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Coffeeshop Chit Chat - Angmo: I definitely want to stay in SG!</TD><TD id=msgunetc noWrap align=right> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=msgtable cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="96%"><TBODY><TR><TD class=msg vAlign=top><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgbfr1 width="1%"> </TD><TD><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0><TBODY><TR class=msghead vAlign=top><TD class=msgF width="1%" noWrap align=right>From: </TD><TD class=msgFname width="68%" noWrap>kojakbt_89 <NOBR></NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>May-20 3:52 am </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> (1 of 5) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>33421.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt>May 20, 2010
Foreign talent, local package
Premium expat salaries and perks harder to find now
<!-- by line -->By Melissa Sim
http://www.straitstimes.com/Singapore/Story/STIStory_528802.html
FOREIGNERS are finding premium expatriate packages harder to come by as more companies turn to the local pay scale for their foreign talent here.
A 2009 survey of 200 companies, conducted by HR consultancy ECA International, showed that 21 per cent of their expatriate employees in Singapore accepted local terms.
The percentage is up from 15 per cent in 2008.
The trend was also reflected in another survey, by HR consultancy ORC Worldwide. It polled 36 multinational companies here and found that two-thirds have started to offer 'local plus' packages - local pay, but with some perks such as partial housing or education allowances.
The shift to a local pay model, noted ECA, mirrors that around the region, with employers sending staff to Hong Kong, China and India also opting for the cheaper option.
Mr Lee Quane, regional director of ECA International Asia, noted that cost-cutting measures and long-term expansion by companies into Asia meant employees tend to stay in Singapore for a longer period, and as such are no longer given salaries similar to those in their home countries.
He added that expats are given local pay because companies no longer need to bring in top leaders.
But while locals are just as capable, the lack of manpower for expansion means companies still turn to expats here to make up the numbers.
Ms Joanne Chua, manager of the HR division at recruitment company Robert Walters, agreed, saying the competition between expats and locals is keener. She added that 'organisations are hesitant to offer expat packages unless the candidate offers a unique skill set'. And even if companies do give additional benefits like housing and education, they are not as generous as before.
A spokesman for ORC Worldwide said home allowances have fallen by as much as 50 per cent from a few years ago; similarly, school fees are only partially paid by the company and this too is typically phased out after the employee has worked in Singapore for a few years.
A check with various companies in the banking, travel and telecommunications industries here showed that companies are either already offering local packages to foreigners or currently making the switch. The companies declined to comment on the record, but some said the shift is mainly for cost-cutting reasons.
But despite the shrinking pay packets and fewer perks and allowances, expats here say they are willing to accept these packages. They say that Singapore gives them a taste of working in Asia, yet is generally an easy place to assimilate, mainly because English is widely spoken here.
Financial analyst Pierre Emmanuel Brard, 26, first came to Singapore two years ago on a contract which paid him in euros and gave him a small housing allowance. When it expired, he was transferred to a local contract, and is now paid in Singapore dollars and has to pay for his own accommodation. But the Frenchman said he found the terms acceptable, adding:
'I definitely wanted to stay in Singapore because the work here is interesting. Asia is growing so the markets are more interesting than in Europe.'
Mr Phil Stanley, managing director of ORC's Asia-Pacific region, said that as 'companies continue to face pressure to cut costs wherever possible, we can expect to see the use of local-plus packages gaining even more popularity'.
Mr Quane added that the proportion of foreigners here on local terms is likely to increase to about 25 per cent.
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Foreign talent, local package
Premium expat salaries and perks harder to find now
<!-- by line -->By Melissa Sim
http://www.straitstimes.com/Singapore/Story/STIStory_528802.html
FOREIGNERS are finding premium expatriate packages harder to come by as more companies turn to the local pay scale for their foreign talent here.
A 2009 survey of 200 companies, conducted by HR consultancy ECA International, showed that 21 per cent of their expatriate employees in Singapore accepted local terms.
The percentage is up from 15 per cent in 2008.
The trend was also reflected in another survey, by HR consultancy ORC Worldwide. It polled 36 multinational companies here and found that two-thirds have started to offer 'local plus' packages - local pay, but with some perks such as partial housing or education allowances.
The shift to a local pay model, noted ECA, mirrors that around the region, with employers sending staff to Hong Kong, China and India also opting for the cheaper option.
Mr Lee Quane, regional director of ECA International Asia, noted that cost-cutting measures and long-term expansion by companies into Asia meant employees tend to stay in Singapore for a longer period, and as such are no longer given salaries similar to those in their home countries.
He added that expats are given local pay because companies no longer need to bring in top leaders.
But while locals are just as capable, the lack of manpower for expansion means companies still turn to expats here to make up the numbers.
Ms Joanne Chua, manager of the HR division at recruitment company Robert Walters, agreed, saying the competition between expats and locals is keener. She added that 'organisations are hesitant to offer expat packages unless the candidate offers a unique skill set'. And even if companies do give additional benefits like housing and education, they are not as generous as before.
A spokesman for ORC Worldwide said home allowances have fallen by as much as 50 per cent from a few years ago; similarly, school fees are only partially paid by the company and this too is typically phased out after the employee has worked in Singapore for a few years.
A check with various companies in the banking, travel and telecommunications industries here showed that companies are either already offering local packages to foreigners or currently making the switch. The companies declined to comment on the record, but some said the shift is mainly for cost-cutting reasons.
But despite the shrinking pay packets and fewer perks and allowances, expats here say they are willing to accept these packages. They say that Singapore gives them a taste of working in Asia, yet is generally an easy place to assimilate, mainly because English is widely spoken here.
Financial analyst Pierre Emmanuel Brard, 26, first came to Singapore two years ago on a contract which paid him in euros and gave him a small housing allowance. When it expired, he was transferred to a local contract, and is now paid in Singapore dollars and has to pay for his own accommodation. But the Frenchman said he found the terms acceptable, adding:
'I definitely wanted to stay in Singapore because the work here is interesting. Asia is growing so the markets are more interesting than in Europe.'
Mr Phil Stanley, managing director of ORC's Asia-Pacific region, said that as 'companies continue to face pressure to cut costs wherever possible, we can expect to see the use of local-plus packages gaining even more popularity'.
Mr Quane added that the proportion of foreigners here on local terms is likely to increase to about 25 per cent.
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