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[h=2]An employer’s problems with Singaporean Workers[/h]
September 17th, 2012 |
Author: Contributions
I own and run my own F&B, and since the start of my operations, I have, at all costs, avoided employing foreigners. All my service crew are Singaporeans. I take care of my employees well, and allow them to negotiate for better work conditions, flexible working hours, and even motivate them with better pay.
=> How much?
But I have been encountering problems with these Singaporean workers, and I’m wondering if I’m the only one suffering from this.
1) Some Singaporean workers feel that taking MC is their right, which is rightfully so if they are not medically well. However, some make use of MC to lengthen their days off, or take MC when they have social commitments like going clubbing. They avoid using their annual leave because they want to reserve it for more important occasions that would require extended number of days. I found out about this because I overheard them discussing about using this strategy to get more time off without utilizing their annual leave. This greatly affected my F&B operations and increased my costs since I have to activate more (part-time) workers to cover the days when they take MC.
2) Most of them do not take pride in their work, not taking ownership, and doing substandard low-quality work. As long as they get the job done, they don’t really care, even if it is not done well. This, I find, is a general attitude of some, if not most, of Singaporean workers. Perhaps they feel that my F&B is not their business, and that it is just a job and that they will get paid regardless of whether my F&B is doing well or not.
3) Since it is very difficult to find replacement of service crew in the F&B business and to train new crew, Singaporean workers know that they have the upper-hand,and hence adopt a lackadaisical attitude towards work.
Of course there are some good Singaporean workers. But these are few and far between.
I have been resisting employing foreigners, even though I know these foreigners will do a good job since they value the job that is given to them. They do not want to get fired because getting another job in Singapore is very difficult for them. I have heard of some F&B doing very well because the foreign workers work very hard to keep their job, and this serves these F&B well.
I am really at a loss, because I do want to give Singaporean workers a chance, but the problems created by Singaporean workers are making me rethink about my hiring policies.
.
Frustrated Employer
.
I own and run my own F&B, and since the start of my operations, I have, at all costs, avoided employing foreigners. All my service crew are Singaporeans. I take care of my employees well, and allow them to negotiate for better work conditions, flexible working hours, and even motivate them with better pay.
=> How much?
But I have been encountering problems with these Singaporean workers, and I’m wondering if I’m the only one suffering from this.
1) Some Singaporean workers feel that taking MC is their right, which is rightfully so if they are not medically well. However, some make use of MC to lengthen their days off, or take MC when they have social commitments like going clubbing. They avoid using their annual leave because they want to reserve it for more important occasions that would require extended number of days. I found out about this because I overheard them discussing about using this strategy to get more time off without utilizing their annual leave. This greatly affected my F&B operations and increased my costs since I have to activate more (part-time) workers to cover the days when they take MC.
2) Most of them do not take pride in their work, not taking ownership, and doing substandard low-quality work. As long as they get the job done, they don’t really care, even if it is not done well. This, I find, is a general attitude of some, if not most, of Singaporean workers. Perhaps they feel that my F&B is not their business, and that it is just a job and that they will get paid regardless of whether my F&B is doing well or not.
3) Since it is very difficult to find replacement of service crew in the F&B business and to train new crew, Singaporean workers know that they have the upper-hand,and hence adopt a lackadaisical attitude towards work.
Of course there are some good Singaporean workers. But these are few and far between.
I have been resisting employing foreigners, even though I know these foreigners will do a good job since they value the job that is given to them. They do not want to get fired because getting another job in Singapore is very difficult for them. I have heard of some F&B doing very well because the foreign workers work very hard to keep their job, and this serves these F&B well.
I am really at a loss, because I do want to give Singaporean workers a chance, but the problems created by Singaporean workers are making me rethink about my hiring policies.
.
Frustrated Employer
.
