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There have been reports of people attempting to modify the TraceTogether tokens to avoid tracking.

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Data 25-days old are purged as they would be irrelevant and useless.

TraceTogether has helped to speed up contact tracing and keep Singapore.

Don't sabotage Singapore!

Why would the minimum wage be politicised and not the Progressive Wage Model which also has a minimum wage as its first rung?

Why would the minimum wage be politicised and not the Progressive Wage Model which also has a minimum wage as its first rung?

Because the minimum wage is arbitrarily set by a political party.

The Progressive Wage Model on the other hand is negotiated through a tedious process involving consultations, walking the ground to understand the needs, negotiations with unions and industry representatives before the minimum wage is set at a level agreed upon by all, taking into considerations all needs and circumstances.

Dear Pritam Singh, your cleaners are among the 32,000 earning less than $1300 a month

It's taken too long to roll out the Progressive Wage Model. 32,000 is not a small number. It's simply not acceptable that any Singaporean earn less than $1300 a month.

Thus have WP Chief Pritam Singh argued in Parliament.

"And if we can do something about it in double quick time, let's do it," said Pritam Singh.

Well, among the 32,000 earning less than $1300 are the cleaners from Mr Pritam's Town Council.

There is something that WP can do in double quick time and reduce the number of workers earning less than $1300.

And that is, pay their cleaners according to the PWM. $1442 a month.

Pritam Singh complained that the Progressive Wage Model had taken too long to be rolled out. Yet, his cleaners are not even paid according the the PWM already rolled out for the cleaning sector.

Workers' Party pays their town council cleaners less than $1300

In a video shared by Sure Boh Singapore, a cleaner employed by AHTC said that he is paid $1200 a month before CPF deduction.

This is lower that WP's proposed $1300 min take-home wage.

It is also lower than the minimum wage of $1442 for town council cleaners under the Progressive Wage Model. Underpaid!

Given how WP had argued about a moral imperative to pay workers a minimum take-home pay of $1300, and how it is unacceptable and not justifiable to pay workers any less than $1300, Workers' Party should 𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐤.

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬' 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐮𝐦 𝐰𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐬𝐨.

A minimum take-home pay of $1300 means a gross pay of $1625 (for a worker 55 and younger) or $1900 inclusive of employer's CPF contribution.

You don't need to wait for a min wage law.

Ref for video mentioned:

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=345446113191368

The future of jobs and Jamus Lim

The Future of Jobs Report by the World Economic Forum is out. The pace of technology adoption will remain unabated. It will transform tasks, jobs and skills by 2025.

By 2025, work will be divided equally between humans and machines. This shift in the division of labour means 85 million jobs displaced.

97 million new roles may emerge that are more adapted to the new division of labour between humans, machines and algorithms.

And yes, that means training for new skills.

Don't believe it when politicians come along and promise you the easy way.

Like Jamus Lim telling you that good jobs are jobs that you want, jobs that pay well, jobs that don't require you train for new skills beyond school. These are election rhetoric. Empty words.

During the election, Jamus Lim said in a political broadcast:

"I wish to express how important it is that our government doesn’t just promise us jobs, but good jobs. .. Too many of the promised jobs fail to meet up to our expectations,... because they call for us to have skills that the educational system did not provide to us."

With the fast pace of technological change, you either skill-up or be replaced. This is especially so for low wage workers where machines and robots can take over easily.

The answer is not a minimum wage. The answer is how you can stay employed so that you will earn a wage.

When a politician calls for a minimum wage for you while making light of skill-training, you know he does not make sense.

Where are the activists who egged Amos on?

It's not often that we are privileged to see events played out in a short time that allow us to tell these activists how wrong they were.

There was no political persecution or oppression. There was just a wayward boy who needed to be taken in hand and given parental guidance.

But these activists were egging him on when he was still a teenager, holding him up as their hero standing up to an oppressive government, who eventually had to flee from an oppressive country that has no room for him. They urged him on a path of destruction.

He was a political opportunity for them to paint a villain government when Amos was just a boy who ran foul of the law.

Pritam Singh's minimum wage call shows he is out of touch with reality

The Leader of the Opposition is out of touch with reality calling for a universal minimum wage at this time of recession when the priority is to save jobs, not calling for a universal minimum wage to lift wages.

Throwing in words like 'moral imperative' and 'national solidarity' do not make the call wise at this time or the timing right.

Even my mother with her folksy wisdom knows that a pay cut may be necessary for her to keep her job.

Employers have been given the green light by the National Wages Council to implement temporary wage cut if it can save jobs.

Minimum wage is politics, not economics.

The politicians decide, BASED ON THEIR OWN OPINION, what they think a worker should earn at the minimum.

Minimum wage is at best, populism at work. At worst, it is a cosmetic change that looks good on the outside but changes nothing on the inside because it does not address the needs of workers or the needs of the industries where they work.

In economics, wages are determined by supply and demand, and productivity, among other things.

The Progressive Wage Model addresses the needs of the workers AND the needs of the industries.

The sectoral minimum wage is set based on HARD DATA, NOT AN OPINION.

Taking into account the needs of the lift and escalator sector, the sectoral min wage for this sector is set at $1850. That's $550 more than $1300.

Jamus Lim insults union leaders

It's understandable that union leaders are upset. As the saying goes, once a union leader, always a union leader. These are passionate people working for the welfare of workers.

Jamus Lim has not walked a single day with any union leader to understand what they do and what motivates them. Instead, he sets himself apart from them, disdaining their wisdom as that belonging to the common people, based on folklore and beliefs and unscientific.

The wisdom of union leaders are like people who once believed that the sun revolved around the earth.

Really?

Jamus is clearly out of touch.

'Folky wisdom' of unionists have matched thousands of workers to new jobs

The arrogant Jamus Lim looks down on the wisdom of unionists calling that wisdom 'folksy wisdom and beliefs' and 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐝𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡.

Unionists have been hard at work and active on the ground fighting for the rights of retrenched workers, and matching workers to thousands of new jobs.

Jamus has yet to create a good job that pays well and does not require any further training.

Unionists have practical wisdom obtained from the ground. What Jamus has is not even his own study but studies done by others which other people have debunked.

Talk about wisdom.

Jamus Lim and his 'folksy' insult

We know he's got a big ego and must always win with the last word. But today, we discover he also looks down on 'folksy unionists'.

My, my. This guy lives in his own ivory tower.

Wake up, Workers' Party. Don't just read The Hammer.

Wake up, Workers' Party. Don't just read The Hammer.

Raeesah asked for the formation of a committee that is already formed.

Louis asked the government not to keep people unaware but to provide details of Phase 3 reopening when the taskforce had already said more than a week ago that details would be announced.

The best is from Jamus Lim. Not knowing that Minimum Wage Plus is actually Progressive Wage Model, he declared a shift in PAP's stand which he attributed to the election and claimed credit for it.

The Workers' Party must also keep the promises they made during the election and not keep quiet and hope that with time, voters will forget about them.

Good jobs and skills training

To close the gap of inequality, to help workers to access opportunities, to ensure that the fruits of growth are inclusive, and to uplift those at the bottom, skill training and re-training cannot be understated.

Singapore has a comprehensive programme to help our workers stay relevant and to equip them for good jobs - from SkillsFuture to traineeship to professional conversion programme to make a career switch.

It’s unrealistic and out-of-touch to believe that in this day of fast technological change, one does not have to train for skills after your school education.

WP Jamus Lim' expectation of good jobs is far too detached from reality.

Heng Swee Keat: preserving core capabilities and retaining special skills

DPM Heng Swee Keat said in his recent ministerial statement on 5 Oct that we would build a new future by being a Global-Asia node to create good jobs for Singaporeans.

To be a node, we must be connected to the world and this includes physical connectivity. Many global companies have their regional hub here because of good governance here, our stability and connectivity to Asia and the rest of the world.

The pandemic has decimated air travel in the world and devastated SIA and Changi Airport Group, and tourism.

We can either let them flounder, and let businesses shut down one by one and when the pandemic is over and the world recovers, there is no one to greet the opportunities.

Or we can do our best to help and support them, especially to preserve core capabilities and specialised skills so that when the world recovers, we can be the first out of the gate.

Let's have a clear picture of what the Government is doing.

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭, 𝐫𝐞-𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐲 - 𝐰𝐞 𝐝𝐨, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐲'𝐬 𝐬𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞. - Heng Swee Keat

This is a government working very hard to secure the future and to build a better Singapore for their people.

How did we become so full of entitlement?

Check ourselves before it's too late. Have we become so full of entitlement that gratitude becomes alien to us?

So now, some people think it is their right to choose a colour to their liking?

Hey, these are free masks, given from the generosity of Temasek and their efforts to combat COVID-19.

Begin by appreciating that these masks are of good quality and comfortable. Be thankful.

How did we become so full of entitlement?

Jamus Lim, 不要落井下石 !

So the great economist from Workers' Party came to Parliament to propose an environmental tax on SIA, even suggesting that SIA could pass on the cost to passengers.

Is he for real? Is he really an economist?

At a time when SIA is trying to stay afloat, and retrenching thousands of staff to cut costs, he wants to add to its operating costs.

Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung told him there are no passengers to pass the cost to now.

Virtual signalling to show off how moral you are will not solve any problem.

不要落井下石 !

Heng Swee Keat: Ministerial Statement - 5 Oct 20: Safeguarding a Strong Future for Singaporeans

COVID-19 is not our first crisis, and certainly will not be the last. Successive generations have been building up strong reserves ahead of this crisis, and our past reserves have been critical in our fight against COVID-19.

As we dedicate spending to support our people and businesses through this difficult period, we must be careful not to squander what generations before us have painstakingly built up. We will continue to invest decisively on our national priorities, with a deep commitment to leave behind a better future for our children.

We start this new term of government from a challenging fiscal position.

- For this financial year, we expect operating revenues to be 16% lower than initial estimates presented at the Unity Budget in Feb 2020.

- Revenue collections are expected to fall across all categories of revenue.

- Expenditures, on the other hand, will rise.

This challenging fiscal position is a result of a global pandemic that no one could have predicted.

What is within our control is how we use our fiscal resources well to respond to this crisis, and to prepare for the future.

- Excerpt from DPM Heng Swee Keat's statement on 5 Oct

Prudence, not austerity

We have dedicated close to $100 billion to support our people and businesses through this difficult period.

As we do so, we must be careful not to spend in a way that squanders what generations before us have painstakingly built up.

Our guiding principle is prudence, not austerity.

We will continue to invest decisively in our national priorities, with a deep commitment to leave behind a better future for our children.

- DPM Heng Swee Keat

Lee Kuan Yew on his grandchildren

Like most grandfather, Mr Lee Kuan Yew loved all his grandchildren. He had 6 of them.

In an interview with Sinchew in 2011, he described them all as his favourites. But the favourite among favourites was his first grandson, Li Yipeng whom he described as polite, well-spoken and well-mannered.

Yipeng was slower in his studies due to his very poor eyesight and he need binoculars to help him see the words on the blackboard, but he did not give up and slowly caught up and graduated with very good results from NUS.

https://www.sinchew.com.my/content/content_1216753.html

In bad taste and uncalled for. Lee Suet Fern on Lee Kuan Yew and first grandson

In bad taste and totally uncalled for. A very bad reflection on the person of Suet Fern.

Many grandparents will gush at the birth of their grandchildren, whether first male grandson or not.

Lim Suet Fern may want to go on a PR campaign to promote herself. That's really fine but it is appalling for her to take a swipe at Li Yipeng in her eagerness to promote herself and her family.

Obviously the grandparents are not around to defend their first grandson whom they loved and who is very close to them.

What a shame.

Will Pritam Singh keep his promise to review Raeesah Khan's social media posts?

 

When the PAP makes a promise, they are held by voters to the promise they make.

What about the opposition? When they make a promise, are they held to their promise?

Is the Leader of the Opposition,

Pritam Singh

going to keep his promise to conduct a review of Raeesah Khan's post? Or is he hoping that by keeping quiet and by hiding comments, supporters will forget that he had made a promise?

Promises made during an election are meant to be kept after the election.