The following excerpts are taken from The Straits Times dated
14/04/09,Home section Page B2.
[ Two publications in the Philippines --- the Manila Standard
Today and the Philippine Star --- on April 4th quoted the country's
President as saying she has secured 5,000 positions at the
casino resort --- opening next year --- for Filipinos.
She was quoted as saying she had sent a delegation to Singapore
last month to explore job opportunities for Filipino nationals
here,and added that Labour Secretary Marianito Roque met
Resorts World at Sentosa chief executive officer Tan Hee Teck to
talk about opportunities for Filipinos.
When asked about the Filipino media reports,Resorts
World spokesman Robin Goh would only confirm a meeting had taken
place."The Philippine Embassy requested a meeting with
Resorts World at Sentosa,which Resorts World hosted.Jobs
for Filipinos were discussed during the meeting,in which Resorts
World stated our committment to hire Singaporeans
first,particularly in this recession."
He added,"Resorts World will offer 10,000 jobs when we open,and
we expect the bulk of them to go to Singaporeans."He said
the resort currently has 500 employees,of whom 80 per cent are
Singaporeans and residents here.The remaining 20 percent
hail from countries like Australia,Britain,Malaysia and the United
States.
Mr Goh said these foreigners were hired for positions in
the casino and the theme park which have not been offered before in
Singapore and for which there is no ready pool of experienced
Singaporeans. ]
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Anyone remember my Open Letter To Mr Lim Swee Say last year?
Let us recall a few things i pointed out ;
1)When i attempted to apply for training and upgrading
opportunities for the IR,through the WDA/E2i,i came away totally
bewildered and came to the following conclusions.(For the record,i
enquired about a Sales & Marketing position through E2i and was
offered "Waitress".)
The Silver Serpents at WDA/E2i are a waste of public funds,and
are unable to perform basic tasks such as provide accurate
information,keeping their word and basic courtesy.
And now in a separate newspaper report,they are claiming they
cannot find enough Singaporeans to train for the IR?
Typical Singapore Civil Service.Blame the Citizens.
What to do?
It's our fault we voted in a government that breeds and
tolerates such a Civil Service.
2)I then took the initiative and trawled through the Resorts
webpage to look for positions offered.What i saw there surprised
me,because the jobs requirements looked like it was designed by a
Filipino.Every single position right down to the entry-level
positions like Chambermaids required someone "who speaks excellent
English".
Back then,i was already wondering if their HR was headed by a
Filipino.
Will the Singapore PAP government AND Resorts World step
forward to tell us exactly who is heading and shaping the HR
policies of Resorts World?
3)Back when Parliament was debating about legalising casinos in
Singapore,it was promised that 7 out of 10 jobs would go to
Singaporeans.It was also promised that casino jobs pay would be
pegged to International Standards.
What has happened now?First the news breaks that the Filipino
President stated that she has secured 5000 jobs for
Filipinos...then and i quote,"He said the resort currently
has 500 employees,of whom 80 per cent are Singaporeans and
residents here."
There is a big difference in promising every 7 out of 10 jobs
would go to Singaporeans...And the saying 80 percent of the 500
employees are Singaporeans and residents.A
foreigner residing in Singapore for the purpose of employment is
also a resident.DUH.
And now on to the pay.The figure bandied about at the beginning
was $2,500/mth for an entry-level croupier.Now?They are offering
$1,200-$1,600/mth.What a big drop!
4)Finally,and i quote ; "Mr Goh said these foreigners
were hired for positions in the casino and the theme park which
have not been offered before in Singapore and for which there is no
ready pool of experienced Singaporeans."
Here we go again,the eternal excuse given by the WDA/Labour
Movement,for their failure to anticipate future labour needs and
give Singaporeans the opportunities to gain experience in
industries.
Back then i already mentioned that this is not a good
reason,this to me is a totally unacceptable excuse.I even offered
some ideas on possible solutions,some of which have been
incorporated into the SPUR program.
The private enterprise SHATEC took up one of the ideas too.They
have set up an overseas branch in Macau and send their students
over to Macau to learn the casino skills and gain experience.
I had one final bold suggestion which i will repeat here ;
"Throw Singaporeans into the deep end.Let them gain the
experience.It doesn't matter if service standards drop for the
short term.Let them grow and you will see the fruits of service
that comes from the heart,because they believe they are
representing their country when they go to work!"
It's a recession anyway.Kopi again anyone? :D