Another article in today’s Straits Times was about Acting Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong’s response to criticisms that the government has been too generous in allowing large numbers of foreign workers to invade our job market, directly competing with Singaporeans for jobs.

On concerns about foreign workers depressing wages in the lower end of the job market, he commented “I don’t think foreigners are to blame. By getting rid of foreigners, it does not mean the salaries of such workers will automatically increase if it doesn’t come with increases in productivity.”

Actually, he is partially right. Foreigners should not be blamed for coming to Singapore to work – everyone are entitled to dream of better lives for themselves and take concrete steps towards it. If there’s anyone to blame, it should be the policy makers – for being too receptive to foreigners, and ignoring the calls of Singaporeans when they offer feedback about how foreigners are taking away their jobs or lowering wages. Going so far as to suggest that low wage earners should improve their productivity to deserve higher pay.

It’s unfair competition in the first place – for these foreign workers live in dormitories or share rooms with dozens of their counterparts, live frugally, and most importantly – have few of the financial concerns that Singaporeans do – a foreign construction worker earning $600 a month does not have to worry about sending his kids to school in Singapore, buying/paying for a home in Singapore, paying for bills in Singapore currency.

Certainly, he has to send money home as well as pay off his debtors for his air ticket and agency fees. But, things are comparatively cheap back home, and however little money in Singapore dollars he sends back to India or Blangadesh, is probably considered not bad there.

I do not think that lower paid Singaporeans are expecting too much to ask for a salary that would allow them to live simply, as Singaporeans – having regular meals for themselves and their families, being able to afford to send their children to school, and continue to afford the same basic neccessities in life during times of trouble when inflation brings about price hikes in everything. If employers are paying Singaporeans any less than what is enough for these, I think its as good as violating human rights.

Why do I say that our policy makers are living in the clouds? They, being high wage earners themselves, are too far away from the low-income earners to feel any of the pain and constraints they are facing in making a decent living. They meet their constituents once in a while, then claim that they understand their predicaments, but tell them that they should work harder and accept ‘market forces’ instead of asking for more.

They make policies that are based straight out of economic textbooks without caring about feelings and sentiments on the group. They accuse low wage earners of being picky about jobs instead of considering why Singaporeans shun those jobs – is it about the work, or more about the indecent pay that is scarcely enough to pay for daily needs?

Maybe the government should consider setting up dormitories for low-income Singaporeans to live like those foreign construction workers – this way, it would save them from having to deal with the harsh reality of being a regular Singaporean – paying off HDB loans for the better half of their lives, having to pay ever-increasing bus fares to go to work everyday, and of course, bills.

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