Good evening fellow Singaporeans and Jalan Besar voters!
Welcome to the Workers Party rally!
My name is Soma. My full name is L Somasundaram, you can call me Soma.
I contested in Moulmein-Kallang GRC in GE 2011 and now I am back! I am a candidate for the Jalan Besar GRC.
Dear Jalan Besar voters, when we did our house visits, we told residents that this is no more Moulmein-Kallang GRC and that it is now Jalan Besar GRC. Some residents said they knew of the change, many residents did not know and some other residents were surprised. One resident even said she has stayed in the same place for a long time and has been in 3 GRCs! Another resident said she has lost count of the different GRCs she has been in.
We have been visiting residents in Jalan Besar GRC since a few years ago, after the elections in 2011. You might have heard me knock on your door and greet “晚上好, 工人党, 来拜访!” or “Salam Sejahtera! Kita dari Parti Pekerja!”
The PAP government may change the boundaries and call places different names but the Workers’ Party never changes its aim: to work for the people.
The Workers Party is now back to seek your support and the chance to serve you.
Let me introduce to you my team.
Adrian Sim
This candidate grew up in Geylang and Bedok. Coming from a very humble background, he started working part-time at the age of 15 to supplement the family’s household expenses. He is Adrian Sim Tian Hock.
Adrian has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Australia which he acquired via distance learning while working in the day, and studying at night and on weekends.
Adrian is the managing director of a joint venture business.
Frieda
The next candidate is a familiar face to you. She was my team mate in the WP team that contested in Moulmein Kallang in 2011.
Frieda Chan Sio Phing is a senior medical social worker who assists families with financial difficulties. She also counsels families from diverse backgrounds facing various issues.
She has been active in social service and community work and in WP’s grassroots activities.
Redzwan
The next candidate is Redzwan Hafidz Abdul Razak.
Redzwan has a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in Engineering Business Management.
In 2013, Redzwan was elected as a Youth Wing Exco member. Since 2011, Redzwan has been active with the party as well as a grassroots volunteer serving residents in Aljunied GRC.
Immigration causing increased unemployment in Singapore especially among Singaporean PMETs
Although the govt has tightened the supply of foreign talent, the number of unemployed PMETs (Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians) has not decreased drastically. This is a big problem among middle-aged professionals and mid-level managers.
(MOM) implemented the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) last year to get firms in Singapore to consider Singaporeans fairly for jobs. Its main aim is to prevent employers from using discriminatory hiring practices and avoid hiring Singapore citizens.
In addition, a new national Jobs Bank was also launched last year to facilitate job matching between employers and Singaporean job-seekers – an online portal where all Singapore-registered companies can publish job advertisements targeted at Singapore Citizens and PRs.
No Protection for Lower-Income Singaporeans
But the FCF only protects Singaporeans who earn at least $3,300 a month. The median Singaporean income, excluding employer CPF, is about $3,100 per month. This means that nearly half of all Singaporeans are NOT protected.
If you are a typical diploma holder and earn around $2,000 to $2,500 a month, or you’re a blue collar worker, you still face competition from a big pool of foreigners.
MOM says, and I quote:
“We have not made this compulsory for firms submitting applications for S passes or Work Permits, because there are other tools, such as levies and dependency ratio ceilings that spur firms to search for suitable Singaporeans before applying for an S pass or Work Permit.”
This does not level the playing field for lower income Singaporeans. Foreigners can afford to ask for lower salary. But we cannot. Singapore is already one of the most expensive places to live in. With property, food and transport costs so high, we have to fork out a big portion of our monthly income on those items. And these are essential expenditures. The bottom 40% of Singaporeans, who are not protected by FCF, spend on average about $800-850 per household member on essentials every month. For a family of 4, that would be $3200-$3400 per month. With our high cost of living, we simply can’t afford to charge very low rates for our labour.
PMETs
I have a friend who is 54 years old, going to be 55 soon. He lost his managerial job due to restructuring. He is well qualified and has several years’ of experience in his field. My friend has been out of a job for almost a year now. He has tried applying for hundreds of jobs – unsuccessfully.
Now, I know my unemployed friend is not alone. I believe there are thousands of Singaporeans in the same situation. As of June 2014, there were more than 9,000 Singaporean residents aged 40 and older, holding a degree but unemployed. Those with diplomas or professional qualifications numbered nearly 5,000. All of the unemployed PMETs I spoke with are not demanding any special benefits. Unlike a special group of people, they are not demanding million dollar salaries! They are not even expecting to be paid the same amount when they were gainfully employed. They have reduced their expectations, some to even less than half their last earned salary. Yet this group of Singaporeans are still unable to find a job. We have thousands of PMETs, well qualified and experienced.
If you see the Jobs Bank, there are thousands of jobs available, nearly 60,000 openings. Are our PMETs unable to do these jobs?
Now, I want to make it clear that we are not against foreign talent. There are many talented foreigners in Singapore with skills and expert knowledge that Singapore and Singaporeans lack. Their presence here adds value to our economy. As part of the global economy and as a global city, Singapore needs skilled people from overseas. We welcome such truly talented foreigners.
What I am saying is we must protect our workers from unfair competition.
Singaporeans are in demand all over the world. They have skills the world needs. We see stories in the media regularly that proudly tell of Singaporeans who have made good in other countries – chefs, designers, etc.
The Solution
We therefore propose that all Employment Pass and S-Pass applicants with university degrees and diplomas earned outside Singapore be subject to mandatory Educational Credential Assessment. The cost of the Assessment should be borne by the applicant. The government should appoint an established education consultancy that is independent and has the expertise to conduct the ECA. The ECA report should be sent to the government, prospective employer and applicant.
MOM has started to reject work pass applications that contain “doubtful” qualifications such as those from degree mills. This is to ensure that foreign PMEs are of a “suitable quality and experience”, MOM said. We do not know if similarly dubious applications have made it pass the system over the years. All we know is that the government is finally taking action now. That is the power of your voice! By empowering your future, you can make the government listen to you.
I am Soma, candidate for Jalan Besar GRC.
Vote Workers Party! Empower Your Future!
Thank you!