Goh increase Sgreans’ income 3 per cent when his salary grow
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PAP MPs attack Low Thia Kiang for his call on govt to scrap foreign worker levy
TR
Workers’ MP Low Thia Kiang shed his inhibition and went for the juggernaut during a parliamentary session yesterday with harsh criticisms of the ruling party’s liberal immigration and pro-foreigner policies which have brought untold hardships and sufferings among ordinary Singaporeans.
Contrary to what was said by Finance Minister Tharman in his Budget speech earlier that the wages of Singapore workers have grown over the last few years, Mr Low felt that the low-wage earners are left behind:
“When the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) has to be revised upward and the qualifying monthly income limit increased to $1,700 to ensure low-wage earners are not left behind in our foreigner-dependent economy, doesn’t that raise an alarm in the Government about the meagre salary our low-wage workers are getting? ‘The growth strategy… for the past 10 years has definitely not made these Singaporean workers feel any sense of progress with the nation,” he was quoted as saying in the Straits Times.
He blamed the government for opening the floodgates to foreign workers which provides few incentives for companies to boost their productivity:
“It is easy to blame our local workforce for low productivity but who opened the gates to allow foreign workers to flood the labour market in the first place? Easy access to cheap foreign labour offers little incentive for companies to up their productivity… The Government has to assume some responsibility for the low productivity in the last decade” he said.
According to a recent Wall Street Journal, the relentless influx of foreign workers has depressed the wages of Singapore workers, increased the cost of living, especially that of public housing, decreased labor productivity and led to an overall decline in the standards of living.
Foreigners now made up 36 per cent of Singapore’s population, up from 14 per cent in 1990. Of the remaining 64 percent who are citizens, an increasing number are born overseas.
Mr Low also urged the PAP to take ‘bold step’ to scrap the foreign workers levy completely and use the dependency ratio to manage the growth of foreign workers in Singapore.
“Based on reports that there are about 856,000 work permit holders in Singapore as at December – excluding the 196,000 domestic helpers - a $10 to $30 monthly increase in levy would bring in an additional $79 million to $238 million per year for the Government. And using the low end of the work permit levy, which is $150 a month, the Government is taking in about $1.2 billion a year from this payment,” he added.
Mr Low opined that the hike in foreign worker levy will not affect large companies and “‘this whole exercise could just end up fattening the Government’s coffer with little results to show in controlling the ever-expanding foreign workforce.”
As expected, Mr Low’s comments brought a barrage of criticisms from the PAP MPs who dominate parliament.
Ms Josephine Teo (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC) claimed that foreign workers will be cheaper without the levies:
“Without the levies, foreign workers are even cheaper and even more attractive to businesses. And some of these businesses will find loopholes to get round the quotas, to get more of the cheaper foreign workers,” she said.
However, she ignored the fact that Mr Low had already suggested refining the dependency ratio to control the inflow of foreign workers.
Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) added that “any move to tighten the dependency ratio as a way to raise workers’ wages could also lead to higher cost of living for consumers.”
She forgot that there is a limit to which companies can raise the prices without losing their clients. At the end of the day, the onus is on them to find ways to boost productivity while keeping prices low at the same time.
It is evident that the PAP’s growth strategy for the past few years has disastrous consequences for the low income earners in Singapore whose wages had remained stagnant. In fact, Singapore now has the largest income gap between the rich and the poor among the thirty most developed economies after Hong Kong.
With no opposition in parliament to check on the PAP, Singaporeans will have little choice but to be led by them through the noses like a flock of “sheep”.
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It's unbelievable the PAP government spent the whole parliamentary session talking about getting more foreigners. They should be talking about Singaporeans instead. Singaporeans should wake up to the fact they are now socially ranked below foreigners in their own country. Another first in the world.
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Originally posted by Dondontan:
SM Goh promised to increase Singaporeans’ income by 3 per cent when his own salary is expected to grow by 8.8 per cent in 2010
Written by Our Correspondent
Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong made a bold promise to Singaporeans that their income are expected to grow for the next ten years if the government is successful in “transforming” Singapore’s economy via the measures as outlined in the Budget.
“If we can transform the economy through the measures in this Budget, the income which you have today can continue to increase 2 to 3 per cent per year over the next 10 years. This is where the Budget helps you, even though you don’t see it,” he claimed without substantiating them.
SM Goh was talking to a crowd of about 100 people during a dialogue session at Marine Parade who appeared to be disinterested in an earlier presentation by an official from the Finance Ministry.
This year’s Budget offered few goodies to Singaporeans with its emphasis on boosting Singapore’s productivity rates and reducing its perennial dependence on foreign workers.
“When I read comments that the Bud-get has got nothing for me as a person, rather than a few of the allowances and so on, they are wrong. This Budget is for you. This is about how we can increase productivity of the economy as a whole – you as workers, the company as a production institution, management as people in charge,” SM Goh was quoted as saying in the Straits Times.
His stance echoed that of DPM Teo Chee Hean who said a few days ago that Singapore needs to renew and re-double its efforts in productivity to move the economy forward and to create “good jobs” for Singaporeans.
Singapore’s productivity rate has plummeted consecutively for the last three years due to the ruling party’s liberal immigration and pro-foreigner labor policies:
[Source: Kojakbt, 3in1kopitiam forum moderator]
This coincided with the beginning of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s tenure when he announced his ambitious plan to increase Singapore’s population to 6.5 million people by 2030 via immigration.
According to a press release by the Reform Party last week, Singapore’s labor productivity lags far behind that of other advanced economies:
“In manufacturing alone our productivity grew by an average of 0.7% p.a. over the period 2000-08 whereas South Korea, Taiwan, Sweden and the US managed 7.4%, 5.2%, 4.8% and 4.6% respectively over the same period. Out of a group of 17 economies we were second from bottom.”
[Source: Reform Party]
SM Goh also added that “Singapore can no longer grow simply on the basis of adding foreign workers to the labor force” which seems to contradict his earlier statement that there is no “sudden U-turn” in the ruling party’s policies and that the number of foreigners may still increase in the next few years.
The ruling party is appearing to lose its cool lately and has been pussyfooting and backtracking on a number of their policies to placate angry voters ahead of the next general election which they are expected to lose a few more seats including GRCs.
Singaporeans should take the latest “promise” by SM Goh with a heavy dose of salt. The median salary of Singaporeans has remained stagnant at $2,600 for the last 10 years and the income gap between the rich and poor has widen considerably during the same period thanks to the relentless influx of foreigners who help depressed the wages of local workers.
During his tenure as Singapore’s Prime Minister in the 1990s, SM Goh promised Singaporeans that they would enjoy “Swiss standard of living” in a decade’s time. According to a UBS report last year, Singaporeans have a standard of living comparable to Russia than Switzerland.
Even before we know if SM Goh’s “forecast” will come true, his own astronomical salary in excess of $3 million dollars a year is expected to be increased by a massive 8.8 per cent this year. With Singapore’s GDP growing again, the PAP leaders can expect “more good years” ahead of them.
- Temasek Review March 2, 2010
Do you believe SM Goh that the income of Singaporeans will grow by 3 per cent per year for the next 10 years?
8.8% of a million dollar salary is no small amount - that works out to $88,000 on average.
How many Singaporeans even earn $88,000 a year?
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Yes!
I believe they can achieve 3% income growth per year, but then......inflation will be 8% per year.
Else they have to start holding back more CPF money by claiming that the average Singaporeans can live till 100 y.o.
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During his tenure as Singapore’s Prime Minister in the 1990s, SM Goh promised Singaporeans that they would enjoy “Swiss standard of living” in a decade’s time. According to a UBS report last year, Singaporeans have a standard of living comparable to Russia than Switzerland.
LOL!!!
We cant believe what a "Sheep" promise to us,whereby his boss is the "Tiger" Lee who still holding power in the parliament.
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3% more but u have to work 60% more
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my observation is that the so call "Talk in Parliment" is almost as if they are there to satisfy their ego......they talk until their ego is as big as the Singapore Wheel Flyers
I mean did anyone learned anything new.......?
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Originally posted by Arapahoe:
my observation is that the so call "Talk in Parliment" is almost as if they are there to satisfy their ego......they talk until their ego is as big as the Singapore Wheel Flyers
I mean did anyone learned anything new.......?
To justify taxpayers' money spent on them annually.
Even if they don't have your interests at heart.
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Originally posted by charlize:
To justify taxpayers' money spent on them annually.
Even if they don't have your interests at heart.
yeah million dollar at work.
Actually where is the Prime Minister.....?
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"Ms Josephine Teo (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC) claimed that foreign workers will be cheaper without the levies:
“Without the levies, foreign workers are even cheaper and even more attractive to businesses. And some of these businesses will find loopholes to get round the quotas, to get more of the cheaper foreign workers,” she said.
However, she ignored the fact that Mr Low had already suggested refining the dependency ratio to control the inflow of foreign workers.
Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) added that “any move to tighten the dependency ratio as a way to raise workers’ wages could also lead to higher cost of living for consumers.”
She forgot that there is a limit to which companies can raise the prices without losing their clients. At the end of the day, the onus is on them to find ways to boost productivity while keeping prices low at the same time."
Tsk tsk tsk.... so ashamed by these two ladies. Bunch of airheads.
Ms Josephine Teo, guilty of selective listening. Donno how to look at big pictures. What narrow mindedness....very disappointed in her.
Ms Irene Ng, guilty of ELITISM. Ya lah.. higher cost of living .. so their big salary cannot buy more GUCCI bags lah.. But the lower income already NO JOB NO MONEY... CURRENT cos of living already headache liao......tell her to go eat her own sai is CHEAPER.
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I do not know what you guys think, but here's my view of a realistic Singapore in the future some 30 years ahead (and not some beautiful view as painted by the PAP).
My view is based on the fact that I do not have much faith on my fellow countrymen to have the guts to take out the PAP, or have been brainwashed so much so that they sing the praises of the PAP while still suffering.
- Wages will continue to remain stagnant, or might even deflate, largely due to the continuous influx of foreign labour
- Singaporeans will go out of jobs at an earlier age (possibly by 40, you should plan that you have retirement funds) due to the widespread availability of cheap labour
- Singapore's economy will slow down. The past few years of growth are fuelled largely by the short-term strategy of pumping cheap labour into the economy in order to keep the engine running. As all will know, using cheap petrol for your engine for a short period of time is fine. However prolonged usage of cheap petrol will cause the engine to break down and start having long-term problems
- That the IR will not succeed, largely because from historical learnings, a large part of the casino has to depend on the local population. That (1) locals have to pay $100 to get into the casino, and (2) we do not have a local population that is affluent enough in the 1st place, will increase the probability of the failures of the IRs.
- That when the IRs fail, the PAP will abolish the $100 entry fee in its desperate bid to keep the IRs alive, which will in turn cause serious consequences to our society on a whole
- That in general, 30 years from now, there will be much more old folks that cannot afford the cost of living in Singapore. Given suppressed wages, locals will have little to fall on when they retire (or forced to retire (View Pt 2)). Most of us will fall into that category.
Because of the above, I have decided to bite the bullet and come out into the global arena, to relocate into USA, to have a better life. My view was, if they don't treat us well in Singapore, then come out to the world and become an expat instead. Other countries value Singapore talent better than the country itself (how ironic is that?)
It is never easy to relocate. There is a lot of mental stress and emotional pain of leaving one's own country. I, for one, love my country, but I know that if I continue to stay in Singapore, one day, I might just become one of the old folks who have to find a way to survive.
It is still early days to determine if I am right or wrong (and I mostly wish that I am wrong), but my views of Singapore's future are bleak (esp for locals who are trapped in the vicious cycle of suppressed wages, low savings). That 30 years into the future, there will be huge consequences to what the PAP is doing to our country now, and that's when we will have to go through a painful transformation to bring the country back to where it was once proudly.
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Give adequate wages to low income workers
For many years, the Government has advocated a pro-business environment in Singapore. This is aimed at attracting foreign investors to set up businesses here and create more jobs for Singaporeans.This strategy has been successful. Singapore has received many international awards for being a competitive economy and a world class workforce.
A hard working, well educated, productive and co-operative workforce is an important contributor to this pro-business environment. This strategy has also benefited many Singaporeans. They have the opportunity to get good jobs at high wages. Many multi-national companies set up their operations in Singapore to serve the Asian region. The demand for talent and for professions in accounting, legal, marketing, business development and other services have contributed to this happy situation.
To cope with the shortage of talent, Singapore has an open door policy to attract professionals and foreign talents to work in Singapore.
Depressed Wages
The open door cannot be restricted only for the talents that are scarce in Singapore. In any case, this type of people has not been defined clearly.
In practice, the open door policy has also been applied to other sectors of the labour force. The demand for workers willing to work for competitive wages extends down the skill ladder.
Although there are controls to ensure a balance of local and foreign workers, they have been difficult to apply in practice. As a consequence, we have an abundance of low wage workers in Singapore. The actual number has not been published. If we look at the people who do not speak like Singaporeans working in the heartlands and in the factories, one can conclude that there must be a large number.
One unfortunate consequence of this influx of foreign workers is the large number of local “mature” workers above 40 years who are unemployed.
Choosy Workers
A common explanation for the large number of unemployed workers is that they are “choosy”. They are not willing to do certain types of outdoor work, especially if they are risky or dirty.
I suspect that it is a question of adequate wages. If the jobs now shunned by Singaporeans pay adequate wages, I believe that many Singaporeans will be willing to do the work.
I have spoken to many taxi drivers who are willing to work 12 hours a day just to earn $2,000 to feed a family.
There are many older Singaporeans who earn less than $800 a month as cleaners or security guards. They have no choice. They have to work or face starvation. Singapore does not provide any welfare.
I do not consider Singaporeans to be “choosy”.
Foreign workers
Employers will prefer to bring in foreign workers, as they are willing to accept any job and work for a low wage, so long as they earn enough to feed a family in their home country, where the cost of living is much lower than Singapore’s. They are usually provided with accommodation near their place of work and can save on the high accommodation and commuting cost.
In contrast, a Singaporean has to earn enough to feed a family in Singapore, with its high cost and standard of living. He has a family and social life in Singapore, he cannot live in a dormitory near his place of work. He has to incur high accommodation and travel costs.
Outsourcing
For many years, the public sector has been a source of employment for many lower educated workers in our society. They work as cleaners and provide a wide range of services in our hospitals, airports and other public services.
They earn a low wage, but it is adequate to feed a family. They are represented by the public sector’s trade unions, which look after their interests.
In recent years, many of these jobs have been outsourced to the private sector. Instead of employing the direct workers, the government agencies have reorganised the work and retrenched the direct workers. They outsource the work to private contractors, to reduce their cost of operation.
A contractor has to submit a low price to win the tender on a contract. The contractors re-employ the retrenched workers at lower wages, to do the same work that they did previously as direct workers. If the local workers are “choosy”, the contractor can find foreign workers willing to work for less.
The contract is for a term of two or three years. On the renewal of the contract, the contract price is likely to reduce further, due to competition. This means even lower wages for the local contract workers.
Adequate salaries
I believe that local workers deserve to have an adequate salary for a hard day’s work. This salary has to be commensurate with the cost of living. It should be adequate for a worker to feed a family, at least in a frugal way. The worker should not be expected to work for 12 hours a day, and still not earn enough for the family.
In some countries, this is achieved through a “minimum wage”. Even America, which is the strongest proponent of a free market economy and a flexible labour force, finds it necessary to have a minimum wage.
Business has to be competitive
It has been argued that competitive wages and a flexible labour market are necessary for business to remain competitive and to stay in Singapore. This argument has been pushed too hard by our leaders. Many Singaporeans accept this argument quite blindly.
Does it really help the country much for the public sector to save a few million dollars a year, by depressing the earnings of the contract workers who were previously the direct workers of the agencies?
If businesses have to pay a more adequate wage to the low income workers, will the businesses become non-viable? I do not think so.
These businesses can reduce the exorbitant earnings of their top directors and managers, or spend less on lavish offices or other business expenses. These businesses may earn less for shareholders, but will probably still find it quite attractive to remain in Singapore.
Pride to be a Singaporean
I believe that more people will be proud to be Singaporean, if they find that the nation looks after their interests and is willing to give them a fair standard of living for a hard day’s work. I hope that the wages of the lower income workers can be increased. This is even more pressing in 2008, due to the high inflation rate.
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Originally posted by soul_rage:
I do not know what you guys think, but here's my view of a realistic Singapore in the future some 30 years ahead (and not some beautiful view as painted by the PAP).
My view is based on the fact that I do not have much faith on my fellow countrymen to have the guts to take out the PAP, or have been brainwashed so much so that they sing the praises of the PAP while still suffering.
- Wages will continue to remain stagnant, or might even deflate, largely due to the continuous influx of foreign labour
- Singaporeans will go out of jobs at an earlier age (possibly by 40, you should plan that you have retirement funds) due to the widespread availability of cheap labour
- Singapore's economy will slow down. The past few years of growth are fuelled largely by the short-term strategy of pumping cheap labour into the economy in order to keep the engine running. As all will know, using cheap petrol for your engine for a short period of time is fine. However prolonged usage of cheap petrol will cause the engine to break down and start having long-term problems
- That the IR will not succeed, largely because from historical learnings, a large part of the casino has to depend on the local population. That (1) locals have to pay $100 to get into the casino, and (2) we do not have a local population that is affluent enough in the 1st place, will increase the probability of the failures of the IRs.
- That when the IRs fail, the PAP will abolish the $100 entry fee in its desperate bid to keep the IRs alive, which will in turn cause serious consequences to our society on a whole
- That in general, 30 years from now, there will be much more old folks that cannot afford the cost of living in Singapore. Given suppressed wages, locals will have little to fall on when they retire (or forced to retire (View Pt 2)). Most of us will fall into that category.
Because of the above, I have decided to bite the bullet and come out into the global arena, to relocate into USA, to have a better life. My view was, if they don't treat us well in Singapore, then come out to the world and become an expat instead. Other countries value Singapore talent better than the country itself (how ironic is that?)
It is never easy to relocate. There is a lot of mental stress and emotional pain of leaving one's own country. I, for one, love my country, but I know that if I continue to stay in Singapore, one day, I might just become one of the old folks who have to find a way to survive.
It is still early days to determine if I am right or wrong (and I mostly wish that I am wrong), but my views of Singapore's future are bleak (esp for locals who are trapped in the vicious cycle of suppressed wages, low savings). That 30 years into the future, there will be huge consequences to what the PAP is doing to our country now, and that's when we will have to go through a painful transformation to bring the country back to where it was once proudly.
Basically the focus of the current political leader is to maintain the power of Pap in holding government as such policies are directed more towards Rent Seeking Economy to substain the government...rather than creating new entrench business and enterprised thru innovation in the economy.The one aspect that was briefly mention in the budget of protecting of IP. I think SG govt is too small to have any decent impact on lnternational litigation and IP protection. The Giant China will clone most of innovation.
As for IR....I think the entire investment was too large to recover thru visitor. The $100 rent seeked policies will be refunded back to IR due to pressured. It is too early to predict if The 3rd wheeler will take off.....currently they task Sg tourist promotion board to do sales internationally to host conference in the IR.....
I think if global economies recovered there might be some increase in tourist revenue. But spill over benefit is still marginal in part because SG does not have a minimum wage and not to mention they hired foreigners to work.
You are right from the current on set the future looks bleaks Sg will still continue to use the geographic location to maintain trade position and maybe depend on Indonesia to wake up.....
I am waiting for the another round of global sell off of asian currency first was greece, EU and perharps Asia is next.....i think SG property market will get hit.....
Send me a thinker when u get the news....he he he......
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IM BEGINNING TO LOSE CONFIDENCE WITH SPOREANS....ALL CANT SOLVE PROBLEMS AND MONITOR THINGS AND FIX THEM IF ITS OUT OF TARGET.
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THEY NEED DEDICATED PEOPLE AND SOLDIERS LIKE ME!!!!THE REST IN SPORE ARE BEGININ TO RESEMBLE LIKE BANGLA OR THAI MEN.....EVEN THAI ECONOMY WITH CIVIL WAR ACTUALLY DID BETTER THAN SPORE WITH ALL ITS HIGH TECH INDUSTRIES.
IT CAN ONLY MEAN ONE THING!EVERY ONE FROM FOREIGNERS TO SPOREAN DOWN TO MINISTERS DIDNT DO THEIR PART.....WHICH MEANS ITS IN A VERY SERIOUS PROBLEM FOR A LONG LONG TIME.
U WILL ONLY KNOW WHEN U TAKE AWAY THE BLIND FOLD AND START SEEING EVERYONE AROUND U DRIVING BIG CARS AND LEADING LESS PROBLEM FREE LIVES AS COMPARED TO SINGAPORE.
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Originally posted by angel7030:
No, if he can and manage to increase your paid by 3% per year, i think he deserves more. Because to him and his wife, in about 2005, $600,000 was peanut to them, just imagine what is $600,000 to him and his wife now, must be a red bean, that is the reason why his paid must increase.
How he increae my pay if I am not work in the govt sector? -
Pay is said to be structured in a way of your worthy, but in Singapore, it is more toward competition, as they said, if you peanut, you get monkeys. In another words, if private sector do not match the govt sector paid, they will get monkey like you. On the other hand, govt sectors, who used to follow the NWC recommendation which is also their own Wage council, are wary of overpaying those fat guys, gays and gals in the civil servant servicing jobs, because they dun wan to put burden on the private sector, who can pack up and move to somewhere else.
Worthy in a sense that you got education, right attitude, experiences and good skills and knowledge, that was what it is suppose to be, base on meritocracy, base on your education and your citizenships, but today, it is base on competition, if a PRC manager can take home $1500, you dare to ask for $5000?
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Employers follow govt advise, cheap cheap and work longer and good productivity. Sporean die very fast.
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Cheapo singapore, 3 for $1
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Originally posted by soul_rage:
I do not know what you guys think, but here's my view of a realistic Singapore in the future some 30 years ahead (and not some beautiful view as painted by the PAP).
My view is based on the fact that I do not have much faith on my fellow countrymen to have the guts to take out the PAP, or have been brainwashed so much so that they sing the praises of the PAP while still suffering.
- Wages will continue to remain stagnant, or might even deflate, largely due to the continuous influx of foreign labour
- Singaporeans will go out of jobs at an earlier age (possibly by 40, you should plan that you have retirement funds) due to the widespread availability of cheap labour
- Singapore's economy will slow down. The past few years of growth are fuelled largely by the short-term strategy of pumping cheap labour into the economy in order to keep the engine running. As all will know, using cheap petrol for your engine for a short period of time is fine. However prolonged usage of cheap petrol will cause the engine to break down and start having long-term problems
- That the IR will not succeed, largely because from historical learnings, a large part of the casino has to depend on the local population. That (1) locals have to pay $100 to get into the casino, and (2) we do not have a local population that is affluent enough in the 1st place, will increase the probability of the failures of the IRs.
- That when the IRs fail, the PAP will abolish the $100 entry fee in its desperate bid to keep the IRs alive, which will in turn cause serious consequences to our society on a whole
- That in general, 30 years from now, there will be much more old folks that cannot afford the cost of living in Singapore. Given suppressed wages, locals will have little to fall on when they retire (or forced to retire (View Pt 2)). Most of us will fall into that category.
Because of the above, I have decided to bite the bullet and come out into the global arena, to relocate into USA, to have a better life. My view was, if they don't treat us well in Singapore, then come out to the world and become an expat instead. Other countries value Singapore talent better than the country itself (how ironic is that?)
It is never easy to relocate. There is a lot of mental stress and emotional pain of leaving one's own country. I, for one, love my country, but I know that if I continue to stay in Singapore, one day, I might just become one of the old folks who have to find a way to survive.
It is still early days to determine if I am right or wrong (and I mostly wish that I am wrong), but my views of Singapore's future are bleak (esp for locals who are trapped in the vicious cycle of suppressed wages, low savings). That 30 years into the future, there will be huge consequences to what the PAP is doing to our country now, and that's when we will have to go through a painful transformation to bring the country back to where it was once proudly.
If you say until like that, I wonder how other countries value their talent in the first place (Based on your statement Other countries value Singapore talent better than the country itself )
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I think other countries value our sg people putting money in their country rather than appreciating our talents. Tho i may sometime curse and swear at Singapore in comparing with other countries, but when i visited other countries, be it as a tourist, learning journey, training, business or networking, at the end of the day, i dunno, i still find Singapore, my home, is the best.
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Originally posted by angel7030:
I think other countries value our sg people putting money in their country rather than appreciating our talents. Tho i may sometime curse and swear at Singapore in comparing with other countries, but when i visited other countries, be it as a tourist, learning journey, training, business or networking, at the end of the day, i dunno, i still find Singapore, my home, is the best.
Depend on which cty you go.
If you go to 3rd world countries, definately you will say Spore is the best. Apple to apple.
No doubt, spore is a good home, but no good is cost of things increases while salary stagnanted and employers want cheap and green workers.
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Originally posted by �玟 往日情:
Ms Josephine Teo (Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC) claimed that foreign workers will be cheaper without the levies:
“Without the levies, foreign workers are even cheaper and even more attractive to businesses. And some of these businesses will find loopholes to get round the quotas, to get more of the cheaper foreign workers,” she said.
However, she ignored the fact that Mr Low had already suggested refining the dependency ratio to control the inflow of foreign workers.
Ms Irene Ng (Tampines GRC) added that “any move to tighten the dependency ratio as a way to raise workers’ wages could also lead to higher cost of living for consumers.”
She forgot that there is a limit to which companies can raise the prices without losing their clients. At the end of the day, the onus is on them to find ways to boost productivity while keeping prices low at the same time.
It is evident that the PAP’s growth strategy for the past few years has disastrous consequences for the low income earners in Singapore whose wages had remained stagnant. In fact, Singapore now has the largest income gap between the rich and the poor among the thirty most developed economies after Hong Kong.
With no opposition in parliament to check on the PAP, Singaporeans will have little choice but to be led by them through the noses like a flock of “sheep”.
1: Sorry, but I agree on Ms Josephine Teo on her will find loopholes to get round the quotas. Singaporeans seemed to be forgetful huh. This is because it seemed like there was a few cases where employers uses names of Singaporean as a worker who do not work at all, and just receive a "small payment" (Cant remember was it one time or what, but i think only contribute CPF or even not due to extreme low wages?) so that they can employ foreginers.
Source: http://www.asiaone.com/Business/News/Office/Story/A1Story20080508-63975.html
2: On Irene's side, I feel that the limit of the price can go seriously is deemed by the demand, seriously, if the price of MRT / Bus is going like minimum $1.20 or sort of, do you think that everyone will stop taking public transport and the company lose passengers? Of course, unless there are more competition. Otherwise, the price actually has no cap of increasing without losing client (Look at Microsoft's expensive but not the best software, there is limited to no competition, this is why.)
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Originally posted by likeyou:
Depend on which cty you go.
If you go to 3rd world countries, definately you will say Spore is the best. Apple to apple.
No doubt, spore is a good home, but no good is cost of things increases while salary stagnanted and employers want cheap and green workers.
No lah, i had been Japan, and of course my second in taiwan, then in S korea for a month, and also been most of the europe countries and US of A, i still find Singapore good leh, but only the weather, so hot, however, we are summer all the way... -
Originally posted by angel7030:
No lah, i had been Japan, and of course my second in taiwan, then in S korea for a month, and also been most of the europe countries and US of A, i still find Singapore good leh, but only the weather, so hot, however, we are summer all the way...
So you are comfortable with the ever increasing bills and bills and bills?