Workers' Welfare

The Straits Times
Thursday, May 3 2007
Target of skills upgrading plan: $500 pay hike
A move is under way to give low-wage workers the skills to earn at least $2000 every month or $500 extra... It will be achieved via the Job Re-creation Programme (JRP), set up by National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) to redesign jobs to offer better career prospect.

Friday, May 4 2007
New Employment guidelines aim to end discrimination
... The eight-member panel was formed last year to stamp out discrimination at work. Called the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices, its members represent the unions, employers and Government.

If one have been catching up on the newspapers lately, you would have noticed the flurry of good news dealing with workers' welfare and increasing pay. I was almost convinced there has been a marked change in policy.

Until I read this excerpt from mrbrown.com:

My mom is working at the Tuas South Incineration Plant as a cleaner under the contract of a private cleaning company. The company pays her S$700 a month for a 5-days work week. The pay is not high, but at least reasonable.

Now, the cleaning contract has ended for this cleaning company and the contract has been given to another new cleaning company. And so my mom's new boss had a meet-the-people session to tell the cleaners his rules:

1. The pay is reduced to S$500
2. Now it has to be a 5.5 days working week
3. There will be a cut in manpower as there should not be more than 3 people working at an area, regardless how large the area space
4. No annual leave and sick leave for the first year

The biggest joke was of course, not the dire maltreatment of the employees but the pseudo auto-reply from Ministry of Manpower (MOM) after her daughter emailed them.

After clearing infringing the Employer's Act ("which the Ministry of Manpower administers" quoted from MOM's reply), Ms Chong-Tan Sok Peng , Labour Relations Officer suggests that disgruntled workers can lodge a complaint during office hours.

*rolls eyes till they threaten to dislodge from socket*

Personally, the blatant fact that MOM does not actively pursue employers who are contravening the already employer-biased Employment Act speaks volume of whom they are more inclined to protect.

Guidelines or Acts, however comprehensive are useless unless implemented.

Go go, low wage workers! Go fetch that shorter end of the stick!

Original Source of Complaint: http://willythecop.blogspot.com/