~by: Leong Sze Hian~
I refer to the article “Town council cleaners get more pay now” (Straits Times, Feb 21).
It states that ”North West District Mayor Teo Ho Pin, who spearheaded and coordinated the initiative, said on Monday that full-time cleaners now earn about $1,000 a month on average, compared to about $750 before the scheme was launched in 2008”.
Wages fell from $1,277 to $750?
According to the article “Mindset change needed to help low-wage workers” (Straits Times, Feb 7), in 2000, the median gross wage for cleaners and labourers was $1,277. By 2010, it fell to $960. For cleaners of industrial buildings, the median gross wage is even lower, at around $600 in 2010.
Real wage fell 38% in 10 years?
After accounting for inflation for the last decade or so, I estimate that in year 2000 dollars, the average $1,000 pay of town council cleaners is equivalent to only about $787 in 2000 dollars. So, what this may mean is that the real pay of cleaners has declined by about 38 per cent in the last 10 years or so.
Well done – town councils?
Hence, instead of giving ourselves a pat on the back that we managed to increase the average pay of cleaners from $750 three years ago to $1,000 now, we should be taking urgent action to address the problem of declining wages for lower-income workers in Singapore.
Actually, I think the statistics given by the town councils may not be the whole story.
What is the proportion of town council cleaners that are Singaporeans, permanent residents (PRs) and foreigners?
What is the proportion of part-time cleaners that are Singaporeans, permanent residents (PRs) and foreigners?
What is the monthly pay of a part-time cleaner?
1 cleaner's plight
In this connection, I spoke to a cleaner whom I know, who was retrenched by a coffee shop where she had worked for many years.
She is 60-plus years old and now works 15 hours a day, with only one day off every two weeks, in a hawker centre, for a pay of $1,100+. She gets no annual bonus, medical benefits, etc.
Calculated at an hourly basis, she is getting less than $4 per hour.
How many Singaporeans are there who work for such miserly wages like her?
Well, according to the Straits Times article cited above, “Government figures released last week show that there were 236,300 Singaporeans and residents who earned a gross income of less than $1,000 per month as of June last year, up from 218,700 a decade earlier. The figure excludes incomes of full-time national servicemen.
If you take household, not personal income figures, the picture does not get rosier. In 2010, there were more than 100,000 households with an average monthly income from work of $1,400.
The latest available expenditure figures, covering 2007/2008, show that Singaporean households in the bottom fifth of the income scale needed around $1,700 a month to cover basic costs of living like food and utilities. But they earned an average of only $1,274 per month at that time.
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@mice is nice
Who is complaining?There are always those out there who complain by mouse and mouth for a reason known to them but the ah pek and aunties who have kopi with me only grumble a bit but is happy with having a job because of their condition.
There are also some elderly who still have some value even exploit or intent to exploit their towkays.Dun always think the other way round.
We should be grateful to those hand who feed us and not bite them.I like to see more local towkays helping local than to see foreign towkay taking in more FWs and boss us around.
My poor local towkay has got no FWs or FTs becos he always believe Singaporean First.But his kindness is taken as his weakness. Some staff still blur blur dun know how to appreciate.One newly join who know his family since childhood can even ask him to declare his earning as 3.5 K where is salary is less than 1.5K.Why?becos this Ah Lau said monthly got to deduct 10 % to his religion and the more being deducted,the higher status he got.Got priority for oversea travel.See the demand now?This one I can Sompah becos I was around.
True,a phuakay will say that spending 18 instead of 8 is ok.Why,maybe not his money mah.Ah kong money perhaps?Can also be related to those 18 dollar barber towkay who knows?Why can't save the extra money spent to help more in other area for the family?
18 or 8 dollars not my problem,Hua Hee Chiu Ho.Will it help barber Ah Lau?If the haircut is standardise at 18 dollar,you think Ah Lau can still keep his job?Foreign Chiobu swee swee waiting to take over hor.Again Ah Lau lost his job .Me,a cheekopek ,no paiseh, will oso go for Foreign Chiobu to sayang my head .Why?Ah Lau cost 18,maybe got body odour ,Foreign chiobu also 18,can smell her perfume.
The main problem is their policies which do not protect Singaporeans. Companies usually wanted to make profit as much as possible so they will pay their workers lowest possible. So they favour foreign(guest) workers. As a result Singaporeans suffer. The only way is to reduce the intake of foreign workers which will then forced the companies to engage Singaporeans with a higher pay of course. Their policies are too liberal and easily being exploited by unscrupulous bosses. The ministers should wake up and see what really went wrong. Singaporean First Policy is the only solution!!!
@humble
The preference for FWs is not necessary because FWs are cheaper.In order to secure higher pay,I will first see in the mirror whether I deserve that kind of pay.Whether I am willing to do that kind of job.Whether my boss make money if I ask for so much.
Many think they deserve so much salary but they actually dun.Can ask for million dollar salary but ask whether you deserve so much.
But cannot blame Singaporean,because …
@agongkia. If the ministers can earn million dollars salaries why can’t the cleaners deserve abetter salaries to support theiir families? As Singapore is a first world country the cleaners should also be earning salaries equivalent to the other first world countries. Put yourself into their shoes and you will feel the pain.
dear humble,
is it not obvious where "agongkia" sympathy lies? i share your sentiments. nice to know i am not the only 1 with such views. :)
to agongkia,
i do not share your sentiments & do not have anything constructive to add to our discussion, we will disagree to agree.
see you around. :)
@mice is nice
Its their children and your good garmen's duty to look into the welfare of these elderly local citizen by supplementing their income.
There are so many ways to help them besides giving them allowances and workfare but sad to see,seems that many can only blame the employer or call for MW and higher salary as if our employer is the garmen or owe them a living.
We keep instigating that employers are out there to cheat them.That Gaybird even has a blog for that.Only failure will do that.This is not healthy.Or are you one of those in disguise who want to divert attention?
Remember Ai Nee Pian Chen Hai Nee.