Tag Archives: low pay

I refer to the article “SIT grads better paid, but more working part-time” (Straits Times, Oct 15).

Chinese New Year is the busiest festive season and companies are paying employees at higher rate regardless of part timers or full timers during this period. However, HonestBee is paying their shoppers as low as $4.80 per hour. Despite the low pay, shoppers are required to do bulky orders that can be up to 30 to 40kg when most of the customers are ordering cartons drinks.

As to “Most employed Singaporeans and permanent residents over age 60 work as cleaners, labourers, machine operators, and service and sales workers, according to MOM statistics last year” – these are generally low-pay jobs. According to the MOM’s wages benchmarking tool – the age 50 to 59 median basic pay for cleaners in office and other establishments, labourers (general) and retail assistants/shop sales assistants, was only $1,000, $1,000, $1,251, respectively. Don’t you find it rather sad and alarming that most of the elderly are working in such low-pay jobs?

It states that ”"We have to be more creative, we have to reclaim jobs,” said Mr Tan, adding that the industry, which comprises about 75,000 licensed guards, is still short of around 10,000 to 15,000 people.” These new initiatives as well as those in the past few years do not seem to be very effective, because we may not be addressing the root causes vigorously.

When a nurse works in the ICU and High Dependency Unit (HDU) of a tertiary hospital and started a shift at 7 am (left house at 5.45 am and woke up at 5 am) was asked at the last minute just before knocking off shift work to do a double shift (pm shift) from 3.15 pm to 9.30 pm, do you think this nurse will have the ability to focus at work when he/she is physically exhausted after such a long day? The patients at the ICU and HDU are critically ill and often goes into 'Code Blue' status that need immediate attention or resuscitation.

Of the Singaporeans in my company, I had the lowest salary but did the most hands on job of building the software. The rest, foreigners, earn more than me. There were only 2 other foreigners earning the same pay scale as me but as they no need to pay CPF, they get the full amount plus employer contribution in cash. There are female sinkies who are YOUNGER than me but earn at least 1k more than me.

Double-digit salary increases will come to an end as employers look to pull back from the strong wage growth of the last 3 years. Most companies might offer non-financial incentives to attract and retain employees in future.

Hi, I came across this job advertisement looking for Singaporeans and PRs to work 12 hour-shifts as a production operator for a shitty $900 per month.