We refer to the article “Manpower crunch a challenge for SMEs but foreign worker limits to stay: PM Lee” (Straits Times, May 7).

Inflow of foreign workers is reduced?

It states that “Manpower is a major concern of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) here especially as the inflow of foreign workers is reduced, but the Government cannot ease up on the foreign worker limits, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Wednesday.

“We are still allowing in more foreign workers, so the number of foreign workers here is still growing, although not as fast as before and not as much as employers and companies would like. We know that even this is still not enough, and that SMEs have to turn away business because they don’t have workers to service the business,” said PM Lee.

“But unfortunately we cannot ease up on the foreign worker limits and we hope companies understand. Because we have to manage the inflow, manage what we can accommodate in Singapore, manage the total numbers,” he added.”

The “rhetoric” vs the statistics?

– This consistent rhetoric of curtailing the influx of foreign workers has been going on for years.

Let’s look at the statistics.

260,000 jobs to locals vs 470,000 jobs to foreigners?

From 2007 to June 2013, we increased jobs to locals (Singaporeans and permanent residents (PRs)) and foreigners – by 260,000 and 470,000 respectively.

450,000 new citizens and PRs?

From 2007 to December 2013 – we granted 450,000 new citizenships and permanent residencies (PRs).

So, how many of the 260,000 jobs to locals, actually went to “true blue” Singaporeans?

Let’s look at the latest available labour data to put the remarks “We are still allowing in more foreign workers, so the number of foreign workers here is still growing, although not as fast as before and not as much as employers and companies would like” – in the right perspective.

More than 50% of workers not “Singaporeans”?

The percentage of non-Singaporeans in the total workforce has increased to 53%. If we make an adjustment for the 133,000 new citizens in the last 7 years, and foreign spouses working on letters  of consent from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM)  and foreign university interns/foreign student interns studying in Singapore – which we believe are not counted in the total workforce statistics – the percentage of non-Singaporeans must be more than half of the total number of workers.

Foreign tourists looking for jobs?

If we are really serious about curtailing the influx of foreign workers – why do we still allow foreigners to come to Singapore on tourist visas to look for jobs?

Schemes to attract Singaporeans to work?

As to “To address these manpower concerns, said Mr Lee, the Government has put in place various schemes and grants to make SME jobs more attractive to Singaporeans and to raise their productivity.

He pointed to programmes such as the SME Talent Programme to match polytechnic and Institute of Technical Education students to SMEs, and schemes like the Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC) which gives companies tax grants and deductions when they invest to boost capabilities”

– Arguably, most if not all of these schemes in the recent years, have failed to raise wages, particularly for lower-income workers.

Let’s look at the statistics.

Third World wages?

Why are we still paying Third World wages – of as little as $5 plus an hour to Singaporeans, and as little as $18 a day to foreign workers, when the cost of living is one of the highest in the world?

So many lower-income workers?

There were 207,100 residents earning below $1,000, 416,900 below $1,500 and 627,800 below $2,000.

Since the total workforce was 2,004,600 in 2012 – it means that about 1 in 10 earn below $1,000, 1 in 5 earn below $1,500 and 3 in 10 earn below $2,000.

As  to “worker shortages” and a tight labour market – why is it that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate of Singaporeans has increased  from 2.8 to 3.0% in the last quarter?

Shouldn’t the unemployment rate be coming down if we have a tight labour market, instead of up?

With regard to “increased wages”

Negative real total wage change?

According to the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) web site, the real annual total wage change (excluding employer CPF) from 2008 to 2012, was -2.4, -1.0, 2.7, 0.1 and -0.8, respectively.

This works out to a cumulative real decrease in wage change of about -1.5% or -0.29 per annum, from 2008 to 2012 – A negative real total wage change for the last 5 years.

Real income growth?

Real median income change from 2008 to 2013 was only about 1.0 per cent per annum

… for the 20th percentile – the real change per annum for the last 10 years was only about 0.3 per cent

Real growth in graduates’ starting pay negative?

… The real growth in university, polytechnic and Institute of Technical Education (ITE)  graduates starting pay has been negative in the last 7 years or so.

Go to Malaysia because of lower costs?

With regard to “Mr Lee pointed to Iskandar Malaysia – a growing economic zone in the state of Johor – as an option for SMEs to expand production facilities or sell their products and services.

“There are opportunities for companies. You can take advantage of lower costs, take advantage of more space there, more land there and at the same time stay close to Singapore,” he said”

Suggestions on helping SMEs

– If we are serious about really helping SMEs –

… government landlords like the Jurong Town Corporation (JTC) should reduce rents

… we should reduce the taxes on commercial vehicles

… Certificates of Entitlement (COEs) for SMEs should be moderated as a special category or rebated in some way to SMEs to offset their overall business costs

… foreign worker levies in the multiples of billions a year should be used to help SMEs pay higher wages to Singaporean workers, particularly to lower income workers, etc.

No wonder so many workers are stressed?

Looking at all of the above – is it  any wonder that so many workers are stressed? (“One-quarter of workers report high stress levels“, Straits Times, May 7).

SY Lee and Leong Sze Hian