Union leaders have given their endorsement for a Cheaper,
Better, Faster or C-B-F strategy to drive Singapore's economy into
the next phase of growth.
But even as the unionists pledged their support at the NTUC
Ordinary Delegates Conference, there were also
concerns.
They were worried about how it would translate on the ground and
impact workers.
Saifulbahri Ismail with this report :
High on the list of concerns was how companies
might interpret what cheaper, better and faster means.
Cheaper shouldn't mean cutting wages and benefits, downsizing and
employing more foreign workers to keep labout costs
down.
Better and faster shouldn't mean shedding older and low-skilled
workers in favour of younger and more skilled ones.
Also, in the race to be cheaper, better, and faster, workplace
safety shouldn't be compromised.
Making his closing remarks at the conference, Secretary-General of
NTUC Lim Swee Say addressed these concerns by re-iterating the key
principles of the CBF concept.
It's about improving productivity, broadening capabilities, and
having flexibility :
"It's very important that the management has the same understanding
of the CBF because the CBF economy is not about downsizing the
workforce, it's not just about applying them to manufacturing
sector, it's not about just including the younger workers, better
educated workers, but instead it should be inclusive for all
workers young and old."
Mr Lim said the pace of transforming the Singapore economy would
have to be led by the private sector.
This, as the labour movement works towards helping put on track the
CBF economy in the next two years.
Mr Lim would like to see some early success by targeting individual
companies :
"Over the next two years, the labour movement, our focus will be in
terms of creating a series of early success towards the CBF. What
this means is that where they will be working in the manufacturing
sector, services sector, some big companies, some small companies,
some could be in the export-oriented sector, some could be more
domestic bound. So, in all these sectors, we want to create early
success to demonstrate how the CBF concept can be implemented on
the ground."
To ensure companies have the same interpretation of the CBF
strategy, NTUC will work closely with the Singapore National
Employers' Federation or SNEF in the months ahead.
--938Live