.....they increased theirs' like nobody's business. they say
their kinds are hard to find so the pay mus match pvt
ones...whereas ordinary folks can come & go...and now they curb
ordinary people's pays somemore because it wud lead to
inflation? ...and all this while the gahmen fees keep going up
& up...who is actually causing the inflation?? 
tell us! tell us!! 
NWC likely to propose lower pay hikes @ Asiaone<!--
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THE National Wages Council faces a tough task in deciding wage
guidelines for this year, analysts said yesterday.
It will have to strike a balance between forces pulling in
different directions.
Elaborating on the conundrum facing the council, Citigroup
economist Kit Wei Zheng said: 'Inflation is quite high, so they
will want wage increases of at least 5 per cent to match the
inflation rate.
'But the economy is likely to slow down, so there is limited
room for employers to give wage increases like last year's.'
Add to this a labour market still hungry for workers and Mr Kit,
like most analysts, foresees the council recommending a 'moderate'
wage increase, lower than last year's.
The council, headed by Professor Lim Pin, gives annual wage
guidelines which are closely watched by the private and public
sectors, as they are one of the clearest and earliest indicators of
any wage changes and bonuses that employees can expect this
year.
As a prelude to its recommendations, the council yesterday asked
for feedback from the public and organisations by April 25.
It is seeking comments 'on wage and wage-related matters,
including issues related to the employment and employability of
older and low-wage workers', the council said in a statement.
In their comments yesterday, analysts said that caution from the
NWC against big pay hikes was almost inevitable despite the
sterling performance of the economy so far.
Between January and last month, the economy grew by 7.2 per
cent. The unemployment rate also fell to a 10-year low of 2.1 per
cent.
Said Standard Chartered Bank economist Alvin Liew: 'It's a
fairly tough call. With a tight labour market, wages will be kept
elevated.'
But with a looming slowdown, the council may take a
'precautionary' stance.
It will seek to improve wage flexibility, calling for a bigger
portion of pay packets to be made variable, he said.
But for low-wage workers, human resource experts like Mr Peter
Lee expect the council to recommend bigger pay hikes for them.
Said Mr Lee, the managing consultant of Remuneration Data
Specialists: 'They need it to cope with inflation.'
But rising wage costs will also add to inflation, the analysts
acknowledged. Inflation this year is likely to be between 5 and 5.5
per cent.
Another issue the NWC is likely to focus on is the fall in value
of the output of each individual worker, or labour productivity.
Again, this means the council may 'rein in' wage growth, said Mr
Kit.
Views to the NWC can be sent by e-mail ([email protected]), fax (6535-4811)
or snail mail to National Wages Council, Labour Relations
Department, Level 4, Ministry of Manpower, 18 Havelock Road,
Singapore 059764.
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They will tell you that they are the talents Singapore can't do
without. Without them Singaporeans will die mah!
