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[h=2]Survey: 50% couples not having babies because ‘Money No Enough’[/h]
October 6th, 2012 |
Author: Editorial
According to a recent survey conducted by voluntary welfare organisation ‘I Love Children’, about 1 in 2 couples (50%) said not having enough finances is the main reason for not having children. Another 33% or 1 in 3 couples cited not being mentally prepared as another reason for putting off having children.
A total of 614 participants were involved in the survey.
‘I Love Children’ is a voluntary welfare organization set up in September 2005 with a purpose of keeping Singapore young — by advocating a higher priority to having children, and promoting a society where children are loved and mainstreamed. It hopes to inculcate the value and importance of parenthood and family among Singaporeans, as well as encourage a children-friendly environment in Singapore.
The survey results were revealed at dialogue session yesterday (5 Oct) attended by Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Madam Halimah Yacob.
At the dialogue session, 26-year-old Ms Gillian Neo, said, “Currently, infant care in Singapore is still quite expensive. Even the more affordable ones, after government subsidies, is still $700 a month.”
Mdm Halimah said that the biggest challenge the government faces is convincing couples that having children is important.
She said, “We can try to give more subsidy support and look at ways of improving the infrastructure (and) environment for our young people, but at the end of the day, I think it’s also important that they have to recognise these issues.”
“What I’m really glad hearing is that, at some point, (couples) realise that priorities are important… they recognise that children are important.”
During the the dialogue session, young parents also said that flexi-work arrangements are a major incentive as that will enable them to spend more time with their children.
However, there is still a lot of resistance in the mentality of some of the management of companies towards this mode of working.
“I was offered a full-time work from home arrangement with my previous employer… Six months into it, it really fell flat on the ground. One of the reasons was my immediate supervisor was really not supportive of the arrangement,” said Mandy Loh, a freelance writer.
“I tried so hard, I really put in my best to make it work but I think it was just not really appreciated on her part.”
Madam Halimah said she will work closely with the Singapore National Employers Federation and other agencies on this matter.
She said the issue is selling the idea to SMEs.
She said, “In fact, there have been studies done by the employers federation, for instance, to show that for every dollar spent on flexi-work options, the return is S$1.68.”
Madam Halimah also suggested that flexi-work arrangements could be used to attract people to work for SMEs, which are currently facing a labour crunch.
.
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According to a recent survey conducted by voluntary welfare organisation ‘I Love Children’, about 1 in 2 couples (50%) said not having enough finances is the main reason for not having children. Another 33% or 1 in 3 couples cited not being mentally prepared as another reason for putting off having children.
A total of 614 participants were involved in the survey.
‘I Love Children’ is a voluntary welfare organization set up in September 2005 with a purpose of keeping Singapore young — by advocating a higher priority to having children, and promoting a society where children are loved and mainstreamed. It hopes to inculcate the value and importance of parenthood and family among Singaporeans, as well as encourage a children-friendly environment in Singapore.
The survey results were revealed at dialogue session yesterday (5 Oct) attended by Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Madam Halimah Yacob.
At the dialogue session, 26-year-old Ms Gillian Neo, said, “Currently, infant care in Singapore is still quite expensive. Even the more affordable ones, after government subsidies, is still $700 a month.”
Mdm Halimah said that the biggest challenge the government faces is convincing couples that having children is important.
She said, “We can try to give more subsidy support and look at ways of improving the infrastructure (and) environment for our young people, but at the end of the day, I think it’s also important that they have to recognise these issues.”
“What I’m really glad hearing is that, at some point, (couples) realise that priorities are important… they recognise that children are important.”
During the the dialogue session, young parents also said that flexi-work arrangements are a major incentive as that will enable them to spend more time with their children.
However, there is still a lot of resistance in the mentality of some of the management of companies towards this mode of working.
“I was offered a full-time work from home arrangement with my previous employer… Six months into it, it really fell flat on the ground. One of the reasons was my immediate supervisor was really not supportive of the arrangement,” said Mandy Loh, a freelance writer.
“I tried so hard, I really put in my best to make it work but I think it was just not really appreciated on her part.”
Madam Halimah said she will work closely with the Singapore National Employers Federation and other agencies on this matter.
She said the issue is selling the idea to SMEs.
She said, “In fact, there have been studies done by the employers federation, for instance, to show that for every dollar spent on flexi-work options, the return is S$1.68.”
Madam Halimah also suggested that flexi-work arrangements could be used to attract people to work for SMEs, which are currently facing a labour crunch.
.
Join our TRE facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/TREmeritus
dowan baby just say dowan lah!
