 +0000

with no legislation to set a minimum wages for locals for specialised skill, employer will still be setting their salary, onus will be on them and with the availability of aliens coming all over, employer does not have to worry! what has the governement do??? welcome aliens again and increase levy, no difference as it will only make them richer!!

By: Spurs in PRs Ass

Spurs in PRs Ass — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 05:26:20 +0000

“we need more bricklayers feeling they are building cathedrals”.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the average weekly wage for construction sector in Nov 2009 was A$1,269/week.
The average weekly wage for those in water & waste services was A$1,375/week.
These weekly wages are for normal working hours, excluding OT pay and bonuses.

While the salaries may be skewed by high income earners in their respective industries, because the income-gap is not that bad in Australia, the above weekly salaries should be quite representative of the typical worker in construction or in water & waste services.

With these kinds of salaries, I would be more than willing to be a builder of cathedrals or cleaner of palaces. More importantly, it shows the whole country’s culture putting money where its mouth is, not just talk cock sing song. And it gives its people pride in their work, real dignity for quality life, a stake in the country no matter how blue-collar they are, and assurance of a future for themselves and their children.

By: forked by an angler

forked by an angler — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 01:32:42 +0000

“…change workplace culture to boost productivity…”

That is easy to say but i am afraid to change culture would be nearly impossible if not take 50 years to achieve that. Then is this bloke asking the low wage citizens to wait a long long long time to get income increment?

Prove to us what you say is possible. Talk is easier than successful implementation of an idea where anyone can come up a nice idea eg. World Peace. hahaha