<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=msgleft width="1%" rowSpan=4></TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>28266.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>Feb 7, 2010
Thank you, foreign worker
Why be angry at foreign workers in our midst when they are doing jobs that are unpopular but necessary?
<!-- by line -->By Sumiko Tan
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For all the unhappiness that has been expressed about foreign workers in Singapore, one fact remains - life would be difficult without them.
Let's be honest here. Most foreign workers are doing the jobs that Singaporeans are loath to do, and there sure are many jobs Singaporeans don't want. (kojakbt: ever wonder why in western countries, the whites still do those dirty jobs?)
Be a maid and tend to the cooking, cleaning, looking after the baby and the invalid grandma and work the sort of hours most Singaporeans expect their maids to work? No, thanks.
Toil under the sun at a construction site and be transported around sitting at the back of lorries? Are you kidding? (kojakbt: have you seen white westerners working as construction workers in their countries? They don't have to be transported around. They drive to work)
Go from table to table at hawker centres to clean up the mountains of chicken, fish and pork-rib bones left behind by customers? No way. (kojakbt: have you seen white aussie garbage collector before?)
Stand around, smile and act pleasant all day at a shop and answer the inane queries of customers? Only if desperate.
In fact, even jobs such as florists are shunned by Singaporeans. Why, you might wonder. How unpleasant can it be working with flowers and dreaming up beautiful designs?
Pretty unpleasant, according to Singaporeans, because a florist's job entails him having to stand on his feet for long periods - and Singaporeans don't like that.
Another reason Singaporeans prefer not to work as florists is that they are expected to put in lots of overtime during festive periods, said a report in The Straits Times last week.
Strange reason, isn't it? Wouldn't you think people would grab at the opportunity to work overtime as it translates into more money? (kojakbt: I give you $8/hr for overtime, u want to do or not? But many SPGs willing to moonlight as social escorts for $300/hr)
The truth is, there are many jobs that Singaporeans avoid but which have to be done if the economy is to be kept going. Employers have no choice but to give them to foreigners because Singaporeans don't want them. (Kojakbt: no, employers just want to employ slaves... if they can dont pay salaries, even better... I don't blame them for being profit-oriented)
It's strange how Singaporeans can train for hours under the sun to prepare for a triathlon, but ask them to take a job that involves physical labour and they will turn their noses up at it. (kojakbt: stupid analogy. there is a difference between working in a job and voluntary keeping fit at your leisure. As far as work is concerned, everyone has a price. If one day S$1 = 1 RMB, you think the PRCs will want to come here and work as construction workers?)
And it's not only physical labour they disdain. Jobs that dirty their hands or involve repetition and service are also unpopular.
Still, who can blame them? Most people would agree that it's far more comfortable working in an air-conditioned office than at a job where you get all hot and dusty. And if they can hold out for something like this, why bother to get their hands dirty in the meantime? (kojakbt: money talks. Why do you think even some Sinkie girls want to work as social escort?)
Others would even argue that it's a fallacy to say that Singaporeans don't like menial work.
Rather, they say, Singaporeans don't take up such jobs because they can't - wages for such jobs are so low they won't be able to support their families on them. (Kojakbt: precisely!)
And the reason wages have been forced down? Because the Government has allowed in unskilled foreign workers in its desire to have a more competitive economy with low-cost workers. (Kojakbt: yes, resulting in dive in our productivity... such "moden day slavery" policy by PAP is unsustainable in the long run, as highlighted by ESC)
Hence, the resentment at how foreign workers have come in to spoil the market.
But I wonder: How many Singaporeans would actually take up jobs as maids if wages were increased? Or construction workers, for that matter? Or painters or plumbers? (kojakbt: simple, just do more studies in western countries and see for yourself...)
The difference between the foreign worker and Singaporeans is that the former looks at Singapore as an opportunity. It is a place he can make a living and send money home to his loved ones, benefiting from the strong Singapore dollar.
So even if the hours are long and living conditions hard - as they definitely are for the low-end foreign worker here - he ploughs on.
And if you are an employer, wouldn't you prefer a hardworking and motivated worker than one who shows a sour face? (Kojakbt: employer will even prefer slaves if slavery is legalized)
In fact, I must say that my shopping experience has improved vastly ever since foreigners have taken on service-sector jobs.
At the petrol station I go to, the young man from China is always polite. His English isn't perfect but he makes up for it by being pleasant. He doesn't give the impression that he's unhappy in his job, which is invariably the vibe I get when I'm served by a Singaporean. (kojakbt: while Sumiko Tan was paying for petrol to the young PRC man, she was having fantasy of being served by a younger man in bed...)
Nine out of 10 times when I'm served by a Filipino sales staff, the experience is also a happy one because he is cheerful.
At a boutique I used to go to, the salesgirl from China was super-enthusiastic about making a sale. (Kojakbt: cause the salesgirl get very low pay but with got commissions. A S$50 commission per sale is RMB250 - a qtr pay of an avg worker in china.... c'mon lah, Sumiko Tan, don't BS us lao chiao here lah... u can only hope to bluff some of those blur 66.6% sinkies...)
She'd pile me with clothes to try, wouldn't bat an eyelid if I asked for yet another size of a dress I liked, reassure me that I didn't look fat and scurry to get measuring tape and pins to help me alter a dress.
And after I was done shopping, she'd SMS and call me up whenever new stock arrived. I always ended up buying more than I should.
Some might find service like this overbearing, but give me an enthusiastic salesgirl than one I can tell wishes I'd leave her alone and walk out of the store.
This resentment against the foreign worker is not peculiar to Singapore, of course.
In Europe, for example, the opening up of the Eastern bloc countries to the European Union has caused similar resentment among locals.
But the fact is, the Poles and the Czechs are more hard-working and are simply happier to be earning the minimum wage than the locals, who turn their noses up at certain jobs and prefer getting drunk and being on the dole. (Kojakbt: Fark u lah, sumiko tan, it's the same farking economic arbitrage principle. 1 British Pound = 4.66 Polish Zloty, 1 British Pound = 30 Czech Koruna)
The Singaporeans who complain about foreigners are the ones with the dead-end jobs and low salaries. They're - understandably - unhappy with their lot and cannot see how their lives can improve. They are already working long hours and still have nothing to show for their effort. (kojakbt: This is a farking myth. White collar jobs have also been infiltrated by FTs helping to depress salaries further. Ask any Sinkie IT fellas and they will tell u. White collar jobs is are even worse - there are no quotas!)
So what can be done? Should levies for foreign workers be raised to lessen the dependency on them? But how would higher wages affect businesses? And, again, even if jobs in construction or shipbuilding were available, would Singaporeans want them?
The thing is, low-income earners in Singapore do have a choice. They can choose to be self-employed and to better their lot. Why aren't there more self-employed people here? It doesn't take long to learn how to be a tiler or a painter or a plumber, and they can make a pretty good living doing that, one would imagine. (Kojakbt: Sumiko Tan is sprouting shit from her CB mouth... why don't she choose to be self-employed and lead the way? Why leeching on the PAP establishment for so many decades inside?)
The irritation with the foreign worker is as much social and cultural as it is economic.
The onslaught of foreigners has been sudden after all, happening over the last five years or so. And beyond supposedly taking away jobs, they are making their presence felt in the property market, in the sort of food sold at hawker centres, and even in schools where their children grab the top academic prizes.
The Singapore vs Foreign Worker divide is an issue that won't go away any time soon.
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Thank you, foreign worker
Why be angry at foreign workers in our midst when they are doing jobs that are unpopular but necessary?
<!-- by line -->By Sumiko Tan
<!-- end by line -->
<!-- end left side bar --><!-- story content : start -->
For all the unhappiness that has been expressed about foreign workers in Singapore, one fact remains - life would be difficult without them.
Let's be honest here. Most foreign workers are doing the jobs that Singaporeans are loath to do, and there sure are many jobs Singaporeans don't want. (kojakbt: ever wonder why in western countries, the whites still do those dirty jobs?)
Be a maid and tend to the cooking, cleaning, looking after the baby and the invalid grandma and work the sort of hours most Singaporeans expect their maids to work? No, thanks.
Toil under the sun at a construction site and be transported around sitting at the back of lorries? Are you kidding? (kojakbt: have you seen white westerners working as construction workers in their countries? They don't have to be transported around. They drive to work)
Go from table to table at hawker centres to clean up the mountains of chicken, fish and pork-rib bones left behind by customers? No way. (kojakbt: have you seen white aussie garbage collector before?)
Stand around, smile and act pleasant all day at a shop and answer the inane queries of customers? Only if desperate.
In fact, even jobs such as florists are shunned by Singaporeans. Why, you might wonder. How unpleasant can it be working with flowers and dreaming up beautiful designs?
Pretty unpleasant, according to Singaporeans, because a florist's job entails him having to stand on his feet for long periods - and Singaporeans don't like that.
Another reason Singaporeans prefer not to work as florists is that they are expected to put in lots of overtime during festive periods, said a report in The Straits Times last week.
Strange reason, isn't it? Wouldn't you think people would grab at the opportunity to work overtime as it translates into more money? (kojakbt: I give you $8/hr for overtime, u want to do or not? But many SPGs willing to moonlight as social escorts for $300/hr)
The truth is, there are many jobs that Singaporeans avoid but which have to be done if the economy is to be kept going. Employers have no choice but to give them to foreigners because Singaporeans don't want them. (Kojakbt: no, employers just want to employ slaves... if they can dont pay salaries, even better... I don't blame them for being profit-oriented)
It's strange how Singaporeans can train for hours under the sun to prepare for a triathlon, but ask them to take a job that involves physical labour and they will turn their noses up at it. (kojakbt: stupid analogy. there is a difference between working in a job and voluntary keeping fit at your leisure. As far as work is concerned, everyone has a price. If one day S$1 = 1 RMB, you think the PRCs will want to come here and work as construction workers?)
And it's not only physical labour they disdain. Jobs that dirty their hands or involve repetition and service are also unpopular.
Still, who can blame them? Most people would agree that it's far more comfortable working in an air-conditioned office than at a job where you get all hot and dusty. And if they can hold out for something like this, why bother to get their hands dirty in the meantime? (kojakbt: money talks. Why do you think even some Sinkie girls want to work as social escort?)
Others would even argue that it's a fallacy to say that Singaporeans don't like menial work.
Rather, they say, Singaporeans don't take up such jobs because they can't - wages for such jobs are so low they won't be able to support their families on them. (Kojakbt: precisely!)
And the reason wages have been forced down? Because the Government has allowed in unskilled foreign workers in its desire to have a more competitive economy with low-cost workers. (Kojakbt: yes, resulting in dive in our productivity... such "moden day slavery" policy by PAP is unsustainable in the long run, as highlighted by ESC)
Hence, the resentment at how foreign workers have come in to spoil the market.
But I wonder: How many Singaporeans would actually take up jobs as maids if wages were increased? Or construction workers, for that matter? Or painters or plumbers? (kojakbt: simple, just do more studies in western countries and see for yourself...)
The difference between the foreign worker and Singaporeans is that the former looks at Singapore as an opportunity. It is a place he can make a living and send money home to his loved ones, benefiting from the strong Singapore dollar.
So even if the hours are long and living conditions hard - as they definitely are for the low-end foreign worker here - he ploughs on.
And if you are an employer, wouldn't you prefer a hardworking and motivated worker than one who shows a sour face? (Kojakbt: employer will even prefer slaves if slavery is legalized)
In fact, I must say that my shopping experience has improved vastly ever since foreigners have taken on service-sector jobs.
At the petrol station I go to, the young man from China is always polite. His English isn't perfect but he makes up for it by being pleasant. He doesn't give the impression that he's unhappy in his job, which is invariably the vibe I get when I'm served by a Singaporean. (kojakbt: while Sumiko Tan was paying for petrol to the young PRC man, she was having fantasy of being served by a younger man in bed...)
Nine out of 10 times when I'm served by a Filipino sales staff, the experience is also a happy one because he is cheerful.
At a boutique I used to go to, the salesgirl from China was super-enthusiastic about making a sale. (Kojakbt: cause the salesgirl get very low pay but with got commissions. A S$50 commission per sale is RMB250 - a qtr pay of an avg worker in china.... c'mon lah, Sumiko Tan, don't BS us lao chiao here lah... u can only hope to bluff some of those blur 66.6% sinkies...)
She'd pile me with clothes to try, wouldn't bat an eyelid if I asked for yet another size of a dress I liked, reassure me that I didn't look fat and scurry to get measuring tape and pins to help me alter a dress.
And after I was done shopping, she'd SMS and call me up whenever new stock arrived. I always ended up buying more than I should.
Some might find service like this overbearing, but give me an enthusiastic salesgirl than one I can tell wishes I'd leave her alone and walk out of the store.
This resentment against the foreign worker is not peculiar to Singapore, of course.
In Europe, for example, the opening up of the Eastern bloc countries to the European Union has caused similar resentment among locals.
But the fact is, the Poles and the Czechs are more hard-working and are simply happier to be earning the minimum wage than the locals, who turn their noses up at certain jobs and prefer getting drunk and being on the dole. (Kojakbt: Fark u lah, sumiko tan, it's the same farking economic arbitrage principle. 1 British Pound = 4.66 Polish Zloty, 1 British Pound = 30 Czech Koruna)
The Singaporeans who complain about foreigners are the ones with the dead-end jobs and low salaries. They're - understandably - unhappy with their lot and cannot see how their lives can improve. They are already working long hours and still have nothing to show for their effort. (kojakbt: This is a farking myth. White collar jobs have also been infiltrated by FTs helping to depress salaries further. Ask any Sinkie IT fellas and they will tell u. White collar jobs is are even worse - there are no quotas!)
So what can be done? Should levies for foreign workers be raised to lessen the dependency on them? But how would higher wages affect businesses? And, again, even if jobs in construction or shipbuilding were available, would Singaporeans want them?
The thing is, low-income earners in Singapore do have a choice. They can choose to be self-employed and to better their lot. Why aren't there more self-employed people here? It doesn't take long to learn how to be a tiler or a painter or a plumber, and they can make a pretty good living doing that, one would imagine. (Kojakbt: Sumiko Tan is sprouting shit from her CB mouth... why don't she choose to be self-employed and lead the way? Why leeching on the PAP establishment for so many decades inside?)
The irritation with the foreign worker is as much social and cultural as it is economic.
The onslaught of foreigners has been sudden after all, happening over the last five years or so. And beyond supposedly taking away jobs, they are making their presence felt in the property market, in the sort of food sold at hawker centres, and even in schools where their children grab the top academic prizes.
The Singapore vs Foreign Worker divide is an issue that won't go away any time soon.
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