Chitchat Extra $400 CDC Vouchers for Low SES Retards! Samsters steamed?

CDAC gives $400 e-vouchers to help 8,500 low-income families prepare for new school year​

Chin Hui Shan
Sun, 7 December 2025 at 5:20 pm SGT
3 min read


New assessment books and educational materials were also distributed to CDAC beneficiaries at the event.
SINGAPORE - About 8,500 low-income families will receive $400 worth of e-vouchers each from the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) to help defray expenses for their school-going children and prepare for the new school year.

Announced at the 22nd annual Ready for School event organised by CDAC on Dec 7, these vouchers help to cover the cost of transport, essential school supplies and other educational needs.

More than $3 million in vouchers will be disbursed to CDAC beneficiaries, said the non-profit, self-help group for the Chinese community. In 2024, CDAC disbursed more than $3 million in vouchers, benefiting 8,300 families.



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CDAC said it is also setting aside $47 million to expand its education programmes and support families in 2026, with more details to be announced in the new year.

CDAC is one of four ethnic-based self-help groups in Singapore, along with the Singapore Indian Development Association, the Eurasian Association and Yayasan Mendaki.

Among those receiving the e-vouchers is Madam Suo Sivcheng, 44, who has two children – a daughter aged 11 and a son aged seven.

“I am hoping to get new bags and shoes for my children for the new school year,” said Madam Suo, a part-time waitress who has been the sole breadwinner for the family of four after her husband fell sick in June.



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“My son has been eyeing a new pair of shoes but my income is not enough, so these vouchers help… The vouchers are a lot to us.”

Another beneficiary is 43-year-old part-time hawker Tang Huey Ling. She hopes to use the vouchers to help defray transport costs for her two six-year-old children when they start primary school in 2026.

To qualify for the vouchers, families must have at least one child going to school full-time in 2026, and must be a beneficiary of one of CDAC’s assistance schemes and programmes. The child may be at any education level from kindergarten to university.

The digital vouchers can be redeemed at SimplyGo ticket offices and kiosks. The funds will be topped up to families’ EZ-Link cards or Nets FlashPay cards, and can be used to pay for transport and purchases at any of SimplyGo’s more than 760 participating merchants.



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On the increase in funds for its education and support programmes, CDAC executive director Tan Yap Kin said that more funds would be allocated for things such as long-term mentoring programmes, as well as helping children pursue their interests, such as playing badminton and learning musical instruments.

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“Based on a survey we did, many of the children (would) like to have a hobby, but some of their parents have reflected that reasons like costs, as well as distance and time, may not allow them to afford (it), so this is where CDAC can come in,” he said.

Pursuing hobbies is very important in helping children develop their thinking and regulate their emotions, as well as build friendships, he added.

About 1,500 families attended the Ready for School event at Nanyang Junior College on Dec 7. Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo was also present.



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The event saw families bonding over activities such as arts and crafts, as well as virtual reality and arcade games. There were also free haircuts for students and health screenings for adults.

New assessment books and educational materials were also distributed to CDAC beneficiaries at the event.

This is nice

Mainly mudds….can use the vouchers to buy drugs

$400? Can’t even last 1 month!

myfoot123 said:

Mostly for Syed-Putra.

Click to expand...

He is. Small business owner selling ice cream to little gals

k1976 said:

He is. Small business owner selling ice cream to little gals

Click to expand...

Potong ice-cream ...

For a moment I thought every family's getting it, damm!

Not my problem. My bloodline ends with me.

bobby said:

Mainly mudds….can use the vouchers to buy drugs

Click to expand...

CDAC give welfare to Melayus? Shouldn't their kind get it from Men-ducky instead?

About 8,500 low-income families will receive $400 worth of e-vouchers each from the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC) to help defray expenses for their school-going children and prepare for the new school year.

Click to expand...

Cdac is not cdc
Cdac is Chinese one
Why they give to low Incum m&d?

CDAC is another PAP dog organization that sucks $0.50-$1.00 from sinkies pay, I always opt out.

And if any sinkie encounters foreigner HR that is not sinkie or Malaysian, you must spend extra time to explain to them what the fuck is this Shitgapore rubbish, that is if the foreigner HR even wants to hire a Singaporean in the first place, this is the case for most MNCs here

CDAC? Did zero fucking thing for me my entire life

nabeifuckpap said:

CDAC is another PAP dog organization that sucks $0.50-$1.00 from sinkies pay, I always opt out.

And if any sinkie encounters foreigner HR that is not sinkie or Malaysian, you must spend extra time to explain to them what the fuck is this Shitgapore rubbish, that is if the foreigner HR even wants to hire a Singaporean in the first place, this is the case for most MNCs here

Click to expand...

I also opted out of the fucking CDAC deduction but there was quite an amount of inconvenience I had to go through in doing so.

My main grieve were :

Automatic deduction because you are Chink
Fucking CEO salary for which I am paying
This is the role of the gahmen

What a bunch of fucking retards. Can't even take care of themselves.

Singaporean workers feel trapped over job mismatch​

Updated: 2025-12-23 09:53

Pedestrians ride escalators in the central business district of Singapore on May 19. Getty Images
Singaporean workers are ending 2025 with the dull ache of feeling trapped in jobs that fall short of their expectations and suspecting that working harder would not pay off either.
Employers, on the other hand, believe they are rocking away on employee expectations.
This mismatch is among the findings and views gleaned from surveys and human resources specialists.
Employment portal Seek, which polled the views of 500 employees and 300 employers over two months from October, said the gap was surprising because employers reported raising pay and benefits to meet staff demands in an earlier study conducted in 2024.
Yet now, eight in 10 workers say their jobs underdeliver on the job pitch.
The firm's latest survey found that disenchantment hits fast, with new joiners spotting the mismatch within their first three months — such as when their payslip fails to reflect actual responsibilities, their job scopes blur, or when the culture feels off.
Chook Yuh Yng, Seek's director of Asia sales, said employees' unhappiness with job pitches is making them question employers' transparency, which, in turn, leads to greater mistrust and frustration.
On their end, nine in 10 managers said new hires change expectations shortly after joining. And they are not being disputed: Almost half of employees agree, with most citing mental health and well-being as the reason.
In 2025, Singapore workers also lag behind their peers across the Asia-Pacific in believing that doing a better job will lead to higher pay.
The observations made by global consultancy Mercer also showed that fewer workers here know what their company has lined up for their career advancement.
The twin findings, said Marieke van Raaij, Mercer's regional employee engagement solutions leader, dampen workers' enthusiasm for learning new skills such as artificial intelligence. "Employees that believe they're fairly paid are 1.8 times as likely to spend more than 15 percent of their time learning new skills for work, compared with those who feel they are not fairly compensated."
Already, Singapore workers are no more likely than their global peers to spend time on learning, despite the abundant training, she said.
Another trend of 2025, as borne out by labor statistics, is that workers are clinging to jobs amid slowing hiring, headlines of layoffs, and company closures.
Jessica Zhang, HR solutions firm ADP's senior vice-president for Asia-Pacific, said: "Job-hugging is real …but beneath that stability, there is a quiet churn.
"Workers may wait longer before making a move, but their drive to progress remains strong. Many are building skills, watching the market and moving when the timing feels right," she said.
Claire Teo, executive search firm Ethos BeathChapman's associate director for technology and sales, agrees.
"Many feel their current roles are stable but stagnant. So, while they remain prudent and do their due diligence, their willingness to explore conversations with future-ready organizations is much higher than before," she said.
Candidates are also studying prospective employers more and asking deeper questions earlier in the job hunt, she said.
"Their biggest fear is leaving a stable job only to join a company that might restructure, and being the newest hire often comes with a 'last in, first out' concern."
If there is a silver lining, it is that these workers are shoring up institutional knowledge.
Teo said: "Though job cruising does not sound ideal, job-hugging employees are maintaining business continuity, especially at a time when companies are far more cautious about costs."
ADP's Zhang said there are already early signs of more transactional employment relationships, especially among younger workers.
The rise in fractional work will lead to higher use of part-time and contingent workers, though full-time workforces would still be kept for core operations, long-term projects and to maintain institutional knowledge and culture, noted recruitment firm ManpowerGroup Singapore.
Its country manager Linda Teo said: "Economic uncertainty is prompting employers to prioritize agility over fixed costs, making contingent talent an attractive option.
"Rapid technological change is creating demand for niche expertise on short-term projects, where hiring specialists is faster than upskilling internally."
Workers, too, are warming up to short-term assignments for variety and control.
Contract AI engineers for implementation projects, temporary logistics staff during festive surges and temporary professionals to fill staffing gaps at hospitals are examples of contingent jobs, she said.
As offices prepare to welcome 2026, the talent experts urge more conversations between bosses and their teams.
Workers feeling underpaid or underwhelmed is nothing new, Chook said. It reflects the difficulties of employers to satisfy their staff while meeting business demands.
She added: "In Singapore, employees often hesitate to voice concerns and employers may sometimes interpret this silence as alignment …There is a need for this to change.
"Employees need to articulate their needs and question unclear expectations, and employers must recognize that listening and transparency are essential for trust and retention."
Rather than asking if employees or employers are primed to get what they want, Linda Teo suggests focusing on how both sides can move closer to shared outcomes.
She said: "Rigid expectations rarely hold in today's fast-paced environment. What can make the difference is open dialogue and flexibility."
THE STRAITS TIMES, SINGAPORE