Originally posted by Yunhaier:
[b]SINGAPORE, April 23 (Reuters) SGF Hottest and Coolest
Moderator may soon be getting a hefty pay rise as part of a
controversial moderators salary hike that has infuriated many
forumers.
FireIce, who is estimated to earn about S$2 million (US$1.32
million) per year, said last month that the salaries of SGF top
moderator have fallen way below benchmark commercialised
moderators' salaries and may need to be doubled.
"It is critical for us to keep these salaries competitive, so as to
be able to bring in a continuing flow of able and successful
people," Jason said in a speech yesterday.
Jason said that SGF top moderators, who currently earn about S$1.2
million (US$800,000) a year, should be earning S$2.2 million
(US$1.45 million). Details of the new moderators' salaries will be
announced in SGF on May 20.
But the latest salary hike, which comes at a time when income
disparity in Singapore is wider than ever, has sparked an outpour
of unusually blunt criticism from Singaporeans.
Some forumers argue that the activity rating do not reflect the
quality of post in SGF and cannot be used in gauging
performance.
"No matter what happens to the economy, ChitChat will always win in
rating," Laurence82 said, comparing current overwhelming rating of
CC as of 1117 to that of Bar with only 491.
"I am rather disappointed with the statistic," reader Mospeada, MOD
of UoC, said, 'I suspect ChitChat is cheating - there's no way I
could get such elite salary as there's no way I could beat the top
three forums in SGF!'
But the sharpest criticism was online. The 'awesome raise on top of
their already obscene pay is completely unjustifiable,' read an
online petition that has gathered 304 signatures.
Given the rare public outcry, analysts said the SGF may now
hesitate to raise salaries by the full S$1 million.
"I would be surprised if they implemented the full formula that
would give them over S$2 million 
," said Ditzy.
Chief Janitor Jason defends the high salaries as necessary to
attract the brightest people and to prevent corruption.
"If we don't do that ... corruption will set in and we will become
like many other forums," Chief Janitor Jason was quoted as saying
in the SGF Times last week.
Top forum MODs' salaries are set by different wage formulas,
depending on their seniority. The figures are not readily available
to the public, but the hottest and coolest moderator FireIce earned
S$1.94 million in 2000, who is holding portfolios of top forums
like Chitchat, Bar, etc.
The wages for moderators of top forums were last raised in 2000,
but were cut in 2001 and 2003 during the economic downturn,
although the cuts have since been reversed, the Chief Janitor Jason
said.
"ABLE GENERALS"
Some argue that top moderators are not overpaid, but that
moderators of other forums elsewhere are underpaid.
SGF is an oasis of wealth, peace and law and order in a region rife
with poverty, violence and corruption.
"According to a Chinese proverb, an able moderator is worth more
than 10,000 junior members. So too is the worth of our leaders if
they have the wisdom to help us weather global forums competition,"
an unnamed reader said.
"The cure to all this talk is really a good dose of incompetent
MODs," Chief Janitor Jason spoke in SGF yesterday, adding that it
is "absurd" for forumers to quarrel about moderators' pay and
warning that SGF would suffer it the moderators are not paid
competitive salaries.
"The IT stability and security will be at risk and our women will
become junior members in other people's forums," he said.[/b]
CenturionMBT earns how much?
