SINGAPORE - Unhappy over the recent pay increase given to their
Malaysian counterparts, 102 mainland Chinese SMRT bus drivers
staged a sit-in yesterday morning.
They gathered beneath their dormitory in Woodlands and refused to
go to work.
Chinese newspaper Shin Min Daily News reported yesterday that the
mainland Chinese bus drivers demanded that they be given equal
pay.
Among the protesters was Mr He, 40, who told Shin Min Daily News
that they were unhappy because Malaysian drivers received a $275
increment and a month's bonus recently.
In contrast, Chinese nationals were given only an extra $75,
without any bonus.
Mr He said that a few bus drivers gathered below the dormitory at
3.30am yesterday and persuaded other drivers not to go to work.
By 8am, a sizeable number of bus drivers in their uniforms had
congregated, he said.
At about 9.30am, an SMRT human-resource (HR) executive and an SMRT
staff member in charge of Woodlands Bus Interchange arrived to
resolve the dispute.
However, when discussions came to a standstill, police officers in
riot vans were called in to maintain order.
Afraid that they would be arrested for gathering illegally, the bus
drivers eventually returned to their dormitory rooms.
The police told My Paper that they received a call about the
protest at about 10am.
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said its labour-relations officers
were at the Woodlands dormitory to work with the drivers and SMRT
on their dispute.
A MOM spokesman said talks between SMRT management and the workers
began yesterday afternoon and ended in the evening.
"MOM takes the workers' actions very seriously. There are
appropriate grievance-handling processes in place, and workers are
advised to speak to their HR and management to discuss and resolve
any employment-related issues amicably, rather than take matters
into their own hands," the spokesman said.
An SMRT spokesman said that drivers who were not rostered to work
yesterday were requested to work as a result of the no-show by the
102 drivers, who will return to work today.
http://www.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/Story/A1Story20121127-385962.html
The drivers, employed by public transport operator SMRT
Corp., were unhappy about having to switch to a six-day work-week
with higher pay from a five-day week. The change meant less
opportunity to earn overtime pay, the Chinese-language Lianhe
Zaobao newspaper reported on its website.
Pictures published by Shin Min Daily News, another
Chinese-language paper, showed drivers gathered on the grounds of a
dormitory where they live, with policemen and vehicles belonging to
riot police around the premises.
Strikes are rare in Singapore where authorities are
quick to step in for fear such action could discourage investors.
The last major strike was in 1986 by shipyard workers.
Lianhe Wanbao quoted a driver saying he now got about
SG$1,400 (US$1,100) a month, down from more than SG$2,000 a month
when he could earn more by working on days off. The Chinese drivers
were also unhappy about being paid less than drivers from Singapore
and Malaysia, it said.
A spokesman for SMRT declined to comment, saying the
company was drafting a statement. State broadcaster Channel
NewsAsia quoted the firm saying that talks were being held with the
drivers.
Singapore is tightly controlled
business and financial center of 5.3 million
people.
Labor
unrest and ethnic differences are both sensitive issues on the
prosperous tropical island which depends on foreign workers, many
of them from China, to do many low-paid jobs.
Many Singapore people complain about the influx of
immigrants and blame the newcomers for pushing down wages, pushing
up costs and increasing congestion.
The government has, in response, raised the levies
companies must pay to hire low-skilled workers from abroad as well
as cut the proportion of foreigners that companies can hire.
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/asia/singapore/2012/11/27/362194/Chinese-bus.htm
China drivers hit brakes
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
More than 100 Chinese bus drivers working in Singapore went on
strike yesterday, disgruntled over their pay from state-linked
transport firm SMRT.
In a rare case
of industrial action in Singapore, they refused to board a shuttle
that was going to ferry them from their dormitory to a nearby
depot. After talks with management - with police on
standby - the drivers said they would report for work today. SMRT
is 54 percent owned by state investment firm Temasek Holdings.
Singapore has been hiring bus drivers from China and Malaysia
because of a chronic shortage of manpower.
One of the
strikers said the dispute arose because they felt aggrieved over a
disparity in pay between Chinese and Malaysian bus
drivers. Those from China earn a basic salary of
S$1,075 (HK$6,814), while those from Malaysia earn S$1,375, the
driver said. The dispute was also about the lack of bonuses for
Chinese bus drivers.
The Ministry of Manpower sternly warned the 102 drivers who took
part in the stoppage, saying it "takes the workers' actions very
seriously" and was closely monitoring the situation.
The National Transport Workers' Union urged the drivers -
who are not union members - to return to work immediately.
No major disruptions were reported during the work stoppage,
which took place during Singapore's year-end school holidays, when
demand for public transport is lower.
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?pp_cat=17&art_id=128699&sid=38327459&con_type=1
