<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Why SMEs resort to pay cuts
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I REFER to Mr Alex Yip's letter on Friday, "Restore pay cuts when good times return". Let me share with him the pay cuts that have been taking place in my company over the years.
There were pay cuts in 2001 after the Sept 11 terrorist attack in the United States and in 2003 during the Sars period. No annual increment has been given since the last pay cut six years ago.
From the last quarter of last year, we were told to take no-pay leave. Then, on April 1 came the next round of pay cuts and the pay of company managers was slashed by 20 per cent.
Jobs Credit notwithstanding, most small and medium-sized companies will resort to pay cuts in recessions and other economic emergencies as they are the easiest way to cut cost. It is also not mandatory to restore pay cuts.
If employees are not represented by a union, there is one less hassle to deal with. If any employee is unhappy and resigns, the company saves more money because his workload can be spread out to the remaining staff. If a replacement is required, it will not be difficult to find one at a lower pay, now that so many people are looking for jobs.
Employers also know that no matter how unhappy employees are, workers will not rally together by resigning en masse, especially in hard times. This time, I am not waiting for my company to restore my pay for I know from past experiences, it will be a futile wait.
Yeo Gek Noi (Miss) <!-- end of for each --><!-- Current Ratings : start --><!-- Current Ratings : end --><!-- vbbintegration : start -->
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->I REFER to Mr Alex Yip's letter on Friday, "Restore pay cuts when good times return". Let me share with him the pay cuts that have been taking place in my company over the years.
There were pay cuts in 2001 after the Sept 11 terrorist attack in the United States and in 2003 during the Sars period. No annual increment has been given since the last pay cut six years ago.
From the last quarter of last year, we were told to take no-pay leave. Then, on April 1 came the next round of pay cuts and the pay of company managers was slashed by 20 per cent.
Jobs Credit notwithstanding, most small and medium-sized companies will resort to pay cuts in recessions and other economic emergencies as they are the easiest way to cut cost. It is also not mandatory to restore pay cuts.
If employees are not represented by a union, there is one less hassle to deal with. If any employee is unhappy and resigns, the company saves more money because his workload can be spread out to the remaining staff. If a replacement is required, it will not be difficult to find one at a lower pay, now that so many people are looking for jobs.
Employers also know that no matter how unhappy employees are, workers will not rally together by resigning en masse, especially in hard times. This time, I am not waiting for my company to restore my pay for I know from past experiences, it will be a futile wait.
Yeo Gek Noi (Miss) <!-- end of for each --><!-- Current Ratings : start --><!-- Current Ratings : end --><!-- vbbintegration : start -->
