Originally posted by pearlie27:am i a norm or an exception??? grow up... unemployment is at an all time high of *gasp* 5% ??? what does that mean? that 95% of us are still busy, productive and relevant.
Of course not all the local middle management will be squeezed out. There are still some blessed ones like u mah!
If Singaporeans losing jobs to foreigners with the same skill because of lower pay not considered as victims of FT policy, then what? Sacrificial lambs?no need to get all emotional here. it depends on the job. low end labour intensive industries are gone for good! nobody could have stopped china or india from coming into the picture.
Sir, are u some big gun from the EDB or some minister who can get the MNC to invest in Singapore? If yes, we the humble Singaporeans would be very grateful to u.are u blind or illiterate? he was talking about high-level jobs... CEO and such... u think any ah mao ah kow can sit there is it?
wow! This sounded so much like the govt speaking leh!why must compete? because its there whether u like it or not. u cannot lock them out because they'll just go elsewhere, sell their labour just as cheap, and make our neighbours more attractive to investors.
how come the middle mgt jobs need to open to competition but not the lower income ones har? Is it cos locals only qualify to do lower income jobs leh?
And hor which middle mgt ppl will happily accept a cleaner job har? Mayb u?
Originally posted by pearlie27:posted by CX:
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Of course not all the local middle management will be squeezed out. There are still some blessed ones like u mah!
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If Singaporeans losing jobs to foreigners with the same skill because of lower pay not considered as victims of FT policy, then what? Sacrificial lambs?
posted by hmsg
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Sir, are u some big gun from the EDB or some minister who can get the MNC to invest in Singapore? If yes, we the humble Singaporeans would be very grateful to u.
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For the lower income type of jobs, of course it would be reasonable to offer locals if all being equal. The problem is we have this "social" status mentality that constrains us to not taking up. Not to mention that we "demand" higher pay to support our expenses...>>
wow! This sounded so much like the govt speaking leh!
how come the middle mgt jobs need to open to competition but not the lower income ones har? Is it cos locals only qualify to do lower income jobs leh?
And hor which middle mgt ppl will happily accept a cleaner job har? Mayb u?
Well I can only conclude that you should get rid of that "toxic" mental model & be open to views that could subsequently cause u to adopt a new position, a more "healthier" perhaps, than to lament all over the shop as though the govt owns u a living.... dun forget it can only "teach u how to fish", not "fish" for u....
Originally posted by Agressor:if that was ever articulated into policy, can it be ever enforced? how do we quantify that the FTs have "passed the knowledge on to the locals" ? we would be paying lips service to an untenable situation.
I am not against FT policy or competition. What I am concern is that when we bring in FTs which we cannot find in the locals, are there plans for these FTs to pass over their knowledge to the locals. I understand that in many countries, they have this condition stated before importing a FT.
Taking for example our table tennis team. First we imported Jing Jun Hong, then Lee Jia Wei followed by Zhang Xue Ling. I think we should use these FTs that we had imported to impart their skills to the Locals instead of bringing in more FTs and making them "Singapore". (BTW it was very embaressing to see "Singapore" Sportsmen / Women who do not know how to sing the national anthem in the prize presentation.)haha... this is one of my pet peeves as well... foreign sportsmen... its like we're buying the medals with hired guns instead of winning them... there is no pride in this.
Originally posted by CX:Statistic do not lie, but human doÂ…just donÂ’t take everything that comes from ST. Singapore is at crossroad. We have opened too wide a door for so-called FTs into Singapore and Singaporeans are being displaced. The politicians have to realize that they are the gahment-elect to be the shepherd to tend the flocks and not the flocks of other pple, rit. Why do you then elect them, so that they can represent your interest rit and not FTs interest. Look around u, mfg is hollowing out, retail is dying, lifescience is still work-in-progress, whats left, casino and u need a scholar to tell u that.
am i a norm or an exception??? grow up... unemployment is at an all time high of *gasp* 5% ??? what does that mean? that 95% of us are still busy, productive and relevant.
Originally posted by CX:Yes, u r rit that low end jobs will flow out to India, China or even Vietnam.
no need to get all emotional here. it depends on the job. low end labour intensive industries are gone for good! nobody could have stopped china or india from coming into the picture.
of course the production lines here need to have some foreign workers... a 100% singapore staffed line would cause their costs to shoot through the roof.
as for white collar jobs, again depends on the industry. for IT, seriously... its hard cos again, no one could imagine the amazing progress the indians have made in that direction... really quite lan lan...
Originally posted by CX:Look at the numbers. We have “so-called” FTs, golden handshake like :
are u blind or illiterate? he was talking about high-level jobs... CEO and such... u think any ah mao ah kow can sit there is it?
now i don't believe in having an ang moh there just for the sake of having an ang moh there. but if that ang moh is really something and can bring in a joint-venture that pumps in millions into the local economy, truth be told i don't care if he's ang moh or botak...
Originally posted by CX:Question is, why are we treated like a second-class citizen in our own country. Yes, you may well be able to take it, working as a cleaner, good for you, but how would a new graduate feel, if the job opportunities are only taxi-drivers, cleaners and hawkersÂ…is there something wrong with Singapore or gahmentÂ…or should we take care of Singaporeans first and foremost, afterall, they are elected to do that.
why must compete? because its there whether u like it or not. u cannot lock them out because they'll just go elsewhere, sell their labour just as cheap, and make our neighbours more attractive to investors.
by the way... if i woke up tomorrow and lost my job, i will take on ANY job to make sure that i can at least survive and my family won't starve.
warehouse? workshop? casual labour? cleaner? its not as if i haven't done those work before anyway!
refuse to work as cleaner? why? too much pride ah? i'll rather work than beg. feel free to do it your way.
Statistic do not lie, but human doÂ…just donÂ’t take everything that comes from ST. Singapore is at crossroad. We have opened too wide a door for so-called FTs into Singapore and Singaporeans are being displaced. The politicians have to realize that they are the gahment-elect to be the shepherd to tend the flocks and not the flocks of other pple, rit. Why do you then elect them, so that they can represent your interest rit and not FTs interest. Look around u, mfg is hollowing out, retail is dying, lifescience is still work-in-progress, whats left, casino and u need a scholar to tell u that.we already know why mfg is hollowing out... and its not because of FTs...
I have interviewed some of these foreigners and by no means, these are FTs, sad to say.there is no argument here... some are really not that sharp... and it reflects the mindset of the employers who hire them as well...
Look at the numbers. We have “so-called” FTs, golden handshake like :what about Neil Montefiore of M1?
1) John Olds, DBS Bank USD 5 million
2) Philippe something, DBS Bank USD 5 million
3) Barry White, Chartered Semi USD 27 million
4) Thomas Clout USD 21 million
Not to add on to their “associates” which they have brought into Singapore, all at taxpayers expenses. Its hell a lot of money.
Are these FTs, are they successful, u tell me.
What am I saying is that I am not against FTs, but the assessment and the results of these FTs are mediocre, if not, gahment will splash in the ST, propagating of their success and contribution to Singapore economy, as a justifications of their high pay. Have you heard any news of them..if yes, pls share…or they have packed their bags, gone back to their respective countries “harvesting” their good fortune for having such a “generous” gahmenti think any sensible adult can see that there are good ones and there are crappy ones...
Question is, why are we treated like a second-class citizen in our own country. Yes, you may well be able to take it, working as a cleaner, good for you, but how would a new graduate feel, if the job opportunities are only taxi-drivers, cleaners and hawkersÂ…is there something wrong with Singapore or gahmentÂ…or should we take care of Singaporeans first and foremost, afterall, they are elected to do that.i would fight for what i feel i deserve rather than blame the gov't for everything.
Also, if a rising China gives you the opportunties to work n be part of the titantic growth, opportunities that u can see and also make money, would you be a cleaner in Singapore, or do we need a scholar to tell us tat. I am sure you knew the answer.if we can tap the growth and benefit, of course we should be doing that. but is it the only choice? being a cleaner OR being a millionaire?
ah... perhaps I was too quick to response without thinking through... apologies if that was the case.Originally posted by pearlie27:originally posted by hmsg
Well I can only conclude that you should get rid of that "toxic" mental model & be open to views that could subsequently cause u to adopt a new position, a more "healthier" perhaps, than to lament all over the shop as though the govt owns u a living.... dun forget it can only "teach u how to fish", not "fish" for u....
may i know what is a more "healthier" position? a politically correct position? or a denial mode position?
i where got lament all over the shop. i merely asked questions to seek the truth or mayb like what u said "to adopt a more healthier position"
i never expect the govt to teach me how to fish or fish for me, i learn how to fish myself.
Haha,u think other countries so easy for u to steal their jobs from them ah?They are not as stupid as our government ok,they give all the job privilages to their own citizens first,if got vacancy or those lousy jobs which their ppl dont want to work one,then they give to u foreigners.Originally posted by BrUtUs:since cant get job in sg, then go oversea and steal other ppl job lor...
Not only do they protect their locals, like I said in my previous postings, even if they give you a job, they will make sure that you Pass down knowledge to their locals.Originally posted by drawer:Haha,u think other countries so easy for u to steal their jobs from them ah?They are not as stupid as our government ok,they give all the job privilages to their own citizens first,if got vacancy or those lousy jobs which their ppl dont want to work one,then they give to u foreigners.
the more education u get, the more competition from foreign elites u get. hence, the mroe education u get, the less salary u can ask for due to extreme competition. end up u sign SAF, SPF....dats y got so many people wanna sign now....they can lower the pay by 10% and people will still sign, y ? cos outside hard to find job even if u have a decent degree. y is dat so ? cos foreign elites ask for less salary cos their family not based here, cost of living lower. our family all based here, the 4-5 rm flat alone can make u slog for a decade....let alone car, kids and parents.Originally posted by bumbleb:I would put productivity as a function of the amount of output (revenue) per unit of input (labour, equipment, and capital). So yes, one can raise productivity by lowering the cost of wages.... if one was to talk in pure economic terms without looking at the social impact of mass importing foreign nationals to take over a portion of local jobs.
For the 'victim' part, I think that there are very few jobs held by Singaporeans that cannot be easily replaced by a cheaper foreign labourer. Civil servants are protected for one. Professions like Law, Medicine etc are another. If your immediate work place is completely populated by Singaporeans, good for you - but there are plenty of companies that are hiring foreign labour cheaply. Even when they do not do so, they can outsource to third parties who can then lower their cost through cheaper foreign labour. Just because you are not a victim now does not mean that you are forever safe.
I work in the financial sector, and in my company there is only a small handful of Singaporean programmers, roughly double that in Malaysians, and the rest is either from India or China. Some of my friends reports a similar picture, though slightly less drastic. Our backroom operations, support staff etc are mixed with foreign workers too. My department were looking for a new guy, and my boss actually went and ask me if I mind working with an Indian/China guy as they were priced much lower than the locals.
How much are Singaporeans worth? I think the more appropriate question to ask is : how low can a Singaporean accept for his wages given the cost of living here? I would imagine that one can accept significantly lower wages if one have the option to double it when one crosses the causeway, or triple or more by flying back to China or India.
Ultimately, there are many skill sets that are in high demand. There are skill sets which have great international mobility too. But it is a fact that not everyone can get such, and not everyone is at an age where mobility still exists.
I think it is insensitive to laugh of the fate of older/lesser skilled Singaporean workers, and blame them when the government is opening the gates to workers from lower cost of living countries. The option for retraining is limited by the alternative employment opportunities available, and these are strongly affected by the volume of foreign investments coming in.
Originally posted by pearlie27:ok lor... then this is an unemotional, objective discussion... thats good.
I where got emotional leh? u're the one what!
But our govt can stop them from coming to Singapore leh.no we can't. cos the ultimate goal is FTA with all these markets. and the free movement of people and goods is the main principle of any FTA.
oh ... this is very emotional.....ok... apologies given where its due.
I no blind or illiterate but mayb not so clever like u lah. actually hor i wasn't talking to u in this instance why u so worked up one?
wow! machiam LKY speaking leh!i'm not a big fan of LKY. i only listen when he speaks sensibly. me and my friends still crack rude jokes about the time he said that grads should hump each other and breed smart babies.
U mean all the other jobless Singaporeans had starved or allowed their family members to starve to death rather than to take on any job har? Tell me who har!any decent individual wouldn't. but someone who was too narrow minded, status conscious and choosy would do just that.
btw, were we not told that we are living in a first world how come we only have jobs such as cleaners, security guards, hawkers and cabbies for our mid-mgt ppl har?we don't only have those jobs. a fresh grad has a decent spread of jobs to apply for and choose from. its not easy to score one first time... need interview experience, need the right exposure and sometimes, the right connections. but the fact that we complain about this sometimes shows that many of us have been spoilt by the easy job market of the 80s and 90s where company came to grads and practically begged them to join. it was an unrealistic situation that doesn't happen anywhere else anyway!
then that means what u've said basically very no point lorOriginally posted by pearlie27:originally posted by CX
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give me a break!
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what point har? did I saying anything on those 2 points? don't remember leh!
finally someone shares my sentiments! i am also planning to leave after NS.Originally posted by Weirdo80:Really sympathize with you people in Singapore. I was once Singaporean. I worked there during the height of the IT frenzy, so I don't know how the situation has changed to now.
If any of you have the chance to move on, do it....I left Singapore a few years back after NS and things have never been better. Here in Australia we have minimum wage laws that protect workers and it is getting harder and harder for Asians to get in Australia due to the influx of migrants in the past few years (like me)
Compared to working in Singapore, I find it much less stressful. I have my own software business, managing 2 or 3 projects a month gives me a very comfortable income. Wake up late, weekends go camping, fishing, scuba diving.....these things I would not be able to enjoy if I had not taken the step forward to leave Singapore. I encourage anyone who is thinking of leaving to follow your dream. Even if it doesn't work out, you can still go back to Singapore in a few years as a "foreign talent" and have an advantage over your brethren. The only crappy thing is you have to endure the lousy food here. I must admit, the food in SG is the best!
Originally posted by CX:Look around you, CX. If retail is not dying, why do the retail associations lobby to postpone the 1% increase in GST. Basically, our tourism sector have been caught napping, ie why the IR is needed, but Casino is another issue which I do not want to debate over here.
we already know why mfg is hollowing out... and its not because of FTs...
retail isn't dying. i frankly don't know how u came to that conclusion.
life-science is work in progress. no denying it so lets not count chickens before they're hatched.
but aren't you forgetting something? what about service?
Originally posted by CX:Why should Singapore be so opaque about these things on FTs. Australia, NZ for eg. Has very clear policy about foreign employees. Why not have let the private association, assess their foreign peers, for two years before allowing them to continue to be employed in Singapore. By and large, you see a lot of MNC, or even our gahment-related companies CEO, MD, etc bring their own pple to fill in positions rather than getting Singaporeans. For eg. DBS Bank, during Phillipe tenure, 3 MDs, all Singaporeans, having more than 10 years banker experience from HK, China and Taiwan resigned. These experienced and talented Singaporeans are being displaced by these so-called FTs. Is this a shame.
there is no argument here... some are really not that sharp... and it reflects the mindset of the employers who hire them as well...
but i see you poking holes at situations who are inherent in the work cycle of an employee. they are not problems caused by FTs per se.
programmers lose their relevence within 6 mths, not 2 yrs. that is the pace of IT nowadays. at its height in the 90s, a chip that intel rolls onto the production line is obsolete the moment it leaves it.
is the pace faster without FTs? no... so what's the point?
and we blame FTs for our own mediocrity? how does that work? are we world class if we only race within our own small pond?
Originally posted by CX:I believe Neil Montefiore is the only FT.
what about Neil Montefiore of M1?
what about Terry Clontz? CEO of Starhub?
what about David Philbrick Conner? CEO of OCBC?
what about Paul Lawrence? CEO of HSBC Singapore?
Originally posted by CX:But it is taxpayers monies, my goodness that we get 80% craps and maybe 20% good. What does that speak abt our incumbent gahment. Any sucker would be grateful to walk away with US$ 5 million, even though nothing much is achieved. Look at the way they handle the POSB fiasco. Or its the same argument again, its a honest mistake, we have not enough talents.
i think any sensible adult can see that there are good ones and there are crappy ones...
Originally posted by CX:I am not blaming the gahment for everything. Singapore is still a safe and good place to do business, and our gahment has a good hand in putting things in place. Along the way, we opened a door too BIG for mediocre talents to be in Singapore, no transparency at all. Rememeber when 2 x NTU professor highlighted that 4 out of 5 jobs goes to foreigners, Manpower Minister Ng EH goes ballistic. Somewhere in between is the truth, statistics do not lie, human do. Even if it is 3 out of 5 jobs goes to foreigners, it is too much. Gahment-elect has a duty to take care of Singaporeans, not just lips service or politicking mascot.
i would fight for what i feel i deserve rather than blame the gov't for everything.
Originally posted by CX:What choice do we have left in Singapore, you said you do not mind being a cleaner in Singapore, I ask you, would you prefer to be a millionaire in China, you did not answer my question. Here in China, there are plenty of opportunities, big or small, nobody to blame, if you cannot make it. In Singapore, control is the key. GLC is into everything. Things are marginally getting better. What kind of business can you do in Singapore, ask yourself frankly. Manufacturing, you are not competitive. Retail rentals are too high. Many banking professionals already left the bank, construction is in bankcrupty, what elseÂ….u name a few and see where we are going.
if we can tap the growth and benefit, of course we should be doing that. but is it the only choice? being a cleaner OR being a millionaire?
Originally posted by CX:If you check out other forums, you can find that there are still quite a lot of new graduates unable to find a job. I do not know why, but it is relative to the economy. So much, for the gahment statistics that we are doing well in this or that but look, is not the casino decision very telling that Singapore will not be able to substain economic growth in the near future.
frankly, are our graduates losing out? are there lots of them out there not getting their dues? if they're not, why? are they absolutely brilliant but not given a chance? plain unlucky perhaps? or are they simply mediocre and unemployable? ]
