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Chitchat PMET Success! From Banker to Dish Washer Huat Ah!

Pinkieslut

Alfrescian
Loyal
Out of work and out of luck in search for full-time jobs

Richard is aged 48, single and holds a master's degree in financial management.

Four years ago, the former senior banker lost his $14,000-a -month job. Life has been a long struggle since.

He found work in two small information technology companies. But when the businesses hit a rough patch, he was retrenched.

In between his search for full- time work, he did odd jobs such as washing dishes in a restaurant and distributing flyers.

Flitting from one temporary job to another is typical of many in the growing pool of out-of-work professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs), who are taking longer to find permanent jobs.

Manpower Ministry figures released this week show that, on average, only 47.9 per cent of residents last year got a job within six months of being laid off - the first time in at least seven years that the proportion fell below 50 per cent.

BOSSES NOT WILLING TO ADAPT
I am willing to adapt, but I feel employers are not willing to adapt. They keep wanting people with the right experience.

A 48-YEAR-OLD FORMER SENIOR BANKER, who lost his $14,000-a-month job four years ago.
HARD TO GET BACK ON TRACK
Once they fall off a career track, it may be hard to get back on because, if the industry picks up again, employers may see jobs like driving Uber or selling property as irrelevant experience.

SINGAPORE UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES LABOUR ECONOMIST WALTER THESEIRA
The situation is worse for PMETs and degree holders, whose re-entry rates are 43.9 per cent and 42.5 per cent, respectively.


In addition, 1 per cent of degree holders in the resident labour force were jobless for at least 25 weeks, compared with the overall average of 0.8 per cent.

One of Richard's biggest obstacles is convincing employers that he is willing to work for as little as $3,000 a month, or to take a chance with him despite his lack of experience.

At one job fair, he applied for a caregiver role but was told it required related experience.

"I am willing to adapt, but I feel employers are not willing to adapt. They keep wanting people with the right experience," he said.

Experts say one of the biggest dilemmas facing jobless PMETs is whether to take the first job that comes along even if it is less than ideal, or to wait for a better one.

"Once they fall off a career track, it may be hard to get back on because, if the industry picks up again, employers may see jobs like driving Uber or selling property as irrelevant experience," said Singapore University of Social Sciences labour economist Walter Theseira.

NeXT Career Consulting Group managing director Paul Heng said PMETs need to be alert to technological changes and upgrade their skills in time.

Citing the insurance industry, he noted that technology has made it easier to buy products online instead of through agents.

National Trades Union Congress U PME Centre consultant Loh Peizhen advised people who are unemployed for long periods to keep their skills relevant and to spend time networking.

"Consider doing short-term project work and reconnect with old networks and form new networks," she said.
 
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Leongsam

High Order Twit / Low SES subject
Admin
Asset
When he was earning $14,000 per month he should have been working towards achieving financial independence instead of spending it all.

Had could have saved at least HALF his take home pay had he been financially prudent.

Saving $6000 per month plus whatever bonuses he earned would have meant at least $100,000 per annum in savings.
 

Kakamora

Alfrescian
Loyal
$14000 a month is probably a SVP-level.
I am surprised that he lost his bank job when the local banking industry was roaring 4 years ago.

4 years ago, a senior banker of his calibre should still be able to easily find a $100K/annum job with other banks.
 

ramai

Alfrescian
Loyal
Those who work in the finance industry often find the need to appear high-classed to other banks, hence their high expenses.

Had he been an ang moh, I bet he will find a job easily.
 

Pinkieslut

Alfrescian
Loyal
$14000 a month is probably a SVP-level.
I am surprised that he lost his bank job when the local banking industry was roaring 4 years ago.

4 years ago, a senior banker of his calibre should still be able to easily find a $100K/annum job with other banks.

Why are you surprised? You living in Ivory Tower with the white gang?

Many local bankers here have been fired since 2008 GFC. Same story with many Angmo expats.

Go read CNN, MSNBC, Forbes, Guardian, BBC, you will tons of stories of ex-bankers in London and New York trying to find their feet after leaving the industry. Lehman Brother's female CFO at that time (who is known as a two faced backstabbing bitch) has even written a book on how she found herself after the collapse and now is a stay home mother.

You can buy her book if you interested to lick her pussy:

https://www.amazon.com/Full-Circle-memoir-leaning-journey/dp/0997382112

Remember Private Banking (from high end to mid tier priority banking)? It was so bloody hot hot during the early to mid 2000 period, with truck loads of ex civil servants, engineers getting into the industry. Many of them are now gone. Some were smart enough and quickly move back to their old job armed with new financial skills. I know of a few who are now just driving taxis or sellng trinklets on Worldpress/Shopify. And they are from high end banks like Credit Suisse, UBS, Coutts, etc.

One of the guys, a UBS private banker was called left and right by Head Hunters during the hey days. Now people dont touch him with 10 feet pole. The numerous financial scams by "fund managers" have left many of the Asian rich highly suspicious of "bankers" or "products", prefer to deal directly with the known high calibre investment gurus or hire their own investment team. Li Kai Shing for example recruited the the Hong Kong Head of Coutts Bank to be his personal investment manager in 2013.

I suspect that is now the same case too with insurance industry. You no longer hear huat huat stories like the hey days of AIA's Mary Chen Ming Lee or that frauster disciple Sally Low (who is now in jail). People are getting smarter, prefer to read info online themselves, be hands on, buy direct (online financial product selling is now the biggest growing sector). Same with Remisiers. No more likes of Peter Lee LOL. I suspect next is the property industry.

People used to say jobs in compliance and risk management (especially with more regulations coming in after GFC) are super safe. You know what happened? Now many of the operational paper shuffling stuff has been offshored in India and Philippines, with many new automated technologies using big data and analytics to cut down the work. The remaining staff are squeezed with more work as lost headcounts are never replaced. Either you give up in the end or forced to eat bitter medicine.
 
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Kakamora

Alfrescian
Loyal
Why are you surprised? You living in Ivory Tower with the white gang?

Many local bankers here have been fired since 2008 GFC. Same story with many Angmo expats.

Ya, i must be a kokonut. This person's story is just unusual. The cited examples in your post are mostly overseas banks. Four years ago was 2013, when more local bankers were headhunted than fired outright. According to his story, he left during the boom of his trade (in the last decade) whereby banks still paid $100K a year to headhunt people like him.

Secondly, my relatives and friends did lose their bank jobs in the last decade, because some banks transfered their ops center to India and Malaysia or they are the lower ranked RMs in consumer banking or AVPs in SME banking got bullied by the SVPs. However, these are not the folks who can command $10000 or $14000 a month four years ago.

Back then, and now, those who commands $14000 a month are still well-protected and busy screwing chicks, because their juniors will be the one taking fault for the defaults.
 
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Kakamora

Alfrescian
Loyal
It's unbelievable that he had no savings while drawing $14k a month.

I know CPA auditors who gross 15-20K a month and indebted because:
- they must drive a CAT B car, instead of a CAT A
- they must stay in Condo and not HDB but condo is too small, so they fork out more money for a larger Condo unit after married.
- they must spend $1K a month per child for their childcare, excluding other expenses
- they must own a small overseas property and buy some shares because they are supposed to be more financially shrewd.
- they must bring their family for at least an overseas trip beyond Southeast Asia (eg. Australia, Japan, Europe) annually which costs over $12k for the family.
- they must hire a maid because even if the wife is an housewife, it's a social status.
 

Pinkieslut

Alfrescian
Loyal
I am not but your reasoning and writings lacks local context, are you based overseas?

You meant lack local bank context? Yes a lot of the firings and downsizing has happened with the international banks in SG. But even local banks aren't safe. UOB fired a bunch of RMs last year, and DBS laid off a number of ops/IT people too (while building a huge campus in Hyderbrad).
 

Pinkieslut

Alfrescian
Loyal
I know CPA auditors who gross 15-20K a month and indebted because:
- they must drive a CAT B car, instead of a CAT A
- they must stay in Condo and not HDB but condo is too small, so they fork out more money for a larger Condo unit after married.
- they must spend $1K a month per child for their childcare, excluding other expenses
- they must own a small overseas property and buy some shares because they are supposed to be more financially shrewd.
- they must bring their family for at least an overseas trip beyond Southeast Asia (eg. Australia, Japan, Europe) annually which costs over $12k for the family.
- they must hire a maid because even if the wife is an housewife, it's a social status.

True story, one international bank ops single guy earning over 120K actually owe 100K in credit card debt. Yes I am spinning stories.
 

JohnTan

Alfrescian (InfP)
Generous Asset
Being a dishwasher can't be that bad. Suckit Sushi's boss was offering a monthly salary of $3000 for a dishwasher. It's pretty good money, better than junior PMET roles.
 

johnny333

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
I never made that much($14k) $$$ each month, but I did invest what little $$ I made. Today I am receiving dividends each year which is higher than the salary I was making.

There is a withholding tax of 30% on my US investments. Same, same in Spore where we have to pay CPF on our salary.

It may not be $14k /month i.e. $168k per year, but I am still re-investing the surplus dividens I get, because my daily expenditure is low & I have zero debts. No home mortgage, no credit card debt & no car loan.

Appearances is not important to me. So what if I have to take public transport, fly budget, have no maid,.... What's important is that I have less stress :smile:
 

Kakamora

Alfrescian
Loyal
You meant lack local bank context? Yes a lot of the firings and downsizing has happened with the international banks in SG. But even local banks aren't safe. UOB fired a bunch of RMs last year, and DBS laid off a number of ops/IT people too (while building a huge campus in Hyderbrad).

UOB fired a bunch of RMs last year - Yes, lower-ranked RMs, SVPs drawing 14000 in local banks are very safe. The junior RMs takes the shit for them.
and DBS laid off a number of ops/IT people too - Yes, including my relative in ops

This is why I mentioned that those who draw 14000 a month are well-protected and busy bonking chicks while those in the lower realms are sacrificed.
The story of "Richard" does not make sense in local banking industry due to the time-line. It is probably published with other ulterior motives or objectives.
 

Kakamora

Alfrescian
Loyal
I never made that much($14k) $$$ each month, but I did invest what little $$ I made. Today I am receiving dividends each year which is higher than the salary I was making.

There is a withholding tax of 30% on my US investments. Same, same in Spore where we have to pay CPF on our salary.

It may not be $14k /month i.e. $168k per year, but I am still re-investing the surplus dividens I get, because my daily expenditure is low & I have zero debts. No home mortgage, no credit card debt & no car loan.

Appearances is not important to me. So what if I have to take public transport, fly budget, have no maid,.... What's important is that I have less stress :smile:

It takes more years for a youngster to pay-off a condo or HDB flat of the same size as his father's.
Therefore, youngsters will find it harder to duplicate your success.
 

Kakamora

Alfrescian
Loyal
Being a dishwasher can't be that bad. Suckit Sushi's boss was offering a monthly salary of $3000 for a dishwasher. It's pretty good money, better than junior PMET roles.

The issue that you cited has the same brainwashing-objective as "Richard's" story.
 

JohnTan

Alfrescian (InfP)
Generous Asset
The issue that you cited has the same brainwashing-objective as "Richard's" story.

There's no inverted commas for the issue I cited. It is a documented example, backed by real people and a listed company.

20120912.181137_sakae_0.jpg


The CEO of a local sushi chain has generated some buzz after he said his company will pay cleaners $3,000 a month. Last Friday, Sakae Sushi CEO Mr Douglas Foo went on UFM100.3 to talk about the difficulties of hiring locals in blue-collar positions. During the interview, Mr Foo complained that he was unable to find any cleaners despite a salary offer of $3,000 a month.

- See more at: http://news.asiaone.com/news/business/3000-wash-dishes-sakae-sushi#sthash.qOnB1fAH.dpuf
 
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