MP walks an extra mile in labourer's shoes: Part 2
Would you work 2 shifts over 14 hours for $4.90 an hour?
July 07, 2007 By Seah Kian Peng MP for Marine Parade GRC
MP Seah Kian Peng (above) follows Kamar on his second shift to polish floors. -- Pictures: KELVIN CHNG
WHAT is it like to live two days in one? To knock off work at lunchtime and report for another job at teatime?
Yesterday, I described how I shadowed daily-rated worker Kamaruzaman Rahman mosquito-busting at the drains in Mountbatten.
That's his first job. It might start early - at 6.30am - and be physically exhausting, especially for a 54-year-old like him.
But to supplement his income (he earns $47 per day for this job), he has a second job polishing floors at a factory in Chai Chee.
There, he makes about $22 per day.
So at 1pm, when others head for their lunch break, Kamar rushes (by bicycle) from Mountbatten to his Eunos flat, changes out of his sweaty clothes and gobbles down lunch.
By 3pm, the second half of his day begins.
I was exhausted. It had felt like the end of a long day after combing Mountbatten's drains for six hours in the hot sun.
But now, I had to get ready, not just physically but also mentally, for the start of another 'working day'.
So, this is what having two jobs feels like. You need stamina.
Polishing floors looked easier, though. But when I tried it, the polishing machine ran off like a runaway train.
It took quite a bit of strength and skill to control it.
Mr Seah yawns as he follows Kamar on his bus ride home after working for 14 hours.
That was why I was surprised when Kamar told me he has a 71-year-old worker who does it, working the midnight shift from 11pm to 7am!
On Sundays, Kamar's only day off from his mozzie-busting job, Kamar works both shifts at the factory. That's from 7am to 11pm straight!
What keeps you going, I asked Kamar.
'I like to keep things clean,' he said.
We polished the sprawling factory floor, square foot by little square foot.
Dinner was prata kosong, Kamar's usual, at a nearby kopitiam.
The work reminded me of the days when I worked part-time in a launderette, a stock take agency and a kitchen.
MUNDANE WORK
The hours were long, the work exhausting. It could also be numbingly mundane. This was, perhaps, the biggest challenge.
After dinner, the hours rolled by slowly. Outside, people were probably already home from work.
We finally called it a day just before 11pm.
Outside, the street was deserted. The evening breeze felt good against our sweaty bodies.
It had been a long day. At a hawker centre, we had a bottle of beer each.
Kamar usually does this once every five days. It helps control his temper, he said.
Once a month, he treats himself to a Guinness stout, with a raw egg thrown in to give him strength.
His other luxury, or necessity in his opinion, is cigarettes. He smokes two packs a day.
Kamar said he sleeps three to four hours every night. I was shocked.
To me, these two days had been tough. But I have weekends (and annual leave) to look forward to. Although weekends are usually packed with grassroots activities, they do offer some respite.
A daily-rated worker like Kamar hardly takes days off. Any day off is a day's wages lost. Every day is the same.
But Kamar said he can't see himself not working.
He already has plans: When he's too old for the factory, he hopes to clean the Eunos MRT station.
It'll be close to this house. He won't have to travel.
'Old already, never mind. I can work slowly,' he said.
If you would like to contribute to the Amalgamated Union of Public Daily Rated Workers (AUPDRW)'s bursary and welfare fund, please e-mail
[email protected]