Little India eateries hire China workers
Sun Oct 25 2009
Jamie Ee Wen Wei
The Sunday Times
After working for two years in Little India, Fujian
native Lin Jun Xiong, 21, not only picked up some
Tamil but also learnt how to make a mean roti prata
and thosai.
/images/0002/8448/pratask.jpg
Singapore, October 20, 2009 - No, you’re not in
Chinatown but Little India.China nationals are being
hired by more eateries there. A check with 15
restaurants in the area found that 11 of them
have done so.
The owners told The Sunday Times that the
Chinese workers are usually hired as cleaners
rather than service staff because of the l
anguage barrier. Most are work permit holders,
speak little English, work an average of 10 hours
a day and earn about $1,000 a month.
The Little India restaurant owners said they
had to turn to Chinese workers because of the
labour crunch.
Mr Selvan Anbalagan, 37, who runs vegetarian
restaurant Chellas in Serangoon Road, said
Singaporeans are not keen to work in Indian
restaurants here.
The seven Singaporean waiters working in his
restaurant are all part-timers. So when China
nationals were allowed to work in the service
industry two years ago, he hired two of them.
They do the washing and cleaning.
He explained: “To be a waiter means being
able to speak English as customers may want
to know more about the menu. So language
is a problem.”
Mr G. Shanmugam, president of the Indian
Restaurant Association of Singapore, pointed
out that its members want to hire Indian
nationals, but they can hire only those holding
an S-pass or employment pass.
This means an employer seeking an Indian waiter
might need to hire someone with relevant
qualifications and a minimum wage of $1,800
under current regulations.
The result is that most restaurants would prefer
to hire Indian nationals as chefs under the
S-pass. Mr Shanmugam, who owns Gayatri
Restaurant, said most customers have been
receptive to the China nationals.
“But some customers ask us why we are not
giving jobs to local Indians,” said Mr Shanmugam,
who has two workers from China. They do the
cleaning at his restaurant in Race Course Road.
China workers interviewed said they did not
choose to work in Indian restaurants here. It
was arranged by their agents.
Jilin native Chang Ye, 28, has been one of
Mr Shanmugam’s workers for nearly two years.
He was told he would work in the service line
but did not expect to be a cleaner.
He said the different cultures can make work
tough. “I speak very little English so it’s hard
to communicate with my colleagues. I’m not
used to the food too,” he said.
/images/0002/8450/prata2sk.jpg
Among those who have managed to overcome
the cultural barrier is Fujian native Lin Jun Xiong.
The 21-year-old started out doing cleaning in
Ananda Bhavan, in Selegie Road, two years ago.
Since then, he has picked up some Tamil,
and today mans the cash register and can even
make a mean roti prata as well as thosai for customers.
He learnt it from watching his colleagues at work.
“It’s quite similar to the jian bing (Chinese pancake)
we have in China.”
He also got a Singaporean colleague to teach him
how to read the menu and he is already an attraction
of sorts.
Customers would buy snacks from him because they
are amused by a Chinese who can speak Tamil.
Ms Shahida Dana, 35, is one satisfied customer. “He
makes thosai even better than the Indians,” she insisted.
Sun Oct 25 2009
Jamie Ee Wen Wei
The Sunday Times
After working for two years in Little India, Fujian
native Lin Jun Xiong, 21, not only picked up some
Tamil but also learnt how to make a mean roti prata
and thosai.
/images/0002/8448/pratask.jpg
Singapore, October 20, 2009 - No, you’re not in
Chinatown but Little India.China nationals are being
hired by more eateries there. A check with 15
restaurants in the area found that 11 of them
have done so.
The owners told The Sunday Times that the
Chinese workers are usually hired as cleaners
rather than service staff because of the l
anguage barrier. Most are work permit holders,
speak little English, work an average of 10 hours
a day and earn about $1,000 a month.
The Little India restaurant owners said they
had to turn to Chinese workers because of the
labour crunch.
Mr Selvan Anbalagan, 37, who runs vegetarian
restaurant Chellas in Serangoon Road, said
Singaporeans are not keen to work in Indian
restaurants here.
The seven Singaporean waiters working in his
restaurant are all part-timers. So when China
nationals were allowed to work in the service
industry two years ago, he hired two of them.
They do the washing and cleaning.
He explained: “To be a waiter means being
able to speak English as customers may want
to know more about the menu. So language
is a problem.”
Mr G. Shanmugam, president of the Indian
Restaurant Association of Singapore, pointed
out that its members want to hire Indian
nationals, but they can hire only those holding
an S-pass or employment pass.
This means an employer seeking an Indian waiter
might need to hire someone with relevant
qualifications and a minimum wage of $1,800
under current regulations.
The result is that most restaurants would prefer
to hire Indian nationals as chefs under the
S-pass. Mr Shanmugam, who owns Gayatri
Restaurant, said most customers have been
receptive to the China nationals.
“But some customers ask us why we are not
giving jobs to local Indians,” said Mr Shanmugam,
who has two workers from China. They do the
cleaning at his restaurant in Race Course Road.
China workers interviewed said they did not
choose to work in Indian restaurants here. It
was arranged by their agents.
Jilin native Chang Ye, 28, has been one of
Mr Shanmugam’s workers for nearly two years.
He was told he would work in the service line
but did not expect to be a cleaner.
He said the different cultures can make work
tough. “I speak very little English so it’s hard
to communicate with my colleagues. I’m not
used to the food too,” he said.
/images/0002/8450/prata2sk.jpg
Among those who have managed to overcome
the cultural barrier is Fujian native Lin Jun Xiong.
The 21-year-old started out doing cleaning in
Ananda Bhavan, in Selegie Road, two years ago.
Since then, he has picked up some Tamil,
and today mans the cash register and can even
make a mean roti prata as well as thosai for customers.
He learnt it from watching his colleagues at work.
“It’s quite similar to the jian bing (Chinese pancake)
we have in China.”
He also got a Singaporean colleague to teach him
how to read the menu and he is already an attraction
of sorts.
Customers would buy snacks from him because they
are amused by a Chinese who can speak Tamil.
Ms Shahida Dana, 35, is one satisfied customer. “He
makes thosai even better than the Indians,” she insisted.
