Yeo Guat Kwang
Singapore
“Madam, a supplementary question. Many are concerned that with the rising manpower cost and manpower shortage, whether the standard of cleanliness and the hygiene level in the hawker centres will also be affected.”
“The Government should consider implementing new disposal standards like Taiwan and the cities in China, as well as roll out assistance schemes similar to the Innovation and Capability Voucher (ICV), to encourage the local F&B industry to bring in new technology and provide businesses with grants to purchase kitchen waste disposal machiner…”
“Madam, the Minister of State mentioned that instead of having a one-stop, he is suggesting to provide a better first-stop. So, I hope the Minister of State can elaborate further on how this first-stop can really help.”
“Mdm Speaker, I would like to seek a few clarifications from the Minister. The Minister mentioned that the Bill targets those dormitories that are housing 1,000 workers and above. But this Bill's name is "Foreign Employee Dormitories Bill". Why do we not call the Bill the "Purpose-Built Dormitory Bill"? That is, we call a spade a spade.”
“I would like to ask the Ministry: why does it not just group all these regulations together under this Bill and apply it to all? Madam, as the legislation is allowed time to take effect, I would also want to urge the Government to continue close consultation and engagement with the operators and migrant worker residents especially, as wel…”
“This is a Bill that touches everyone in one way or another: some of us are pet owners, others are potential pet buyers, business owners, and some of us may be neighbours to pet owners.”
The complete record
Every one of 770 lines we hold for Yeo Guat Kwang, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 8 of 16.
This is not an official version of Parliament of Singapore proceedings. It reproduces the published record and links to it; the official version is the one Parliament of Singapore publishes.
“Today, some of them still do not know that there are actually many types of resources available to them. We want them to know where to get the necessary assistance. Even our CDCs and various social organisations must draw closer to the needy and enable them to get the assistance needed. Since our employment market has been affected by globalisation, and the low-income workers and the elderly are faced with increasing problems, the President highlighted the need to strengthen the social safety nets. We have to attain full employment in an innovative and effective way. Besides doing it ourselves, we can also learn from other people and from other countries. Let our people go out and take a look at the situations in other countries. Let them know what has been done by others, as some countries are also faced with similar problems. Mdm Halimah has mentioned that we can learn from Japan’s Employment Act. For example, the employment rate of our women aged between 25 and 64 years old is not as good as that of other countries. Our women may stop work soon after giving birth, not temporarily but permanently. Therefore, we should design a flexible work schedule and work scheme for them. Their low employment rate is mainly because there is a lack of flexibly scheduled and part-time jobs for them. The employment of the elderly has also been adversely affected. Older people between 55 and 64 years of age who are still working only account for 43%, which is lower than 67.1% in Japan. All these years, we have been trying to improve employment prospects of our women and elderly. To give a simple example. I have been involved in the work redesign for the seamstresses. For the Malay women, we help them to understand that it is not difficult to do the sewing work.”
“For example, some people need to take antibiotics, some people need to take antibiotics and Panadol, and others may need to take different types of medicines. We must deal with their problems differently. When we deal with their unemployment problems, we must adopt a multi-pronged approach to help them get the jobs and to stay employed. As PAP MPs, our policy is to help the low-income group by improving their skills, redesigning their jobs and training them to face the challenges. We are a party that really takes action to help the people. We always adopt active and appropriate ways to help this disadvantaged group. We are not like some people who always use the hammer to hammer everywhere. When they face problems, they use their eyes and ears but not their brains and hands. Eventually, their brains are being hammered. To put it more precisely, as their brains are hammered, they feel dizzy. Some people do not walk the talk. They appear to be helping people, but actually offer no practical solutions. It is just like rubbing the wound with salt. We have to earn our living in an honest way. We should not waste our resources, especially that of our charitable organisations. The Zaobao reported that someone applied for help under all sorts of assistance schemes, and managed to get them all. In that sense, they misused the limited resources and deprived others of opportunities. Thus, we should strengthen the control and management of our resources. The ComCare scheme announced by PM Lee is a good example. We should have a one-stop model, linking up various channels with the social services so that our people can get the needed assistance. We should also publicise these assistance schemes as some people do not know how to make use of these resources.”
“In the last few years, when we rolled out the Progress Package, the Government implemented many measures to meet the needs of the low-income group. As our people's situations are varied, our policies should not be discredited just because the lives of a small group of people failed to improve due to their health or other problems. In My Paper, a columnist said, "When our people attain a high employment rate after experiencing structural unemployment, does it mean that our problems have been solved? A middle-aged man, after losing his job, gets a new job which pays only $1,000 per month, is it reasonable?" At the end of the article, she said, "Apart from giving him $2 for food, I gave him another $2 to buy a hope." However, this sympathetic attitude would not help him solve his problem. To help others, we must use our eyes, ears, heart, brain and hands concurrently. We have to truly understand the problems faced by the structural unemployed, the elderly, and the low-income group. We should understand that people have their respective problems, and we cannot treat them in the same way. In a globalised economy, some people want to have fish, but they do not know how to catch it. Some people see the fish, but cannot catch it as they are not physically fit. Some people are discouraged, they just want people to give them the fish as they do not want to catch it themselves. Some people learn through a hard way to catch the fish, but the fish swims away, or they may see the fish being caught by others. Some people just catch the fish, but cannot hold on to the fish. Thus, we must categorise these people and their problems, and help them solve their respective problems.”
“To improve our people's lives, it is better to enhance the employability of our people and to provide them with diversified employment opportunities. On the contrary, the unions and governments of some countries frequently suggested superficial solutions, for example, by setting the minimum wages instead of improving the competitiveness and productivity of their enterprises and people. Consequently, their country and people fall into a deeper level of predicament. For example, after Batam implemented the minimum wages, its foreign investors moved their factories elsewhere. To cite a more appropriate example, after the Philippine government set the minimum wages for their maids, Singaporean employers just changed their Filipino maids to Indonesian maids. When our wages decline, if we are in a hurry to propose the setting of the minimum wages, the employers and the foreign investors would be frightened away and we would lose many employment opportunities eventually. Therefore, we should continue to stick to our pragmatic principles and solutions. After the Asian financial crisis in 1997, we have experienced a lot of problems. Fortunately, our Government and people faced the crisis and challenges together. We managed to solve a lot of problems in a flexible and pragmatic manner. As highlighted by our President, we hope that our Government can do much more. However, the Government can only allocate funds within its means. How to use our limited resources to produce unlimited results and develop our potential, especially in strengthening the breadth, depth and strength of our solutions, are the greatest challenges for us. First of all, we must use different approaches to solve different problems.”
“[For vernacular speech, please refer to Appendix A *. ] Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the motion. As highlighted by the President, Singapore is presently at the turning point. Under the impact of globalisation, our environment has been facing rapid and unpredictable changes. Our policies have to be kept up-to-date. We have to meet the changes and challenges with innovative measures. While we need to do more, we should also consider the cost effectiveness of the various measures. Most of our people know that Singapore is no longer an isolated island. Today, our survival and development are impacted by the internal and external factors. Under these new circumstances, we have to consider the development of our surrounding nations, such as Indonesia, Malaysia, China and India, etc. Many problems cannot be solved just according to our will. We must be pragmatic. Besides, when we look ahead, in this entirely new and ever changing world, our future development prospects are determined by whether we can stay united and continue to strengthen the mutual trust between the Government and the people. If the people trust the Government, the Government can then get the support of the masses and continue to lead our country. We can also forge ahead in unity, strive together and prosper together. In view of the keen competition in the globalised economy, the jobs and employment of all the salaried classes, whether they are blue collar, white collar or no collar, are affected. Those people who cannot adjust to it timely and the low-skilled workers face the greatest impact and pressures. Currently, our people are more concerned about the issues of employment and the cost of living. Fortunately, our Government and unions realise that the best form of welfare is to promote full employment.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I would like to thank the Minister, Minister of State and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for their comprehensive responses to all the issues and concerns raised. I am particularly happy and pleased with the good news that the overall labour market and employment situation in Singapore have improved significantly and that there are jobs, jobs, jobs for Singaporeans. On this note, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $202,512,230 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $47,335,900 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Column No : 1515 Head I - Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports”
“Sir, the number of industrial accidents and occupational diseases has been steadily declining over the years. This is the result of the efforts put in by the Ministry, the employers, unions and the workers in improving the workplace health and safety. What I like to ask is that, with the new Workplace Safety and Health Act introduced on 1st March 2006, what is the response so far from all the stakeholders, particularly the employers? What is MOM's plan to ensure that all workers will be able to have a better understanding of the OHS risk at work so that they can be effectively a whistle-blower at the ground as mentioned in the Act? How would MOM alleviate the fears of the workers being whistle-blowers? There are numerous ways to make the whistle-blower's life hell as soon as he is exposed, and when the employers get to know about it. MOM has introduced a hotline for workers to report safety breaches. What is the volume of the calls and how effective is this hotline? What will MOM do to effectively prevent the whistle blowers being penalised by the employers? 5.15 pm Workplace Safety”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, Singaporeans understand that the CPF is fundamentally for old age, medical expenses and basic housing, and that the Government will continue the CPF system around these core objectives. However, with the number of changes proposed and made to CPF, for example, lower CPF contribution rate and ceiling, Singaporeans worry that savings for old age will be eroded. We must ensure that our workers' CPF savings will have stable and reasonably good returns. Allowing individual CPF members to invest their savings seems not to be a preferred choice, and the privately-managed pension plan also does not seem to be an effective alternative. So what is the Ministry's long-term plan for CPF savings to ensure that we have better returns? I would like to ask the Minister to provide the House with greater details and insights. [Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Chew Heng Ching) in the Chair] 4.35 pm”
“In view of these problems that contract workers face, what is MOM's plan to enhance the wages and employment terms of contract workers? There is also a need to review our labour legislation. We need to review the legislative protection to ensure that employers comply with minimum standards, such as paying the employees promptly even for contract workers. Under the Employment Act, entitlement to some statutory benefits is based on a worker's minimum continuous period of service. The labour movement here is suggesting that for the purpose of calculating the length of service under the Employment Act, "minimum service period rendered within a time frame" should be used as the basis instead of "continuous service". MOM should also step up enforcement efforts. Finally, the Ministry should also publish better labour statistics on contract workers. Without them, it is difficult to effectively analyse the trends on contract employment in Singapore, much less make the policy to help contract workers.”
“Sir, we have to ensure that there will be continued availability of jobs for Singaporeans. With much changes taking place in the employment structure, we see a drastic increase in the number of contract workers. While the compensation package of direct contract workers is comparable to permanent workers, indirect contract workers receive less favourable terms. Generally, their wages are lower and they are not paid CPF contributions. They also do not enjoy benefits, such as leave entitlement, medical benefits and training opportunities. This is an anomaly we must correct. We also have to look into ways to enhance contract workers' jobs and income security, as the nature of contract work is short term and contracts are subjected to renewals. In addition, indirect contract workers may find themselves under new employment contracts with lower terms than what they had previously received. This is due to "cheap sourcing practices" whereby the bidding war of the labour suppliers drives the tender price down. Wages are reduced in order to cut cost. This is detrimental to the contract workers. The inadequacy of savings for long-term needs among this group of workers is also another key concern. As indirect contract workers are often paid higher take home-pay without CPF contributions and other benefits, they will face the problem of inadequate savings for long-term needs, such as retirement, medical treatment and housing. Additionally, contract workers also lack awareness of their basic employment rights. Even if they are aware, they may be unable to assert their rights for fear of non-renewal of contract and discrimination from their employers.”
“The question is: where should the money be kept? Therefore, I would like to urge the Ministry to set up a national PMBS account to manage the additional contribution for workers' inpatient needs. It is timely for the Ministry to take firm steps towards making medical benefits portable in Singapore.”
“The life expectancy of our population has also increased significantly compared in the past. While all workers face retrenchments and unemployment, the older workers feel the heaviest brunt. Some people argue that our efforts to get our employers to employ older workers and effectively raise the retirement age beyond 62 may not work, as the employers may remain unwilling to hire older workers. Would MOM consider introducing the older worker re-employment legislation implemented in Japan, if our promotional efforts fail? A key obstacle discouraging employers from employing older workers is the higher medical costs. Employers are not willing to incur higher medical costs associated with older workers, particularly those who may have developed medical conditions as they change jobs. The way to address the problem is the portable medical benefit system (PMBS). The concept is simple, ie, a worker can get portable and continuous seamless medical coverage during his working years, and extending into his retirement. With portable medical benefits, the worker does not lose out when they change jobs, even if he develops medical conditions. At the same time, there will not be unnecessary cost burdens to his employers as he ages. However, for the portable medical benefit system to firmly take root, we need to enable workers to use the additional contribution of the minimum 1% of his salary by the employer to enhance the medical insurance coverage on top of MediShield, according to the employment, financial and health conditions of the worker at the various stages of his life. The workers want to have the employer-based medical benefits converted into cash equivalent, so that they can keep it and wait until when they need it, and keep those that is not used.”
“The WQS and the other WDA initiatives have ambitious plans for the services sector. There is, however, room for improvement in the running of the actual training programmes. For example, would it not be more practical to have course materials available in Chinese since a substantial number of workers from the services sector may not be conversant in English? With the declining birth rate, new entrants into the job market in future would be reduced substantially. The local workers' net inflow per annum will drop from 41,000 today to 28,000 after year 2010. Moving ahead, there is a pressing need for MOM to ensure equilibrium of manpower demand and supply. One serious implication is greater foreign worker dependency. There is already a large pool of foreign workers today in Singapore. MOM should help industries that are heavily dependent on foreign workers to reduce its dependency by raising productivity, and encourage these industries to adopt innovative methods to redesign and re-engineer their work processes. If we do not restructure work processes and redesign our jobs fast, we will see not just a disequilibrium in the labour market but even our continued dependency on foreign workers. Another area of concern is women in our workforce. The women workforce participation rate is far from desirable. Much has been debated, but I personally would hope to see more concrete action being taken. I would like to urge the Ministry to consider doing a deeper study on how other countries achieve higher female labour participation rate than us even without a heavy reliance on domestic maids. This will definitely help us fine tune our policies to encourage more women to rejoin the workforce. One key challenge we face is an ageing workforce.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the total sum to be allocated for Head S of the Estimates be reduced by $100. Sir, workers in Singapore face many challenges today. I would like to touch on a few key issues, namely, structural unemployment, labour market, supply demand disequilibrium, women in the workforce, older workers and medical benefits. Structural unemployment is the greatest manpower challenge today. Workers of all levels are hit, some more badly than others. Even executives are not spared. As our economy restructures and moves towards more knowledge-based activities, there is a rising danger that the less educated and the less skilled workers will find it increasingly difficult to find new jobs. The way to address the problem is clearly skills redevelopment and training. In this regard, the WDA, together with other tripartite partners, ie, NTUC and SNEF, has made very good progress. I think it is timely for the Minister to provide an update, particularly an assessment of whether our drive to upgrade the skills of our workers is bearing fruit. Notwithstanding our skills redevelopment efforts, there are two critical issues that we need to address. They are the mismatch of skills between demand and supply and the low level of training among those most vulnerable to structural unemployment. I understand that, for example, on average, those who have less than secondary education received only one day training per year. The tripartite partners have to find ways to reach out to them more effectively. Sir, the services sector, where 75% of our jobs are coming from, is a key engine of employment and GDP growth. Does the Ministry have any plan to build up our service capacity and capability, and plug the skill gaps?”
“I would like to know how many schools have so far opened their school fields to the community to enable our kids to play football during weekends? Safety of School Children”
“Sir, surveys done in both China and US show that about two-thirds of the students have not had enough sleep. The sleeping time of the secondary students has fallen down to below eight hours on average. Did our Ministry conduct a similar survey to find out the situation in Singapore and whether our students have adequate rest? Recently, many members of the public have voiced their concerns, through the media, that students are having longer and longer travelling time to school and most of the students have to report to school as early as 7.10 every morning. May I know whether MOE has any plans to address this concern and would the Ministry consider adjusting the starting time in all schools? Another issue I wish to raise is whether our students have full freedom to choose their CCA. I understand that some parents have complained that their children were channelled to CCA that they are not interested in. I hope the Ministry could clarify to what extent this is true and what is the Ministry's plan to ensure that all our students can pursue their interest through CCA, and not joining CCA for the sake of having one. Sir, most of the students, particularly those in secondary and Pre-U, have to take their meals in school canteens. I would like to know whether the Ministry is monitoring the price and quality of the food providers in the school canteens. With more and more schools tendering out their canteen operation, would there be an adverse impact on the quality and price of the food provided for our students in the school? I hope the Ministry would also monitor this. Many students have also voiced the concern that there is no place for them to play sports game, for example, football, during weekends.”
“The Minister of State mentioned that already 80% of the schools completed their self-appraisal. What I would like to know is what MOE will do with all these self-appraisals because, if there is no structured plan, all these self-appraisals will just become a paper exercise. For 485 centres in Singapore, how frequent does the Ministry do its monitoring? 1.00 pm”
“So, how does the Ministry ensure that the curriculum programme and materials used in all the 485 kindergartens are effective and will be able to help achieve the desired learning outcomes? Last, but not least, may I also know whether the Ministry would consider granting the Opportunity Fund to pre-schools in the near future? Second and Third Languages”
“Sir, nowadays, almost all parents send their children for pre-school. The total number of kindergartens, excluding those registered or licensed under MCYS, is 485. I am concerned that, unlike many other countries, we still treat primary 1 as the zero starting point of the education for our children. We leave the pre-school totally to the private sector and so-called "market driven". The theory of child development shows that the critical stage in a child's development is from the age of three to five, particularly with regard to language skills acquisition. Children at this age acquire language skills most effectively, and we have to make sure that the pre-school programme is very effective. Sir, I wish to know whether the Ministry has a long-term plan for pre-school education and hope that the Ministry would not treat pre-schools as PEOs and simply leave them to Adam Smith's invisible hands. I wish to ask how MOE monitors the performance of all pre-schools here. In some of these pre-schools, the emphasis on learning is mistakenly placed on examination techniques, preparing the kids just for P1 and not the laying down of good foundation for the kids for the learning later on in life. The learning outcome is measured by how many marks the child gets and how many assessment exercises and worksheets he has done in a week. In terms of education quality, may I know where our pre-school education stands compared to other developed countries? Does MOE have any plan to raise the standard of pre-school education here and improve the quality of the teachers? I understand that there is also no department to oversee the curriculum development of pre-school education in MOE.”
“Although the Minister has agreed to provide more information, will it not be better for the Ministry to also make the requirements and criteria for registration more stringent?”
“It is useful if MOE could have a website to provide relevant information, such as the ranking of the PEOs in Singapore, and whether the PEOs are accredited with the various schemes.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, many students, especially the foreign ones, tend to perceive the registration of Private Education Organisations (PEOs) here in Singapore with MOE as an endorsement by MOE of their courses, and that MOE is responsible for the performance of such PEOs. Unfortunately, PEOs know that this is the misperception on the ground and, taking advantage of this link with MOE, have been promoting themselves as "MOE of Singapore registered school", giving the impression that they have attained certain approvals, standards and requirements with this registration. You can see this in most of the advertisements that they put up in all the media, claiming that it is "xin jia bo jiao yu bu zhu ce pi zhun de ke cheng", ie, it is all approved by MOE. But the students do not understand that MOE only registers but does not care at all for these PEOs in terms of their performance. This is unacceptable. I hope that MOE will seriously look into ensuring that the schools registered with it are truly able to perform reasonably and are not just using the MOE as the endorsement authority to promote themselves as qualified and quality schools when they are not. On the other hand, we need to help students to make an informed choice in selecting the good schools to enrol in. Currently, there is no central accreditation body in Singapore. Today, the students, be they local or foreign, usually have to base their decision on trial and error to get the right schools to enrol in. There is no authority to turn to when assessing the credibility and performance of the PEOs. They really do not know what to do. Many foreign students, after having attended several sessions with the PEO, would have to switch schools, thereby incurring inconveniences and extra costs.”
“Sir, the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act (CPFTA) came into effect on 1st March 2004. Under the Act, financial services are expressly excluded. I hope MTI could amend the Act to include financial services this time. Sir, there is also a need to look at the setting up of a framework on proper disclosure of information relating to the sale of time-share club and resort membership. In this regard, there is no need for a private Member's Bill to push for new legislation if we could just extend CPFTA to include regulatory framework to enhance transparency in this area. On enforcement and effectiveness of CPFTA, Sir, CASE would like to highlight that businesses are now taking things lightly as they know that it is expensive for a specific body, like CASE or STB, to take up legal actions against them. Many ignore our invitation for them to sign the Voluntary Compliance Agreement (VCA). As the Act is silent on such delay, errant businesses are taking advantage of such a loophole. We should review the Act. Sir, the Act should also be amended to protect specific bodies, like CASE and STB, from legal action when they publicise such unfair acts in the media. Another CASE proposal is to include the introduction of the opt-in practice under CPFTA. I hope MTI could respond positively to all the proposed amendments to strengthen our CPFTA to better protect consumers' interest overall. Last but not least, CASE would like to urge MTI to consider looking into the possibility of introducing what is commonly called the "Lemon Law". We propose that the "Lemon Law" applies to all consumer goods. Such a law would give the right to consumers to require the business to replace goods that are defective and are beyond repair. We could incorporate the "Lemon Law" into the Sale of Goods Act.”
“Generally speaking, this package should not be looked at purely as an ang pow. In all the packages, we must let our people know of their existence and also the reason for their existence. This package is not a welfare subsidy, as described by Mr Chiam See Tong. It is not just an incentive. It serves to cheer up our workers too. In the end, we hope that all workers, particularly the low-income workers, would take up the challenges and be self-reliant. However, on the details of the implementation, the Ministry of Finance needs to let the public know clearly the various bonus schemes. To my surprise, even Prof. Ong Soh Khim and Mr Steve Chia did not really understand the working of this Growth Dividend. So long as you are an adult Singaporean, you will have a share, even though you are a housewife. Even hon. Members of this House do not know this, so I am sure many Singaporeans would not know too. There is a need for us to do some work, so that Singaporeans would understand the details of these schemes and the reason for this Progress Package. During my walkabout, some odd-job workers asked me whether declaring their income would cause adverse effects on their employers. I think the Minister for Finance should clarify this doubt of our people. 2.38 pm”
“Another example is that in the United States, the US government recently introduced the Age Discrimination Act. The employers' reason is that, "If that is the case, then the best way is not to employ the older employees, so that they would not be accused of discrimination against them." This is not going to the root of the problem. When there is a problem, we have to look squarely at the crux of problem. We have to try and resolve it in a practical way, for example, the Job Recreation Scheme introduced by NTUC. We have created 4,600 jobs in 2005. This year, we plan to create another 10,000 jobs. We want to tell our employers how to improve the welfare of our employees. Now, we have more than 50 companies who have committed to participate in this scheme and to amend their human resource solution so that they can continue to employ the older workers beyond the statutory retirement age. Through this pioneer project, we will be able to work out some solutions to motivate all the employers to do the same thing by employing the older workers. But, in the end, it is a question of mentality. For example, in Japan, they have a new law which says that all employers should provide jobs for retired workers. I think this is something that we could consider so that our employers will have no excuse not to employ the older workers. Because they know that by employing the older workers, they would have some benefits derived therefrom. However, in the process of extending the retirement age, I think, most importantly, the Singapore Government, as the biggest employer in Singapore, should lead by example and see how we could let the older workers remain in their jobs, and work beyond their statutory retirement age.”
“Many workers may not have used their medical benefits in their younger days. One simple way is to allow the unused medical benefits to be saved up. The Government should consider setting up a new account so that employers could make additional contributions to this account and the employees would be able to make use of it in times of need, or even to pay the premium for their medical insurance. If it is not used, the amount in the account will remain, and when they get old they could make use of this money to pay for their medical expenses. Generally speaking, in this trend of globalisation we have to be more flexible. We cannot just turn a deaf ear to the problems. There is a Chinese proverb which says, "Close you ears and steal the bell". This is not the right way to do things. We should not ask the Government to prohibit our companies from relocating overseas. This is not practical. What we need to do is to create a conducive pro-business environment so as to attract more investors to come here to invest and thereby creating more jobs for our people. There has been a suggestion that we should have a minimum wage provision to prevent the employers from exploiting our workers. This so-called minimum wage policy is practised in some countries. But we can say for sure that, eventually, it is the workers who will suffer. Let me give you a very simple example and you will understand. When the Philippine government ruled that all Filipino maids should be given a minimum wage, the immediate reaction from the Singapore families was to turn to other sources for cheaper maids, eg, from Indonesia and Sri Lanka, instead of employing Filipino maids. In the end, it was their citizens who will suffer.”
“The Government knows, as a fact, that education, defence, medical service, etc., are very important to our people. The only thing that I am disappointed with is that the Government has not provided more money for Medifund. Of course many people are happy with the plan to build more 2-room flats and the extra housing grants for the lower-income workers. This is a shot in the arm as they would otherwise not be in a position to own their own homes. In fact, Singapore is the only country in the world that could attain the idealistic realm, as painted in the famous poetry of the great Tang Dynasty poet, Du Fu, "Having millions of homes and bringing shelter and happiness to people all over." We have actually achieved "home-ownership for everyone". But with this trend of globalisation, we may need to make some adjustments to our existing "Home for Everyone" scheme. I notice that for the younger generation nowdays, the moment they get married they would want to purchase an HDB flat straightaway, and start bearing the burden of a housing loan. If the Government can provide some rental flats as an alternative, they may consider buying a flat later on, perhaps only after they have children. It is still not too late. Then, they would not have to immediately bear this heavy housing loan the moment they get married. I hope the Government will consider this. As far as healthcare is concerned, we know that once a worker has lost his job he would have lost his medical benefit. The NTUC has all along been advocating the concept of portable medical benefits. This will enable the workers to retain their medical benefits even after they have left their job. If the workers do not have portable medical benefits, they would have to make use of their Medisave accounts.”
“We cannot say, "Oh, let us have more protectionist policies and ban companies from moving overseas. We want the companies to stay in Singapore forever to provide job opportunities for our workers." We all know that this is impossible. During the transitional period, we must let the workers understand that they must accept the challenges and accept lower paid jobs as it is better than to be unemployed. This is the principle behind the Workfare Bonus. We want to cheer up our workers. Let them know that although their income at the current moment may be lower, so long as they have a job, there is a hope of eventually earning a better income and a better standard of living. We cannot do like what Mr Steve Chia has recommended just now by asking the Government to draw out all the money from the reserves to help the workers. This is a sure way to bankrupt our Government. We all know that this is not feasible. What are we going to do if we run out of money? So, more importantly, we have to help our Singaporeans to stand up. I am sure all the people in Singapore do not want to just sit there and stretch out their hands to wait for handouts from the Government. I know that all the workers in Singapore prefer to be taught how to fish rather than being given the fish. Mr Speaker, Sir, the Finance Minister should also help to clear the doubts of some Singaporeans as some of them are worried that this package of $2.6 billion would in some way reduce the Government's capability to carry out all its projects and services to our people. Many people have this doubt. I am sure this will not be. I am sure that the Government must have thought out all the implications before arriving at such a decision to share the fruits of economic success with the people.”
“It may be good in winning over the support of the people, but it is meaningless. In the end, we have to do like what the labour movement is doing. We examine the needs of the people and prescribe the right medicine for their needs. The NTUC has worked very hard in fostering our labour, employer and Government tripartite cooperation to tackle the unemployment problem. This is the correct medicine. There is a Chinese saying, "a mantis trying to stop a chariot using its arms", that is, to over-rate itself by attempting something impossible. How can we stop the global trend of development? To a very large extent, we need to help our older workers. We cannot expect the industry to lower their standard or restrain its development to suit the lower-skilled workers who could not cope with the changes. What we can do is to find practical ways to help our older workers upgrade their skills so that they can retain their income. Most importantly, in this year's Budget, we have provided more assistance to the children of the lower income families so that they can receive better education in order to eventually get out of poverty. We all understand what are the problems facing us today. The older workers have difficulty getting jobs. According to the Ministry of Manpower's statistics, the unemployment rate for the older workers is about 6% and it takes a longer time for them to fit into a new job. I think we must first of all understand their problems and help them to stand up on their own. Through the various schemes, we want to help them to continue being employed. We must also understand what are the problems faced by each and every one of the unemployed workers and guide them so that they know where they could look for solutions to solve their problem.”
“The company discovered that many of those who took part in the tests preferred the sweeter Pepsi Cola. As a result, the company made a very absolute decision and introduced the new Coca Cola. In the new Coca Cola, they reduced the traditional ingredients and made it sweeter. But this so-called "thorough" change was a "thorough" failure because people like Coca Cola not because it is sweeter than Pepsi Cola, but because of its traditional taste. So, in the end, Coca Cola Company has to recall all the new Coca Cola and reintroduced the classic Coke. So in this Budget, are we, to a certain extent, deviating from our past prudent and pragmatic principle of budgeting? I believe not, and I am sure the Prime Minister will clarify this doubt. The purpose of this Budget obviously is to increase our economic competitiveness and to push our infocommuncations technology, intellectual property, research and development, maritime and logistics industries to a higher peak and to recreate our economy in such a way that we will be able to give more emphasis to our manufacturing and service industries, and provide more support and help to our lower-income workers. This is very important. I am sure, with all these schemes, more workers would benefit. In the past, when I heard this song, I could not understand the meaning of its lyrics which said, "Loving you may lead to hurting you." Yesterday, having heard what Mr Low Thia Khiang had said, I began to appreciate the message. If we just resort to sweet talks to please the workers, we are not loving them, but rather we are harming them. They keep saying that our workers are suffering and they cannot find jobs. Yet, all they do is mere talking but nothing is done to address the problem. This is lip service, and rubbing salt into the wounds.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, on this Budget, all the three Opposition Members, Mr Low Thia Khiang, Mr Chiam See Tong and Mr Steve Chia, are behaving like what the Teochew would say: "When you did not have any, you would complain that you had not; but now that you have some, you will still find fault with what has been given to you." They claimed they were looking at it from the workers' point of view. However, it was reported in yesterday's Straits Times that views from various quarters, ranging from the President of the Contractors' Association to the ordinary workers, were that this was a pro-business and pro-worker Budget. Having provided for the business community and the workers, we are able to satisfy the needs of our people. This Budget provides for various packages, schemes and grants which not only benefit the workers directly, but also fall in line with the workers' expectation of more job opportunities to be created. The Workfare Bonus, together with the NTUC's Job Recreation Scheme will directly alleviate the workers' burden. It will also upgrade their low-paying jobs, improve the standard of living of the low-income workers in a practical way. I am sure the three Opposition Members know this, but they just refuse to accept it. But members of the public generally look only at the ang pows and overlook the other packages, and some members of the public are even asking if this Budget is deviating from the general principle of the past Budgets. I have a friend who told me the Coca Cola story and suggested that we draw a lesson from it. Mr Speaker, Sir, in the early 80s, the Coca Cola Company conducted a series blindfold tasting test. In other words, the people participating in the survey were blindfolded and were asked to randomly taste two drinks.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the Senior Minister of State mentioned that there are 12,000 new cases a year. I would like to ask whether these new cases actually occurred in certain age groups and whether the Ministry of Health has some focused programmes to help these people who suffer such illnesses because I understand that about a few years ago, there was another survey by MOH which showed that a majority of those that have been diagnosed with diabetes actually did nothing about their follow-up and their condition deteriorated.”
“Sir, the Senior Parliamentary Secretary said that only 50% of the demand is met. Could I ask whether the Ministry has a masterplan to ensure that the other 50% of the demand would also be met soon? If there is no masterplan, how long would the workers have to wait for proper accommodation?”
“Sir, I would like to thank the Minister and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for their comprehensive response to our concerns and questions raised. I am particularly pleased with the Minister's reassurance to strengthen Government's efforts to help Singaporean workers face employment challenges and his commitment to make Singapore a safe workplace for all. With this note, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. The sum of $173,058,340 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. The sum of $47,547,200 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. Head I - Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports”
“Sir, I am happy that the Senior Parliamentary Secretary is in support of my suggestion to try to push for the integration of the private medical insurance schemes so that medical coverage could be made portable. Could I confirm with the Ministry whether it could facilitate such a meeting of the employers, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Finance and Monetary Authority of Singapore to try and see how we can actually study and make all these private insurance schemes, which currently are employment based, to be integrated with MediShield, so as to make the medical benefits portable? Mr Hawazi Daipi: Sir, we can do that. We can study all options that will enhance further the medical coverage.”
“With the initiative launched last year, I would like to ask the Ministry of Manpower for an update and what more the Ministry will do to help to promote more family-friendly practices to help the workers to balance work-life.”
“Sir, medical cost is always the concern of the workers. With the revamp of MediShield, which is a big step forward in the restructuring of our national healthcare financing system, I think it is time that the existing employer-provided medical scheme also be revamped to supplement the national scheme. The national MediShield scheme is portable and it takes care of all the big medical bills but there are gaps that we have to close. The existing employer-provided in-patient medical benefits are not portable. Seventy percent of the employers provided in-patient benefits are arranged through the group insurance schemes. Once the workers have left the company, the benefits and the coverage are gone. So, in this case, we have to see how we can actually protect the interests of the workers. Therefore, there is a need for employers to work closely with the trade unions and the support of different Government agencies, including the Ministry of Health, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, Ministry of Manpower and the Monetary Authority of Singapore, to study how we could restructure such employer-based in-patient medical insurance scheme funded by the employers as medical benefits in line with the revamped MediShield. This will avoid duplication and make medical benefits more efficient and portable to enable all employees to have medical coverage, not just during their employment but also in between employment and after his or her retirement. As we help the workers prepare to face the challenges of the workplace, we also need to promote work-life balance.”
“Sir, I want to thank the Minister for teaching us new Mathematics so that now when I look at the new dependency ratio, I am a bit worried. What it means is that, in this case, the dependency ratio and ceiling is now up to 60%. It means that for a company which needs to expand their workforce by up to 25%, they can resort to just employing foreign workers instead of making efforts to employ Singaporeans.”
“The Employment Act was enacted on the assumption that executives can look after themselves whereas the lower educated employees would need the protection. However, the executives also encounter employment problems and need assistance. Take the salary dispute as an example. The existing way of engaging lawyers to pursue their claim against employers is often costly and time consuming. It is necessary now for the Ministry to review the EA coverage, ie, would we be able to consider allowing the executives to be also covered by the EA? If the objective of the Employment Act is to protect and enhance the welfare of all workers, then would the Government consider how we could also strengthen the protection for contract and part-time workers? We need to also review some of the existing labour market practices that actually create the problem. With higher demand for workers in expanding sectors of the economy, the higher pay of these newly-created jobs will incentivise workers to retrain and take on these jobs. However, some training programmes are tied to formal qualifications. For example, an NTC programme has a pre-requisite of at least two O-level subjects. Many of these tie-ups are unnecessary as they are not linked to the ability to perform the jobs which the employers need the employees to do so. The Government needs to work with the employers to cultivate practices that identify skills and talents beyond just pure academic qualification requirements.”
“The main factors causing the problem of structural unemployment are: many old and lower educated Singaporean workers do not have the necessary skills that jobs in the current market demand, while many only possess obsolete industry-specific skills. In addition, low education and lack of knowledge of where and how to obtain these relevant skills are also impediments in solving the problem of such a skills mismatch. Retraining has been cited time and again as a solution. But are there any statistics to prove that it leads to more people getting jobs or how they still cannot find jobs? I would like to ask the Minister what is the progress of the various schemes that the Ministry has put in place to help workers cope with such challenges and ensure that the workers, particularly the mature ones, could continue to be employable. I think there is a need to educate the HR practitioner and the management as well to change their mindsets against mature workers. Some Singaporeans think that MOM's policy has facilitated employers to take in more foreign workers and end up with more local workers being displaced. There is also a sense that MOM does not appear keen to fine-tune the ratio which has increased to allow companies to bring in more foreign workers in good times but has been very sticky downwards even in bad times. Would the Ministry consider providing the statistics of the employment situation of the local and foreign workers over the last five years? Did the Ministry study the impact of the low birth rate of about 1.4% on our labour market in the next 10 years? We also need to ensure that the employers would not abuse the flexibility given, as we have reviewed and revised the dependency ceiling.”
“Sir, in view of the sudden massive retrenchment carried out by Maxtor, I would like to say that, whether it is management or rank and file, employers or employees, they are all human beings. They are not machines or merchandise. We do not want to see the employees being left at the mercy of their employers, just like a hunter, as described in the Chinese saying, going hunting with his dog, captures whatever he wants, then he kills the dog and eats it. We must bear in mind, be it employees or employers, their rice bowls are interconnected and cannot be separated. Both the employers and employees should share the fruits of success and the prosperity of their enterprises. People in the personnel departments should adopt an open-mind towards all workers, particularly the ones more at risk, ie, the older workers. More importantly, all the people in the company should feel that the contributions and efforts put in by the older and mature workers are rewarded accordingly. Therefore, I hope that the Ministry will work with the management to try to make the management foresighted enough to warn their workers to prepare for the challenges and put in place adequate training for these workers at risk, so as to help them to meet the challenges ahead. They should be committed in looking after the welfare of their employees, particularly the mature workers, and give them due protection and a sense of belonging. Structural unemployment is unlike other forms of unemployment in that the primary reason is a mismatch between skills sets that workers have and what employers demand.”
“One concern is that, like my colleague, Mdm Halimah, has just now mentioned, the union leaders are also concerned that if the safety regulations are less prescriptive, then they also worry the employers will end up by keeping just their fingers crossed, hoping nothing will happen and not sure what to do. This is also a concern that the Ministry should consider. In France, incentive is given to companies with best records. It is something that we do not have here. These companies pay less contribution to the centralised insurance, and those with high accident compensation claims are asked to pay more. This is also a scheme which we can consider. Last, but not least, at the same time, I would like to once again urge the Ministry of Manpower that, after we have reviewed, revamped and made the safety rules and regulations and legislation more effective, we still have to consider extending the scope of the OHS legislation in Singapore to provide protection to all workers in the workplaces, including non-industrial workplaces. Under the current legislation, the Factories Act only protects one-third of the overall workforce, that is, 700,000 workers. I hope the Ministry can seriously consider this point as well.”
“Sir, I beg to move, That the total sum to be allocated for Head S of the Estimates be reduced by $100. Sir, the Minister has mentioned in his statement about the new safety framework. The labour movement has always been advocating for a better and safe workplace for all. As union leaders, we strongly support and welcome MOM's proposed new framework. For those in the last one or two decades, we have put in all efforts to try to make incremental improvement in occupational health and safety in Singapore. It is time for us to improve further and do more to ensure that we all enjoy a safe workplace. If errant employers continue to risk the lives of the workers by ignoring our repeated calls for more stringent safety measures, then MOM has to seriously consider what we need to do more to ensure that the employers carry out their duty. We have to learn from other countries' experiences. I am happy to note that the Ministry is going to do so. In Sweden, as I know, the emphasis is placed on analysing the work conditions that promote human error and risk taking behaviour. The main responsibility for the working environment lies with the employers. And the OHS authority in Sweden goes for less prescriptive safety rules and regulations and encourage employers to meet the safety standards in various practical and more innovative ways. The authority also minimises the costs of compliance and takes particular care to work with particularly the small and medium enterprises. This is something the Ministry of Manpower here should also consider. We cannot be only targeting at the big factories and to ensure that the big factories are in compliance with all the safety regulations and did not look at the small companies.”
“Yes. Besides empowering the workers, a mindset change of the enforcement agencies is also necessary. What will MOM do in this area? Last, but not least, I would also want to ask the Minister whether he would assure us that the review would not merely be a procedural one or a procedure acting exercise which will end up in unnecessary cost for all.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, workers who have to work to earn a living here have a right to safe workplaces. As a labour MP, I would like to stress the point that the employer is the one who is responsible to make sure that the working environment is safe for all workers. Employers must be aware of where the hazards are and take all necessary actions and measures in the work process to achieve a working environment that is safe for our workers. It is not about putting in place a system or just some kind of procedures or to appoint a safety officer. Shortcuts should not be taken at the expense of safety. I would like to ask the Minister, besides the big stick, ie, penalty, how would MOM ensure that employers will do the necessary. And I would also like to ask the Minister, in introducing a new occupational safety and health framework, whether MOM will also review the safety training framework. Look at the last few accidents that happened. Although these areas already have mandatory safety training, accidents still happened. It is important to understand that having knowledgeable employees is an integral part of making ---”
“Sir, a point of clarification. The Minister said that we have four years to do things slowly. But I have just worked it out and it is only three years and three months. We would start in January 2008. I do not know how the Minister did his calculation. The more important point is that on pre-school education, we have the responsibility to push and promote pre-school education. I have been made a committee Chairman. I will just stick my neck out and do it. But, to a large extent, this pre-school education depends very much on the Ministry of Education, because there is no framework provided by the MOE. To many operators, they do not have any standard to follow. Unless the Ministry can spell out the clear standards, there will be no guiding principle or framework to control this kind of educational work. On the other hand, the operators of the pre-school establishments will have to grope in the dark. The Minister also said that our examination system is diversified. Even up till today our students, primary or secondary, are still learning by rote. Why is it so?”
“Another preparatory work which cannot be delayed is that since we are going to commence the Chinese Language Pedagogy Reform in the primary schools in 2008, the pre-school sector, ie, kindergarten 1 and 2 classes must also have their curriculum revamped accordingly so as to prepare the students to dovetail into the new primary school reform. Otherwise, it would hamper the reform.”
“I am somewhat worried that up till today, the MOE has not proposed any specific training plan for the teachers so as to prepare the teachers for the implementation of the pedagogy reform. The MOE seems to be "great boast, small roast - much said, but little done". The action does not follow through. Recently, MOE suddenly announced a reduction in the syllabus and some modules of the Chinese curriculum. This is actually a good measure. However, there seems to be a lack of communication in the implementation, resulting in many teachers, students and parents being caught by surprise. When interviewed on TV, one primary school student said, "All of a sudden, the school deleted the text which I have learnt. How am I going to prepare for the PSLE?" The student's remark illustrates two serious problems: first, the student's learning of the Chinese Language remains tailored at preparing for examinations; and second, it seems that the school, parents and teachers do not know what to do when they suddenly discovered that the teaching modules are reduced. By right, cutting out the text and teaching materials which are compulsorily fixed as curriculum is a good thing to do. In this way, the teachers could have more flexibility to lead the students in participating in more interesting learning activities, thereby laying a solid foundation for their language. However, when MOE takes the interim measures, from the reaction of the primary school student, we can see that we need, first of all, to help the schools prepare the students and parents. I understand that in some schools, they are taking out the Primary 3 to Primary 5 textbooks and teaching them to fill the curriculum time vacated by the reduction in Primary 6 curriculum.”
“Sir, there is an ancient Chinese saying, "zi yi, xing nan", that is, to know is easy but to do is difficult. For any plans or measures to be successful, the key is in knowing how to specifically and thoroughly implement them, once the direction and principles are determined. The Chinese Language Pedagogy Reform report is a landmark in the language education in Singapore. Having extensively discussed it in Parliament, we should put our hearts and souls into pushing forward the implementation details as recommended. I understand that MOE has studied and explored various teaching methods, including "recognising first, writing later". I hope the Minister would enlighten us on the conclusions and suggestions of the Ministry's studies. Apart from the teaching method, one other very important area is examination. This is because the process and style of examinations tightly restrain the teaching directions of the teachers, their teaching content at the schools and the learning attitude of the students. For the pedagogy reform to be successful, the mode of examinations should also be thoroughly reformed and be closely linked to the expected outcome of the learning process. The important point is that it has to be more diversified and more innovative. Only then, can we change the present phenomenon whereby students study just to pass their examinations. Once the examination model is defined, the teachers would be able to adapt to the new direction, thereby changing their teaching modes and make the students' learning process more varied and diversified, and relevant to daily lives, so as to further enhance the students' interest in learning and change their learning attitude. However, we must recognise that teachers are the key and soul of the implementation of the reform.”
“I would like to ask the Minister of State whether he agrees that the list of unfair practices is, in fact, not exhaustive. What I have been suggesting actually is not a major review of the mechanism. I think the mechanism is working very well and it is to protect consumers. The question is: why can we not extend the list to cover and protect more consumers for other unfair practices? I cannot understand why we need three years. Does it mean that we have to wait until more consumers fall victim to unfair practices and to see more casualties before we make a move? Why can we not be a bit more proactive? 2.00 pm”