Widening income gap a concern
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SINGAPORE: Challenges of dealing with a widening income gap in Singapore are here to stay, say political watchers and economic analysts, while MPs say the key to narrowing the gap is up-skilling low-wage workers.
They were responding to the Prime Minister's New Year's message which highlighted the issue.
Singapore experienced strong growth in 2010, and economists say one group likely to benefit is the high income earners.
CIMB regional economist Song Seng Wun said: "As a result of the very strong growth, what you normally find is that the top 20 per cent of income earners will generally ride on the growth and benefit from it far more than the lower 20 per cent.
"Benefiting them are things like wealth from appreciating assets such as properties, whereas in the lower income group, you do not have that kind of appreciation of asset.
"If you're... in the bottom 20 per cent (group), your salary is relatively stable (but) you're only getting that much, whether (the) economy is growing 15 per cent or four to six per cent.
"(But) if you're (in) the top 20 (per cent group), you'll likely ride (on) the growth and the kind of opportunity that presents much more than a bottom 20.
"... As a result after an exceptional year, you do find that income gap will widen very significantly. Perhaps with a return to normalcy, we will see a little bit of return in the gap itself".
Some of the issues which Singaporeans are always concerned about include inflation and the cost of living.
These can be a perennial concern for the lower income group.
MPs whom Channel NewsAsia spoke to say they intend to raise this issue during the Budget debate and will be calling on the government to extend whatever support it can to help lower income Singaporeans.
And this is where Workfare -- a key pillar of Singapore's social security landscape to provide support for low-wage workers so they have the best chance to progress -- comes into play.
MPs say the Workfare has been a great help in encouraging workers to be gainfully employed, to benefit from the payments.
MP for Jalan Besar GRC Denise Phua said: "What we need to do is to move from these broad-based strategies to more targeted help, for example, specific industries and specific segments of low wage workers.
"(We can) then hone in...and understand the low wage workers' families, so (as) to make sure that (the) poverty spiral can be broken.
"One area to target is to ensure that children from low-wage families have specific support in terms of tuition (and having access to) computers, to make sure they can be pulled out from the poverty spiral.
"We have sufficient numbers of helping agencies (such as) the CDCs (and) the family service centres. What we need to do now is to tighten the coordination of these helping agencies to make sure that help indeed reaches those who need to be helped."
GPC Chair for Community Development, Youth and Sports Seah Kian Peng said: "One part is to keep the economy running and booming like what it is now, just like what we have experienced last year.
"What it means is that unemployment is very low and we know that the majority of people are earning a salary and as the economy booms, the government will be in a position to also, in any budget, consider how it could possibly distribute and share the growth with as many Singaporeans as possible.
"The other part is rallying the community (including) those who have done well and are successful, (to) make life better for those (who are) not as successful.
"Singaporeans are, by and large, a generous lot; corporate philanthropy is there and I hope individual philanthropy will also be on the rise".
Meanwhile, MPs say they will urge the government to continue with measures already in place, like the GST Credits and various rebates, to help low income Singaporeans.
-CNA/wk -
as hokkien phrase said it well........�就好....���太多
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20 years later and grads still earn the same kind of pay more or less, that's when the 66.6% will learn their lesson :).
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Lesser and lesser.. u grads... 2k nobody wan hire.
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Come on they are communist. Save the poor like me.
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Widering incmoe gap concern????
Ha....with influx of foreigners into spore and snatching the jobs from the sporean with cheap cheap pay, of course the income gap widen.
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Originally posted by likeyou:
Widering incmoe gap concern????
Ha....with influx of foreigners into spore and snatching the jobs from the sporean with cheap cheap pay, of course the income gap widen.
this is what happen when you open up an unlimited supply of workers to a still-limited demand for workers
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M 型社会 I think so gt widening income gap.
Not only that with so many super marrket like ntuc giant n shop n save those kind wet market affected.
Giant those big one earn lots of money wet market business dropped. But rent still very high.
My relative sell fish now very hard to sell. Bad business ending business now.
I believe shopping mall also affect neighbourhood shops.
My mom said especially electronics shop surely affected by best denki,harvey norman and courts.
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I think importing cheap foreigners further worsten this problem.
Cost of living increase n inflation/standard of living but wages further depressed by the cheaper labour imported.
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sometimes, i wonder, whether its us who are doing the right thing, or the japanese who are doing the right thing.
We have often heard of criticism against Japanese for stubbornly insisting on remaining homogenous, taking in very few foreigners, which according to yesterday's straits times, foreigners only makes up slightly over 1% in the population of japan.
compared to over 40% for singapore, including PRs and foreigner workers, not including converted citizens.
wonder who will be left laughing after 30years
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Originally posted by deathmaster:
sometimes, i wonder, whether its us who are doing the right thing, or the japanese who are doing the right thing.
We have often heard of criticism against Japanese for stubbornly insisting on remaining homogenous, taking in very few foreigners, which according to yesterday's straits times, foreigners only makes up slightly over 1% in the population of japan.
compared to over 40% for singapore, including PRs and foreigner workers, not including converted citizens.
wonder who will be left laughing after 30years
Taiwan,south korea japan no such thing like singapore. Yes we see who right after 30 years.
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Sad to say, I'm sure PAP with their cronies and families will be laughing with their pockets full of money, happy to have found a solution for themselves, no need to care about locals but just have a workforce that will help them earn money, which this workforce will self - renew. Those who earn enough will withdraw CPF and leave, then new FTs will arrive to suck all locals dry again.
PAP have found a good solution and they will not let go of this idea.
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Originally posted by deathmaster:
sometimes, i wonder, whether its us who are doing the right thing, or the japanese who are doing the right thing.
We have often heard of criticism against Japanese for stubbornly insisting on remaining homogenous, taking in very few foreigners, which according to yesterday's straits times, foreigners only makes up slightly over 1% in the population of japan.
compared to over 40% for singapore, including PRs and foreigner workers, not including converted citizens.
wonder who will be left laughing after 30years
I think the middle of both approaches. Allow some foreign influx, but not as excessive mass influx of foreigners as what Singapore has done.
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Mebbe one day implement minimum wage policy for low income group.
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Mebbe one day implement minimum wage policy for low income group.
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Mebbe one day implement minimum wage policy for low income group.
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Originally posted by Askingyouto:
Sad to say, I'm sure PAP with their cronies and families will be laughing with their pockets full of money, happy to have found a solution for themselves, no need to care about locals but just have a workforce that will help them earn money, which this workforce will self - renew. Those who earn enough will withdraw CPF and leave, then new FTs will arrive to suck all locals dry again.
PAP have found a good solution and they will not let go of this idea.
by then who cares for PAP.
I rather hope that i will be laughing at the 66.6% who voted for PAP
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I hope gahment introduce minimum wage. Maybe can help this important issue.
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Originally posted by deathmaster:
by then who cares for PAP.
I rather hope that i will be laughing at the 66.6% who voted for PAP
66.6 is last election in 2006 this election should be lower. -
This has been a problem 10 years ago.
It will still be a problem 10 years later.
They will just raise this issue every year and talk and talk till the cows come home.
Yes, we are paying them million dollar salaries to talk and talk till the cows come home.
