Productivity, this overwhelming word that comes in all forms, shapes and sizes. It is what companies advocate, it is the primary umbrella under which the company can function and make profits. The more productive we are, the happier the management will be. This means the company earns more. But what is it in for […]
What’s the best way to raise employee morale than to make for a killer workplace? Here are ten offices in Singapore with corporate welfare that extend way beyond “20 days of paid annual leave per year”. A happy and motivated environment makes for creativity, inspiration, “out-of-the-box” thinking and greater productivity than a regimental, kill-joy […]
This article is adapted from “NTUC This Week” Prior to the interview sessions with the union leaders, my idea of union work was simple – to negotiate and bargain for better benefits for workers. I had never given much thought to the importance of union work, as I felt that unions were losing […]
All you needed to know about the work of unions…
Today marks the opening of NTUC’s Ordinary Delegate’s Conference (ODC). The ODC is a mid-term check and report on how much the Congress has done in the labour environment of Singapore. Our unions and labour movement works a little differently from our foreign counterparts – this is direct credit to a functional tripartite model. […]
I’d like to draw your attention to this article produced on “where bears roam free”. For some reason, the writer decided to delete his own article from the site. Nverthless, I shall reproduce it here and my comments to this article are embedded within. I shall make my comments under the name of “Z”. […]
Class, the tables you see below illustrates the typical experience of a western, male expat in Singapore. How accurate do you think this is? (And no, it is not drawn to scale – so don’t go OCD on the graph please) [1 month, happiness factor 40] FOB and excited about life. New city, new […]
On what differentiates a ‘good’ company from a ‘great’ one, I quote Jim Collins: “Looking back on our research, what’s most striking to me about our findings is the absence of a magic moment in any of the good-to-great companies…The real path to greatness, it turns out, requires simplicity and diligence. It requires clarity, not […]
I used to think that Singapore only has one union called the NTUC. and “tripartism” means our NTUC don’t cause trouble, smile smile at events, and run NTUC Fairprice, Income etc. But in the more recent past, my work has crossed paths with many unions. They call it the Labour Movement in Singapore. And after 3 years, […]
In the spirit of May Day, I hope that you will publish my story. Because of diplomacy, many have forgotten how unions and unionists help their members. I think we should be more forthcoming with these stories. This one for example: Once, I encountered a member who was charged for consuming alcohol whilst on duty. He […]