Wage Freeze, Cut & Probable Retrenchment Coming!!!!
-
Employees/Workers,
NWC had ask for Wage Freeze, Cut & Probable Retrenchment for this year.... With High UnEmployment Rate Now and Rising Living Cost (Increase GST, Higher MRT Fares, Utilities Bills & Food, Increase Bus Fares, etc)
What do you all think and Any suggestions? -
The funny thing I don't understand is that when we had the EMPLOYERS CPF cut a few years ago, they cut that contribution by half citing that those measures will boost the economy.
Yesterday, the Malaysian government cut the EMPLOYEES CPF contribution instead. But kept the employers the same.
I really wonder who is right and who is wrong. Is it better to cut the EMPLOYERS cpf contribution (like over here) or its better to cut the EMPLOYEES cpf contribution.
As Things here are not expected to improve until 2004, Can we see (without political emotion) which way actually help stimulate the economy better? -
When the Malaysian PM Mahatir announced the reduction of the EmployeeÂ’s EPF contribution the reason given was to allow more CASH in the hands of the Malaysians, so as to allow them to have an easier passage through this difficult times and with more spending money in their hands, consumption will increase, which in turn help to boost confidence.
At the same time, PM Mahatir had also announced a reduction of 5% to the electricity bills for the various businesses and industries (or was it limited to the hotels only), which again help to reduce the amount paid into the Government Treasury.
Other Malaysian measures include the reduction of Government Tax on Service Charged by Hotels and Restaurants.
These measures were implemented to allow cash to be in the hands of those who needed it most, so that spending by the general public will help to boost the economy.
During 2001, in Singapore, when CPF was reduced, only the EmployerÂ’s contribution was affected, so as to help the Employer lower the burden of cash outlay.
With a slight increase to the economy, towards the end of 2002, the cut in EmployerÂ’s CPF was since reduced, allowing for a small increase into the Empoyee's CPF account.
SingaporeÂ’s approach does not seem to return CASH directly to Singaporeans.
Instead the Government will take FIRST, and with loud fanfare, will return the collected funds in the form of Singapore Shares annually, with the amount returned seemingly huge but with little direct impact for the individual Singaporeans.
It is significant to note that despite the many voices heard during mid-2001 and even 2002, including PM Goh, all warning of more uncertain days ahead, the increase to the GST was implemented from 3% to 4%. (As recently as April and May 2003, we still hear the NTUC Secretary-General and PM Goh speak of being prepared for more job losses in 2003).
During 2002, even with expected uncertainties ahead in 2003, increases were also allowed for the charges to Transport Fares, Utilities, Hospital Fees, and even the Sewer Fees and Garbage Fees. If I recall, the Tutorial Fees were also increased at the Tertiary Education too (not sure if it had affected the Primary and Secondary School Fees).
Now that there is a crisis, the Government has so far given a reduction to the Property Tax charged to Landlords.
Here again, the direct effect has not impacted the businesses, as the Tax Rebate did not filter down with rent reductions to all the tenants and sub-tenants of these landlords. Some have even complained that the Landlord had increased rental charges.
This reduction to the Property Tax has only benefited the large property owners, who are stuck with properties that are completed and remain empty, and yet property tax has to be paid annually; with the sum being quite significant.
The largest property owner in Singapore would be the GLCs themselves, being the Principal direct beneficiary of such a Property Tax reduction..
Even the recent reduction to the charges of electricity offered by Singapore Powers, was only limited to the Single Room, Two Rooms, and Three Rooms HDB Flats.
What about the owners of Four Rooms, and HDB Executive Apartments, Private Landed and Condominium Properties?
Do they not suffer retrenchment, reduction in take home pay, or increases in their cost-of-living by the various increase in charges to Public Services?
There has yet to be any bold plan by the Singapore Government, in a decisive manner that it had shown in battling SARS, that will DIRECTLY IMPACT the Singapore Citizens take home revenue, or cash expenses that are recurring daily, weekly, and monthly.
It has always been a "Wait and See" attitude from the Finance Minister, with the seeming support of the Cabinet to show the public that there is solidarity in decision making.
The war will soon be over, when a decision is finally made.
Failed businesses and bankrupts, suicides and mental patients will have been a fact of events for those who will not get to see the belated Government moves to help. -
Yes... without political emotion or intention in mind, I really wonder how those measures direclty help real Singaporeans, esp. individual guys who spend 2.5yrs and 13 yrs or more of country protection and is mostly the breadwinner of a home. Those measures or schemes seems to be going against the flow of helping Singaporean to tight over this difficult time. A lot of them seems to benefits the Rich, the glc.... but those entrepeuneurs suffering does not recieve a direct help.... ppl like us who was born here, grown up here and serve to protect the country and most probably will die here will suffer.
-
Can we then say that the difference in approaches between the 2 countries actually stem from what? That over here, we reduce the EMPLOYER's burden and over up north, they increase the EMPLOYEE's disposable income.
In an ideal circumstance, the 10% reduction in burden of a company's operating expense should result in a huge shot in the arm. Thats millions that Singaporean and foreign companies can use to pump into the economy and revive it.
The Malaysians have only a 2% increase in their disposable income, and that increases it by say RM100 per month per household on the average (assuming RM5k per month income)
That is like betting that RM100 per family in Malaysia can do more stimulating the economy that the millions that Singapore companies can do with their savings.
Logically on paper, that can't be right. But in reality, I really do believe that its possible that that little RM100 per family will really boost their retail and domestic tourism sectors. Those are the SARS affected industries. It won't benefit the car market or the home buying market.
If this domestic boost really works, I think over in Singapore, we should consider CPF cuts on our EMPLOYEE contribution. I don't think the cuts on the EMPLOYER contribution did much to boost the economy. The normal people of Singapore can do more for our local economy than companies. -
heard abt it too.. guess my dad will suffer a pay cut cos he's in the govt sector
-
When the Singapore Government helps the Companies and Employers to reduce costs, the amount given will mean that less money will be disburse on monthly expenses..
The money saved will help the Company to tide over the expenses for next month.
When money is given directly to the Employees, every extra dollar will mean an extra amount available to be used to defray household needs, which will be interpreted into household purchases that result in consumption.
That is the difference in impact of the approaches between the Malaysian and Singapore Government.
When added to the price controls imposed onto the essential consumer items as practiced in Malaysia, this current new policies will help further in lowering the Cost of Living – which may help improve the Quality in the Standard of Living of the average Malaysians.
It is surprising to note that even though the Malaysian currency fetches a lower value in Exchange Rate, the amount of real consumer items that its currency can buy has a bigger difference than the Singapore Dollar, since most of its consumer items are produced and manufactured in Malaysia that has a lower property and labor costs.
If we follow the Economic Philosophy of Comparative Advantage, as espoused so effectively by SingaporeÂ’s first Economic and Finance Minister Dr Goh Keng Swee, then Singaporeans should be encouraged to shop in Malaysia to lower our own cost of living, while we sharpen our skills in being more productive in higher technology products.
It is no use for our NTUC Supermarkets purchasing low cost Malaysian Products, only to see the low costs being priced high in retail prices, so as to have sufficient margins to cover the high costs in rental, property development, and staff wages.
The high costs in property and wages was a Government Policy to help us to attain a Swiss Standard of Living, with the accompanying wages and housing standards.
This has been achieved by Government forcing wages to increase, and property sales being jacked up by public tender of development sites and high development fees; and is based on little substantive foundation in our economy that is comparable to the Swiss domestic industrial strengths.
Most Singaporeans have spent a large amount of our savings on Housing and Properties, with little amount left in cash; and living under the false sense of security; and there is now an awakening by the Government that there is a growing number of aged who have little resources to look after themselves during old age.
Many will have to downgrade by selling their 3-Room, or 4-Room, Executive Flats and Private Properties. The reality is that the public expectation of a Swiss Standard of Living has not been attained in their old age; but the Government is not acknowledging this fact, and is stubbornly maintaining the HDB selling price to soak up the CPF funds from the Singapore Citizens.
It is surprising that the Government has always preached that they will not interfere in the Market Mechanism of Supply and Demand, and yet when the Mechanism work against them, they will not hesitate to implement rules that will ensure the outcome will be according to their expectation. This has been true in the public bidding system in the case of the release of land for development; and also true in the bidding for the COE for cars; as well as for Wages.
The Malaysian PM MahatirÂ’s decision is made with boldness, and with a sense of purposeful vision.
Singaporeans are still waiting for a bold sweeping policy that can only come from leadership with quality, and who dare to have a bold vision to lead us out of the present circumstances.
Our Finance Minister will sit pretty and adjust his policies bit by itsy bit, fine tuning as each month pass and as more business fail and retrenchment made.
Perhaps there is a real difference between qualified persons, as in Dr Goh Keng Swee, who was trained in Economics; from one who has got into the Chair by political appointment and not by training. -
Would you be willing do to a model of the best case scenario of having a 10% cut in employers cpf contribution and contrast that with awhat we think employers will really do.
My take is that the best case scenario would be that the 10% reduction in HR costs will be used to pay extra bonus, retain staff that is going to be retrenched and to be used for an excursion. That way, the extra bonus will be spent in boosting our economy, the extra money can also enable the about to be retrenched to still have a job, and boost hotel occupancy rates by having training classes.
But in reality, I think the bosses will just keep the 10% savings to fatten their bottom line, still sack the staff, and definate don't spend on training. So the 10% cpf cut was not successful to boost the economy.
Do you agree? -
Not all bosses will be so unscrupulous in the manner that you have described, although some do exist due to their greedy short-sightedness (as was the case of landlords who were reported to have increased rentals even when a reduction in property tax has been given).
Bosses, who resort to pay cuts and retrenchments, must have made a painful decision to hurt the trusted and faithful employees, who have given their best services to the Company, and have treated the place of employment as their own.
Extreme circumstances that lead bosses to make such drastic decision will most likely be poor revenues, dwindling cash reserves with no prospect of any immediate cash inflow, inability to meet recurring monthly expenses such as rentals, utilities, salary and CPF payments, mortgage installments for buildings, vehicles, and any fixed or portable assets, equipment or tools.
Bosses as entrepreneurs have a harder time than Employees, they risks their capital that is invested in their business, and when it fails, no one will bail them out.
During such poor economic times, the banks will be the first to put pressure on a dying business to settle outstanding credit facilities that has been given during the good times, and will probably be reduced to a size that match their reduced turnover. The difference between the old credit size and the new reduced size will have to be made good even during these hard times. When the Bosses are unable to meet this obligation of “topping up” their overdraft account, the Banks will act to seize their assets; causing further disruptions to the business and the ability of the Bosses to tide over these bad times until the economy turn for the better.
It has been said that Banks normaly hand out umbrellas during the good sunny days, but when the storm has broken out, they will be the first to ask for the return of the umbrellas, afraid that the umbrellas will be broken by the storm. If you do not return the umbrellas, the Banks will increase the charges to make it even more punitive.
During the present difficult times, with business having shrunk by more then Sixty to Seventy Percent, it is little wonder that some Companies have reduced Employee wages by as much as Fifty Percent, and this is done even to Employees whose wages are between $2000 to $9000 a month.
With our Singapore MinisterÂ’s salaries reaching SIX Figures a month, far beyond the amount needed to meet our Singapore Cost of Living, it is amazing that so much publicity and praise has been given that they are agreeable to a TEN Percent cut to their monthly salary. -
Sometimes I really wonder how come life is getting bad to worse.... and the top can still sit down comfortable saying "the ppl shld do this and that... while they got no problem with life...". In fact, I think that ppl who sit on the top and cannot solve problem by REAL means shld step down and hand over to a more capable person.... How can the top solve problem everytime by cut and cut Singaporean revenue and up and up living expenses... The gap will get wide... Instead I believe in cutting more of living expense than Singaporean revenue... I have no objection in cutting Singaporean revenue if really a concern... but the top shld also cut the living expense more... Cite a scenario:
If Singapore revenue cut by 5% on average, then Living Expense should lower by minimum 5% too if not more. Something is real wrong with the economics... I think there shld be change to a more capable ppl up there who is justified to get the amount of world class $$$.
Very disappointed and sad with the way they implemented policy. Don't they see ppl are suffering by the high cost of living?
And I wonder the top is of financial or economic background with intense successful REAL LIFE experience... If not... pls let some professional do it... -
Consumer Price Index expected to be released today for the month of April 2003, and expected to show another increase of 0.7 percent.
This will be the sixth month that the Consumer Price Index had shown a continuous increase at about nearly the same rate for each month.
This increase has largely been attributed to utilities, but is that the total picture as Oil Prices have largely fallen over the last few months, especially with the decisive US victory in the Iraq War.?
With wages falling, and consumer prices on the uptake, jobless numbers increasing from retrenchment and also from the next batch of graduates coming out from the Tertiary Insitutions during the middle of 2003, there can be little time left for "wait and see" and small tinkering action to repair the economy.
Should "Little Boys" be allowed to wear the shoes of "Bigger Men" and make decisions that affect so many lives, just so to gain experience and prepare them for "Bigger Shoes"? -
-
I think the top will never understand the ppl on the ground... "THE SINGAPOREAN".... They are trying to make the rich richer and the poor poorer... Don't get the wrong idea that I am grumbling... Its just that I see that if this continues, there will be a huge gap between the RICH and the POOR and asset rich but cash strap Singaporean....Ppl with brains will understand that the economic and employment is in deep troubles and the recent policies of increasing this and increasing that is not helping the ppl.... And if I am not wrong, I believe another increase will come within a year as the top always want to breakeven their every yr financial. So we Singaporean really doubt the current top ppl are as good as their last batch, or are ppl who just talk and talk....don't seems to see any faces frowning...
One thing I hear good about older batches ppl is they will PAIN and WORRY if they see Singaporean suffering... which I don't seems to see much in this batches, saying Singaporean shld be in-charge of their life... In this kinda of unfeeling place... how can one build identity.... Sad.... -
Just to say a word of fairness...
True, life is getting more and more harder and worse still, the government isn't helping either. Every cost seems to be increasing which made us SIngaporean poorer... Why is tat happening ? Is it because we didn't spend enough as a consumer ? Is it because the economy is bad throughout the world. No. The main reason why our economy is bad, why unemployment fail to inprove is because all foreign companies r pulling out of singapore.
Singapore is too ex. The land is ex, the human is ex. We have too little land and we have too little people to make an attractive market. They can cut cost if they move to China. Cutting cost for companies means they can offer cheaper goods in return which meant that they can still stay competitive. If 2 goods with the same quality but offered at a smaller price, which will u buy ? Everyone want to save money.
Hence wat governmenty is doing is to solve this problem. To make Singapore appealing to foreign investments. How to make them apealing ? They can do a lot of things, but the best way is still by cutting cost to investors. U can say they r making rich richer while poor poorer, but too bad we are trying to make the 'rich' to come or to stay otherwise we r not making any money at all. U prefer rich dissappear and the poor dead ? If investor do not come, tat is the end of our economy.
The gov has lost a lot of money recently. And I mean a lot. They have spent millions on internal security since 911. If u didn't realise, the police have many sophisticated detection equipment tat cost millions to purchased. All the old revenues before like port and air travel has dropped from profitable to losing money.
Maybe Singapore has already reached the peak of its time and now we have to be prepared for the downslide. There is nothing tat fuel our economy now. -
In this current round of wage cutting and job saving exercise, much hullabaloo has been made about WORKERS having to make sacrifices for the sake of themselves and the future of the Companies that employ them.
This has been told from the PM, National Wage Councils, Secretary-General of the NTUC, Management of GLCs.
Yet we do not hear the other voices from the Private Businessmen, the Workers, and the Trade Unions that are not affiliated to the NTUC – if any independent trade unions still exist.
In the most current high profile case of the Singapore Airlines Pilot Association negotiation deadlock with the S.I.A Management, the PM has called for them to make sacrifices, and the SIA Management has called the supposed “stubborn” position of the SIA Pilots as being highly irresponsible.
Yet in the ST report of this Monday, May 26, 2003, it was reported by the President of the SIA Pilot Association, that this present cut to their wages will amount to a FIFTY Percent cut to their take home pay.
The Pilots and Cabin Crews (Stewards and Stewardesses) have a highly flexible wage system - comprising of low Basic Pay (from $1200 for Cabin Crew to minimum of $4000 for Pilots), with the bulk of their wage being based on their flight time.
Now that the Flying Hours have already been reduced by more then a quarter (as reported by ST), as a result of the New York 9-11 incident, Bali Bombing, and now SARS, the other part of the income of the Air Crew that is dependent on Flying Hours would have already been reduced substantially by the reduction of flying time.
With this round of “forced” wage cuts of between 15 percent to 22 percent, the President of the SIA Pilot Association is claiming that the TOTAL effect with the reduced benefits from reduced flying hours, will amount to a pay cut of more then 50 percent.
It would seem that here again, the WORKING CLASS is expected to bear the brunt of the wage cut, while the MANAGEMENT has boasted that they also have to bear wage cuts of TEN Percent, with the Management Salary being at least 3 times that of the basic pay of the Pilots, and 10 times that of the Cabin Crews – (co-incidentally, the Singapore Ministers also boast about wage cut of TEN Percent of their SIX-figures Monthly Salary).
Such drastic reduction of wages will cut into the ability of many wage earners (not only the Air Crews) in meeting the monthly payments to their financial commitments to banks for the long term financing of homes and vehicles.
This mess of high wages is a result of the loudly promoted scheme of High Wages in the early 1980s, to push the Labor Force to upgrade themselves to enter a higher level of Technology and Industry; and to force the low tech industry to move out, and high tech industries to move into Singapore.
It was also supposedly to boost the wealth of the WORKING CLASS.
Unfortunately, the enforced increases to wages was negated by the increase in the Cost of Living, with the prices of HDB Flats rising by more then 100 percent (a 150 sqM 5-room flat in 1985 sold for $108,000 but a 5-room flat is now sold for approximately $210,000(?) today with its size reduced to 120 sqM).
URA land is sold for development at controlled prices that must meet the minimum “Market Price” as SET by the URA (or by the guiding hands of the Powers that be). Instead of dampening the casino style property speculation moods of the Singapore Citizens, the Government participated further in the fueling of the increases in property values by stating that they will NOT interfere in the Mechanisms of Supply and Demand – (even retired PAP Government Leaders also voiced their concern at the insatiable “Moneytheism” of Singaporeans).
HDB Shops and Hawker Lots were soon no longer rented, and the lessees have to make arrangements to buy over the units – it was reported that two old ladies had to borrow from a Finance Company to buy over the hawker unit in a hawker center, so as to make a living to support themselves; however, their daily sales of “wontan noodles” could not meet the monthly repayment, and after two rounds in the High Court, they were made bankrupts (circa 1996 or 97).
With a higher wage level, the CPF contribution is correspondingly larger. The CPF burden on the Manufacturers was brought back to the Twenty Percent level, and so was the WorkersÂ’ CPF contribution too, as soon as the 1987 crisis had blown over.
With the CPF locked up, and providing cheap funds to the GIC, and modifications to the rules of withdrawal changing the original promises made to the Singapore Citizens, one can only wonder who will finally benefit from these contributions in the end – in the light of the total dependency on almost all aspects of housing, food, transport, health care, education, and even death.
To break this current economic deadlock, it is not just the WORKING CLASS having to make sacrifices, but the Government will have to look hard at its TOTAL Program of collecting revenues from the multi-facetted revenue earning programs that it has through all its various Government Directly Controlled Agencies and Departments, as well as through its Government Linked Companies; and also being realistic in their vision of what wages should be in relation to the artificially created high cost of living tat stem largely from the high selling prices of URA land released to the Private Sector for development.
All is in the hands of the Singapore Government, how much they want to take from the Singapore Citizens, and how much they are prepared to give or return to the Singapore Citizens.
. -
Personally.... I find all these measures outrageous. They are indirectly "killing the working class". The one who directly got impact on all these will be the poor and the lowly educated Singaporean. Though they claimed that they have given out so-called "goodies or aid" to this group of people, but think of the high living cost and the compounded effect in daily expenses due to these measures.
Think logically of those days in the past whereby our grandparents and parents are able to afford a housing quickly with only one paying party, and compared to nowadays whereby couples had to slog to meet these installments?
Think of what happen in future if this continues? It might mean that Singaporean cannot afford to retire because we will be in debt till death. Worse still if a person cannot find a work.
- Are life getting better or worst? You, Singaporean will decide.
- Are these measures helping the people of Singaporean (with policies to increase daily expense and cutting individual revenue)? You, Singaporean will decide.
- Are those ppl holding 6 figures and who do not suffer and who probably does not know how worried and stressful Singaporean are capable of deciding the life od Singaporean?
I am not being emotional but stating what I feel? You, Singaporean will decide... -
Strange that this was not posted anywhere prominently .. found it in www.littlespeck.com, which is quite a good commentary about life in Singapore.
http://www.littlespeck.com/informed/2003/CInformed-030525.htm
Singapore-Malaysia
Contrasting Sars medicine
One cuts workers' earnings, the other, puts gives them more money to stimulate consumption. By Alan Wheatley, Reuters.
May 25, 2003
If you're a civil servant, Malaysia was the place to be this week rather than
Singapore.
A day after Malaysia gave its bureaucrats a bonus of half a month's wages as part of a package to boost its economy, next-door Singapore - on Thursday - cut the pay of ministers and top civil servants by 10 percent and froze the rest.
Both economies are struggling to cushion the demand shock delivered by the deadly SARS virus.
But while Malaysia took its cue from Hong Kong and Taiwan and included a healthy dose of fiscal stimulus in its package, Singapore's cautious response reflected a growing conviction that demand management has only a limited role to play in a small open economy buffeted by fast-changing business cycles.
"They only use fiscal policy as a counter-cyclical when they see the whites of the eyes of recession. The approach is always to use wage restraint as the first line of defence," said PK Basu of Robust Economic Analysis Ltd, a Singapore consultancy.
The clampdown on civil service pay followed a recommendation by the city state's National Wages Council of wage cuts for firms hit by SARS and a pay freeze for most other companies grappling with the uncertain economic environment.
"Unit labour costs are still falling, so to call for additional wage restraint in a deflationary environment is tough medicine -- inappropriately tough medicine," Basu said.
With Sars decimating Singapore's tourism industry, Tony Nafte of CLSA Emerging Markets in Singapore said it made good sense to keep corporate costs to a minimum pending an upturn.
But he said the economy needed a boost to consumption to compensate for the wage freeze.
"Because they're not doing that, I would give this a thumb's down overall," Nafte said.
Bang for the buck
Nafte said he favoured bringing forward scheduled cuts in Singapore's corporate and personal taxes as well as temporarily scrapping the island's four percent sales tax.
Malaysia put more money in people's pockets by cutting employee contributions to the state welfare fund.
The wage freeze was the second leg of Singapore's response to Sars.
Last month the city state unveiled measures worth just 0.1 percent of gross domestic product -- even though it runs a budget deficit of under one percent of GDP and has large reserves.
Malaysia's package, which had been in the pipeline before the Sars outbreak, totalled two percent of GDP.
Hong Kong's was worth one percent of GDP and Taiwan's came to 0.5 percent of GDP.
"I'm just not that encouraged by the government's fiscal stance. They're being just too overly conservative," Nafte said.
"If there's any country in the region that has the money to spend, it's Singapore. So I don't see that as a problem."
The problem, as Singapore sees it, is that pump-priming doesn't provide much bang for the buck.
Two packages to help the economy recover from a recession in 2001, the steepest downturn since the country's independence in 1965, cost seven percent of GDP but boosted 2002 output by only one percentage point.
This was largely because Singapore is a very open economy so any direct government expenditure leaks away into imports.
Indirect measures to shore up profits and balance sheets -- such as this week's wage freeze -- provide a bigger boost to GDP in the medium term than active counter-cyclical policies, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Given the growing volatility of the business cycle -- before Sars, Singapore was hit by the 2001 high-tech slump and the 1997 Asian financial crisis -- Sanjeev Sanyal of Deutsche Bank said the government was right to shy away from short-term activism and to keep its eye on longer-term economic restructuring.
The risk in such a fast-changing economy is that, by the time stimulus measures kick in, demand is already recovering, resulting in an inappropriate pro-cyclical policy, Sanyal said.
"The way I look at it, it is entirely pointless to try to do demand management," he said.
"The only thing to do is to maintain a broadly neutral stance." -
With the present poor economic situation in Singapore, that everyone in Goverment and the Singapore Citizenry have acknowledged as being an on-going calamities - from Financial Crisis of 1997, to September 11 World Trade Center Terrorism, to Bali Bombing, and now SARS; it will be interesting to find out what is the statistics for the following areas:
Number of individuals - businessmen, entrepreneurs - being made bankrupts.
Number of Credit Card Holders - private consumption - unable to meet their obligation and made bankrupts.
Number of attempted suicide and actual suicides.
Number of individuals needing help from psychiatrist and psychologist at the Institute of Mental Health.
Number of failed marriages leading to divorces.
The statistics for these areas will at least allow us an insight into the well being of the Singapore Citizenry, and the true picture of how the average Singaporean is coping with the hardship that has been on-going since 1997.
The statistics will have to be compared with the same statistics taken from earlier years (10 year period.??).