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NDR 2021 - Coggle Diagram
NDR 2021
Anxiety over Workpass holders
Anxiety exacerbated by economic uncertainty
Fears that employers are hiring workpass holders at the expense of local workers
Government Action
Tightening of EP/ S Pass criteria gradually and progressively so as to not hurt businesses
Ensures that work pass holders come in when we most need them and avoid the situation where there is an over-flooding of work pass holders doing jobs that Singaporeans are capable and available to do
Ensuring that every worker is treated fairly at the workplace
Concerns that financial institutions and IT sectors have a large proportion of foreigners
Singapore as a business hub and finance and IT companies perform regional and global functions, necessitating the presence of both local and foreign talent
Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) to deal with workplace discrimination more broadly
Laid out clear guidelines on fair treatment for local companies to follow.
Counselling should companies not adhere to it. And should further breaches occur, MOM can impose administrative penalties to it, such as restrictions on hiring foreign workers
Move to enshrine TAFEP guidelines in law, to provide TAFEP more authority and power in enforcing these guidelines and also expand their range of options in dealing with companies that do not adhere to such guidelines
Social Impact of work pass holders
Social frictions arise because culturally, work pass holders are different from us
They look like us, but they do not act like us
Why is this important?
A xeonophobic Singapore might deter foreign investors and threaten our livelihood
Supporting Low Waged Workers
Progressive Wage Model (PWM)
Helps to increase the wages of workers through upgrading skills and improving productivitiy
Implemented via government levers in the cleaning, security and landscape sectors
Why the need for this?
Wages in these sectors have stagnated due to widespread cheap sourcing, resulting in high turnover rates and labour shortages
Maps out a clear career pathway for their wages to rise along with training and improvements in productivity and standards
Further Recommendations
Extending Progressive wages to workers from other sectors such as retail, food services and waste management
Covering specific occupations across all sectors simultaneously, starting with administrative assistants and drivers
Requiring all local employers to pay their local employees a local qualifying salary ($1400) should they wish to hire foreign workers
Food Delivery Workers as a key focus
Similar to employees, but have no employment contracts with online platforms.
Lack basic job protection that most employees have, such as workplace injury compensation, union representation and employer CPF
Might find it difficult to afford healthcare, housing and stability
Race and Religion
Recent spates of racial insensitivity
National Day banners of an Indian family in the Tanjong Pagar district
Singaporeans accusing SG government of being pro-foreigners, pro-Indian
Chinese polytechnic lecturer accosting an interacial couple in Orchard road
Recent incidents seemed to surround people of the Indian race
Could be the large number of Indian work pass holders in Singapore
Could also be the Delta variant of COVID-19 which first emerged in India
Letting frustrations spill over to affect racial harmony of Singapore
Reality of Racial Harmony
Harmonious, multiracial country is not a natural or stable state of affairs
Countries over the world, often show their race relations and politics polarise, where majority groups choose to exert their dominance over the minority groups