Home » Posts tagged with "retrenchment"
Posts tagged with "retrenchment"
In bed with the Economic Strategies Committee
Feb. 5 | One of our resident cartoonists, Sei-Ji Rakugaki, wonders about the ESC through his sketchpad – is this further from reality or closer to the truth? See more of Sei-Ji’s work at My Sketchbook… __________________________________________
Level the playing field for locals and foreigners in employment
Aug. 25 | Announcement: We apologise for not updating this website the last couple of days. TOC is taking a few days’ break. We’ll be back soon. Leong Sze Hian was invited by BlogTV to pen an article for them. We publish it below. Before we talk...
“Why won’t they give me an opportunity?”
Aug. 25 | 13th Death From H1N1: Singapore’s Health Ministry reported on Tuesday the country’s 13th flu A/H1N1 related death case – a 80-year old Chinese man. (See MOH website) Andrew Loh The worst is over for the Singapore economy and the labour...
PhD taxi driver
Aug. 19 | Probably the only taxi driver in this world with a PhD from Stanford and a proven track record of scientific accomplishments, I have been forced out of my research job at the height of my scientific career, and unable to find another one, for reasons...
Laid off? Don’t worry. 25,000 jobs in the market, says Manpower Minister
Aug. 5 | There is no need for the affected workers to be disheartened as there are still 25,000 jobs available in the market. Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong on the 2,000 workers laid off by Seagate
Why there is no subsidy for the poor….
May. 25 | The CEO of SMRT goes to work in a Mercedes. She deserves it because the profits of SMRT has doubled in the past few years. Even as the economic crisis put thousands of Singaporeans out of the job, the SMRT’s latest quarter results show another...
Time for the government to re-look “no-welfare state” policy
May. 25 | Tan Kin Lian / Columnist For many decades, the Singapore Government has adopted a policy of a “no welfare state”. They have extolled on the population the risk of a welfare mentality – people get lazy and expect a good life without putting in the...
More flexibility for bosses but what is there for employees?
May. 18 | I refer to the article “More flexibility for bosses to cut costs and save jobs” (ST 18 May). I wonder if such schemes to allow bosses the flexibility to cut costs will help workers retain their jobs. Already, employers have access to the...
Where is the “unique Singapore advantage” to protect our workers?
May. 8 | Andrew Loh If one were to follow – and believe – what the Labour Chief and the Manpower Ministry say, one would be inclined to think that the unemployment situation here in Singapore is “not as bad as feared”, as one Straits Times report put it. In...
The myth of the lazy native
May. 5 | The government’s views on the unemployment situation might be too sanguine With Singapore in the throes of its worst ever downturn, the government seems to have gotten into the habit of implying that Singaporeans are complacent and choosy about employment...
An alternative to penalising labour
Apr. 14 | Donaldson Tan / Head, TOC International / London The website of the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) is a good indicator of the state of our economy. It not only publishes quarterly economic statistics, but also lists the economic milestones our...
Repossessed properties in Singapore rise 18%
Apr. 12 | From Property Wire: The number of repossessed properties in Singapore have risen 18% and are expected to increase significantly in 2009 and 2010, according to analysts. The deteriorating economy and rising level of retrenchments are having a spillover...
Profit-driven vs reasonable care for employees
Mar. 20 | The following is a letter fromTan Liping In a Today article, “When layoffs are rooted in opportunity” (Mar 18, 2009), it talks about companies taking the opportunity in this slowdown to restructure and consolidate their operations, even though...
How to survive unemployment – Gilbert Goh launches book to help
Mar. 6 | “How to survive unemployment: A survival guide for the jobless” is a book written by Gilbert Goh. It will be launched at a forum this Saturday, March 7, at the Bishan Library. Gilbert, father of a 15-year old daughter, is one of the founders of the...
Sense of balance when dealing with retrenchments
Mar. 1 | I know people say why didn’t you help the households more directly. But the right way to help people now is not to give them vouchers or coupons to spend, but to help them keep their jobs, and this is where the emphasis of the Budget was… —- If...
Making ends meet
Feb. 27 | Andrew Loh Along Serangoon Road, her fragile frame bends as she reaches into the trash bin. In Little India, the tiny woman with her hunched back draws nothing more than a few nonchalant passing stares. She had earlier emerged from a crowd of pedestrians,...
A global sickness
Feb. 23 | The whole (Resilience) Package will prevent damage to our economy during the downturn, but we cannot cure the problem because fundamentally, the sickness is not our sickness. It is a global sickness and you have to wait until the US picks up, and Asia...
Last to go
Feb. 18 | Malaysia’s understanding of Singapore’s “unwritten policy” on retrenchment of foreign workers is that Malaysians will be let off last. Malaysian Human Resource Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam
One week after the Budget, even GLCs are retrenching
Feb. 3 | One week after the Finance Minister announced the Budget, companies continue to retrench workers. Despite the newly-introduced Jobs Credit Scheme (JCS), which was touted as a job-saving initiative, even government-linked companies are laying off employees. Is...
Too much bad news
Jan. 31 | However, many of them felt that there are just too many negative reports about the economy in the media, especially the newspapers. The front pages have been carrying news of layoffs and companies going under, day after day. Lam Pin Min, P65 blog
Facing joblessness? Need Help? Visit transitioning.org
Jan. 30 | As Singapore braces itself for its worst recession in its history, a group of Singaporeans is stepping forth to provide counseling help for those who are unemployed or who may be unemployed in the coming months. They have set up a website called Transitioning,...
Can I work till 65, please!
Jan. 24 | Richard Ee Statistics show that we have one million ‘baby boomers’ going into retirement. What are the job opportunities for them? The Baby Boomer Survey* characterised a late baby boomer (born 1947-64) as one who is better educated (34% have some...
PAP MP floats idea of minimum wage
Jan. 19 | Speaking in his private capacity at an Institute of Policy Studies seminar at the Shangri-la hotel, Member of Parliament Inderjit Singh suggested that a minimum wage might lessen the burden on lower income groups whose wages have been depressed by cheap...
Letting go “with a heart”
Jan. 13 | They gave us ample notice … We worked in advance with them, we prepared the workers. We have a plan as to what to do with them to help them find jobs. Halimah Yacob, NTUC asst sec gen
No escape
Jan. 5 | A jobless Singaporean, who has little or no financial safety net, has no hinterland to escape to. He can’t grow food in his overcrowded housing estate. Seah Chiang Nee
Singaporeans lack confidence – again
Jan. 3 | We need them to believe in themselves and be willing to adapt to new job demands, so that we can help them up-skill and re-skill to take on new and different jobs in different industries. Lim Swee Say
Employees need to be protected from unethical employers in bad times
Dec. 26 | The following is a letter to TOC from Max Chua. Dear people at TOC, First of all, thank you for being such a fabulous site!! :) Currently, there is a situation that I feel needs to be promptly addressed or looked into, at this present moment of economic...
How to stay lean in these tough times?
Dec. 21 | Gilbert Goh This statement is, I am afraid, easier said than done. When one decides to downsize due to financial constraints, it is always tough as we are used to a certain lifestyle that has become a part of us. The basic necessities such as groceries,...
10 ways to raise cash during hard times
Dec. 12 | Gilbert Goh / Writer During recession, especially when one is jobless, finances become a critical need that will become an emergency item when one is very short. I wrote in my previous article, “Facing joblessness – a personal account”...
Who to retrench first – PM vs Labour Chief
Dec. 11 | NTUC Chief Lim Swee Say LABOUR chief Lim Swee Say wants companies to put Singaporeans at the end of the queue when shrinking the number of their rank and file workers. Mr Lim believes the way to go in the current downturn is for firms to let non-Singaporeans...
Tripartism not the cure-all for employees
Dec. 11 | In tomorrow’s top story, guest writer PN Balji takes a look at “born-again citizens” (or new citizens) and the influence they may have on Singapore politics. Gilbert Goh I refer to the article, “Labour chief says legislations is not the solution”,...
Re-training – just an excuse
Dec. 5 | The “excuse” of using the downturn to send workers for training, so that they will be well-trained and ready for boom years sounds hollow. The question is, with our lax employment rules, why spend the money training when you can just grab well-trained...
48 years old, jobless for 5 yrs and badly burnt out in stock market and totally depressed
Nov. 30 | Question from a Singaporean to Mr Gilbert Goh: Any advice for a 48 yr man, jobless for 5 yrs and badly burnt out in stock market and totally depressed. ——– Mr Goh’s reply: I empathise with your situation. Five years of unemployment...
Coping with joblessness: A personal account
Nov. 27 | The following is a personal account by Mr Gilbert Goh. The article was first published in the Straits Times forum page in October 2008. We thank Mr Goh for giving us the permission to re-publish it here. We hope that the article will help those who are...
A corner where we band together in bad times
Nov. 26 | This is your space – to share your views or stories about the recession, being retrenched, how to cope with everyday living. You may be going through it, or may have some good advice for those going through it. You may be an employer who has jobs for...
Leading by example
Nov. 21 | The firm (Temasek Holdings), which oversees $130 billion, said senior management has volunteered a 15 percent to 25 percent pay cut. Bloomberg
Third ministers’ pay hike in two years – Staying together or moving ahead?
Nov. 21 | Andrew Loh / Deputy Editor On 9 April 2007, Minister in Charge of the Civil Service, Mr Teo Chee Hean, announced a three-step formula to revise salaries in the public sector to bring them in line with the private sector. (link) Specifically, ministers...
DBS retrenchment: The unkindest cut of all
Nov. 16 | PN Balji / Guest Writer DBS Bank’s retrenchment bombshell has its after-effects beyond its timing, suddenness and audacity. It goes to the core of Singapore’s jealously-guarded and famously-touted gold standard of labour relations. That gold...
Advice from union chief
Nov. 16 | Don’t focus only on looking for the same job and the same pay. Lim Swee Say, NTUC Chief
Pay cut “practical”
Nov. 13 | Workers are very practical. If they have to choose between losing their jobs and taking a pay cut, they would choose less pay. Halimah Yacob, NTUC Asst Secretary General
There’s still hope for retrenched workers – NTUC Chief
Nov. 11 | If he or she is prepared to go for retraining, prepared to adapt to a new working environment, there’s still hope for our retrenched workers to go back to the job market again… Any talk about CPF cuts at this moment is way too premature because...
First-world compared to… ?
Nov. 10 | We all have to accept some sacrifices and cutbacks. But compared to our counterparts in neighbouring countries, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam, our low income earners are much better off. Lee Kuan Yew
