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[h=2]La Fondue’s Roginald Santos Oloresisimo leaves SG[/h]
October 25th, 2013 |
Author: Editorial
Independent film-maker Lynn Lee blogged [Link]
yesterday (24 Oct) that the controversial Filipino, Roginald Santos Oloresisimo,
who worked for Swiss restaurant La Fondue at Dempsey Road, is no longer in
Singapore.
Lynn reported that the Filipino boarded a plane bound for the Philippines
yesterday morning. It is not clear if he is coming back to Singapore or if he
still has his old job here.
Lynn wrote, “What is obvious though is that the last few weeks must have been
highly stressful for him.”
The saga started when Mr Oloresisimo posted a discriminatory job
advertisement numerous times across various job sites for Filipinos
only to join his restaurant, La Fondue (‘High
salary for Filipino chefs only‘). The ad stated, “We are currently an all
Filipino team at the service and kitchen department.”
The discriminatory advertisement infuriated many Singaporeans. Civil
activists transitioning.org called for a boycott of the restaurant (‘Transitioning.org
calls for boycott of Swiss restaurant‘).
Ravinder Pal, CEO of La Fondue, quickly posted an apology on the restaurant’s
Facebook page, stating that they hire strictly in accordance with MOM
regulations (‘La
Fondue: We strictly hire in accordance with MOM regulations‘).
The CEO claimed that the discriminatory job ad was the work of a staff
“without the management’s knowledge and approval”.
“This person did not have any authority whatsoever to post an ad, let alone
interview and recruit staff. We will certainly be taking stern action and
reprimanding the staff member involved,” he said.
However, most netizens did not buy the CEO’s explanation (‘Netizens not buying La Fondue’s explanation‘). In fact,
evidence that Mr Oloresisimo had placed a similar advertisement earlier in
September 2013, for a “Filipino female”, caused even more outrage.
A petition calling for the cancellation of Mr Oloresisimo’s work permit was
circulated online. It drew more than a thousand signatures and triggered a
heated debate about racism, xenophobia and discrimination.
Lynn wrote passionately on the current predicaments many Singaporeans are
facing:
It’s hard not to feel the squeeze in Singapore – not when our trains are
packed, our roads increasingly congested, our shops and restaurants staffed by
an ever-growing number of foreigners. Where do we stand in our own country? Is
there still a place for us? How can Singaporeans – with massive housing loans
and family obligations – compete with eager foreigners, willing to work for a
fraction of what we are able to accept?
These are valid questions, important ones that our leaders need to answer –
not with platitudes and empty promises, but with concrete actions. People are
falling through the cracks. Families are living in vans and parks. Homelessness
is no longer invisible in this land of plenty. Singaporeans are struggling, not
because they are lazy, but because many find it increasingly difficult to
survive in a system that reduces workers to units of labour, a system that
celebrates “cheaper, faster, better”.
However, Lynn also rightfully argued that blaming foreign workers like
Mr Oloresisimo is not the answer:
But the Singaporean worker isn’t the only one suffering. Go to the soup
kitchen run by migrant rights group Transient Workers Count Too and you’re
likely to meet an endless stream of men from countries like India, Bangladesh
and Sri Lanka, all with horror stories to tell. Employment scams, unpaid wages,
physical abuse, injuries and poor living conditions – it’s mind boggling, what
some people have to put up with, simply for the privilege of working in
Singapore.
How does the ordinary person compete in a system that condones exploitation?
Something is broken. Some policies are not working. Something needs to be done.
Blaming foreign workers like Roginald is not the answer.
After all, Mr Oloresisimo is not the person or the political party
responsible for the loose immigration policy and poor planning in Singapore, is
he?
Lynn concluded:
We let the real culprits off the hook when we demand that a lowly worker bear
the brunt of our rage. I hope Roginald learns his lesson, but I also hope he
gets to keep his job. For we undermine our own calls for justice, equality and
fairness when we insist on a disproportionately harsh punishment for someone
like him. Yes, we are stressed out and frustrated. But we are also better people
than this.
Independent film-maker Lynn Lee blogged [Link]
yesterday (24 Oct) that the controversial Filipino, Roginald Santos Oloresisimo,
who worked for Swiss restaurant La Fondue at Dempsey Road, is no longer in
Singapore.
Lynn reported that the Filipino boarded a plane bound for the Philippines
yesterday morning. It is not clear if he is coming back to Singapore or if he
still has his old job here.
Lynn wrote, “What is obvious though is that the last few weeks must have been
highly stressful for him.”
The saga started when Mr Oloresisimo posted a discriminatory job
advertisement numerous times across various job sites for Filipinos
only to join his restaurant, La Fondue (‘High
salary for Filipino chefs only‘). The ad stated, “We are currently an all
Filipino team at the service and kitchen department.”
The discriminatory advertisement infuriated many Singaporeans. Civil
activists transitioning.org called for a boycott of the restaurant (‘Transitioning.org
calls for boycott of Swiss restaurant‘).
Ravinder Pal, CEO of La Fondue, quickly posted an apology on the restaurant’s
Facebook page, stating that they hire strictly in accordance with MOM
regulations (‘La
Fondue: We strictly hire in accordance with MOM regulations‘).
The CEO claimed that the discriminatory job ad was the work of a staff
“without the management’s knowledge and approval”.
“This person did not have any authority whatsoever to post an ad, let alone
interview and recruit staff. We will certainly be taking stern action and
reprimanding the staff member involved,” he said.
However, most netizens did not buy the CEO’s explanation (‘Netizens not buying La Fondue’s explanation‘). In fact,
evidence that Mr Oloresisimo had placed a similar advertisement earlier in
September 2013, for a “Filipino female”, caused even more outrage.
A petition calling for the cancellation of Mr Oloresisimo’s work permit was
circulated online. It drew more than a thousand signatures and triggered a
heated debate about racism, xenophobia and discrimination.
Lynn wrote passionately on the current predicaments many Singaporeans are
facing:
It’s hard not to feel the squeeze in Singapore – not when our trains are
packed, our roads increasingly congested, our shops and restaurants staffed by
an ever-growing number of foreigners. Where do we stand in our own country? Is
there still a place for us? How can Singaporeans – with massive housing loans
and family obligations – compete with eager foreigners, willing to work for a
fraction of what we are able to accept?
These are valid questions, important ones that our leaders need to answer –
not with platitudes and empty promises, but with concrete actions. People are
falling through the cracks. Families are living in vans and parks. Homelessness
is no longer invisible in this land of plenty. Singaporeans are struggling, not
because they are lazy, but because many find it increasingly difficult to
survive in a system that reduces workers to units of labour, a system that
celebrates “cheaper, faster, better”.
Mr Oloresisimo is not the answer:
But the Singaporean worker isn’t the only one suffering. Go to the soup
kitchen run by migrant rights group Transient Workers Count Too and you’re
likely to meet an endless stream of men from countries like India, Bangladesh
and Sri Lanka, all with horror stories to tell. Employment scams, unpaid wages,
physical abuse, injuries and poor living conditions – it’s mind boggling, what
some people have to put up with, simply for the privilege of working in
Singapore.
How does the ordinary person compete in a system that condones exploitation?
Something is broken. Some policies are not working. Something needs to be done.
Blaming foreign workers like Roginald is not the answer.
responsible for the loose immigration policy and poor planning in Singapore, is
he?
Lynn concluded:
We let the real culprits off the hook when we demand that a lowly worker bear
the brunt of our rage. I hope Roginald learns his lesson, but I also hope he
gets to keep his job. For we undermine our own calls for justice, equality and
fairness when we insist on a disproportionately harsh punishment for someone
like him. Yes, we are stressed out and frustrated. But we are also better people
than this.
