Early this afternoon, I happened to be walking around my neighbourhood and noticed that a nearby small HDB provision shop seemed to have changed owners and operations. Shop name has been changed to "....Mura..." and the payment counter manned by two youngish 20+ Indian girls. They don't seem to be locals from the bright and flowery saris they wore. Looking around, I also noticed that none of the items, inclusive of fresh vegetables/fruits bear any price tags. The shop appeared run down as compared to the air conditioned minimarts, with many items placed on open wooden shelves or on flat plastic containers placed on the floor. I saw a few bunches of bananas by the side and decided to chose one bunch of four which were slightly spotted, that is, very ripe, which I wanted to eat upon reaching home. Bringing the bunch to the counter, I asked the cashier how much? She could not tell me, but placed it on the scanner area and quickly keyed in 0.638 and gaily told me that the price was $3.60.
Hearing this, I was totally shocked by this fantastic rip-off. $3.60 for a bunch of very ripe bananas??? Mind you, they are the usual longish type typically sold everywhere and at the nearby Cold Storage, these sell for $0.19 per 100 grams, very fresh and hung up for one and all to choose. At $3.60, it would be more than $0.60 per 100 grams!!! Or, each of the four would have cost more than $0.90 each, more expensive than buying it singly at the Cold Storage or a Food Court!!
I stared flabbergasted at the cashier, then turned away, walked off, and mumbled to myself that I must have looked to her like a big yellow carrot every ready to be chopped.
I looked around and most of the customers, with the exception of one Malay man, seemed to be Indians. They were all happily choosing their items, mainly limp vegetables and daily groceries and bringing them to the counter to pay. Unlike me, none seemed troubled, and the prices, as far as I can tell from the brief observation, appeared not to be higher than the usual provision shops'.
Walking around, I chanced upon another HDB provision shop and there, hanging proudly, bunches of fresh longish bananas. Each was price labelled and I choose one fresh bunch of five, refrigerator cooled to the touch, for $1.45. While paying for this, I checked with the fair and young girl in Mandarin and she said that such bananas usually are about $2.00 per kilogram. When I told her that the nearby shop wanted to sell me a bunch for $3.60, she used the term "li pu", that is, ridiculous for such prices. While discussing, I was also told that she has been working in the shop for the last two years and she came from Myanmar. Many customers also said that she looked as if she came from West Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak or Indonesia. But no, she came from Myanmar and is happy to be working here. I complimented her on her good Mandarin and then left.
Reflecting upon the above experience made me recall one incident years back when I was on a business trip to Phoenix, Arizona, USA. I stayed in an Embassy Suite hotel and at breakfast, early one morning, I, a smallish Chinese in the midst of all the giant Americans was discriminated against by a Hispanic cook. In a queue of guests of various nationalities, my request for two sunny side ups were ignored by the cook. Instead, two Ang Mos behind me were served their sunny side ups and skipped ahead of me whilst I waited sheepishly in the queue. I raised a complaint with the hotel management but my complaint was met with the words "...no,,no,,,no,,,Mister...Ms XXX never have had any customer complaints about her service..." I was furious and left with a written note for the hotel Management. Of course, I never received a reply from the Embassy Suites Hotel.
Now, here I am, in Singapore, blatantly discriminated against by apparently by someone who appeared to be non local??. The feeling for me is devastating, to say the least. Am I being taken as a fool?
Readers, at this point, kindly refrain from jumping to any conclusions about what I am trying to imply from the above account. I am not alluding to racial or nationality discrimination. None of these are my concerns. What I am concerned was that I was apparently discriminated against in price because I appeared to the counter cashier to be different from herself and to the other typical customers of hers. It appears to me, just because I am an "uncle" I am being sterotyped to be (1) probably seldom shop and thus don't know the market price of fruits (2) maybe can well afford a 'higher' price charged? (3) counter cashier appeared to be ignorant of the right way to treat provision shop customers in Singapore in terms of pricing. Where, I wondered is the business ethics of treating all customers fairly and equally, especially for daily necessities?
Reflecting further, with the Singapore immigration floodgates now open, we have all kinds of nationalities living side by side with locally born. We have been told to welcome foreign talents, help them to integrate and newcomers also told to make efforts to integrate. However, my questions then are:
1 What measures have been implemented to ensure that new comers have the knowledge and ability to understand how locals live their lives here and adapt appropriately?
2 Do they know the typical business ethics they should practise while working here to prevent examples of such discrimination as above from taking place?
3 What measures would be in place to ensure that new comers refrain from practicing or adopting the same behaviour or business ethics they do in their own country to the detriment of the local population or themselves? For example, typically in Singapore, for daily necessities, customers expect same prices charged to all customers and items are price labelled.
4 What else could be done by all parties, that is, everyone, to ensure that integration of new comers can be more smoothly and faster accomplished? Maybe a yearly campaign or many more community events can be organised to enable locals and new comers in have more interactions with each other?
The above are just some random thoughts that arise out of an incident this afternoon and will I soon put it aside and move on. Whilst I do not condemn nor condon the counter cashier for her exorbitant quote of a bunch of bananas, I do hope that in the midst of our busy lives in Singapore, somewhere, someone and preferably everyone, will be aware of practices/expectations between local born and new comers and make efforts to help bridge the gaps of such differences.
Have a good weekend.
Hearing this, I was totally shocked by this fantastic rip-off. $3.60 for a bunch of very ripe bananas??? Mind you, they are the usual longish type typically sold everywhere and at the nearby Cold Storage, these sell for $0.19 per 100 grams, very fresh and hung up for one and all to choose. At $3.60, it would be more than $0.60 per 100 grams!!! Or, each of the four would have cost more than $0.90 each, more expensive than buying it singly at the Cold Storage or a Food Court!!
I stared flabbergasted at the cashier, then turned away, walked off, and mumbled to myself that I must have looked to her like a big yellow carrot every ready to be chopped.
I looked around and most of the customers, with the exception of one Malay man, seemed to be Indians. They were all happily choosing their items, mainly limp vegetables and daily groceries and bringing them to the counter to pay. Unlike me, none seemed troubled, and the prices, as far as I can tell from the brief observation, appeared not to be higher than the usual provision shops'.
Walking around, I chanced upon another HDB provision shop and there, hanging proudly, bunches of fresh longish bananas. Each was price labelled and I choose one fresh bunch of five, refrigerator cooled to the touch, for $1.45. While paying for this, I checked with the fair and young girl in Mandarin and she said that such bananas usually are about $2.00 per kilogram. When I told her that the nearby shop wanted to sell me a bunch for $3.60, she used the term "li pu", that is, ridiculous for such prices. While discussing, I was also told that she has been working in the shop for the last two years and she came from Myanmar. Many customers also said that she looked as if she came from West Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak or Indonesia. But no, she came from Myanmar and is happy to be working here. I complimented her on her good Mandarin and then left.
Reflecting upon the above experience made me recall one incident years back when I was on a business trip to Phoenix, Arizona, USA. I stayed in an Embassy Suite hotel and at breakfast, early one morning, I, a smallish Chinese in the midst of all the giant Americans was discriminated against by a Hispanic cook. In a queue of guests of various nationalities, my request for two sunny side ups were ignored by the cook. Instead, two Ang Mos behind me were served their sunny side ups and skipped ahead of me whilst I waited sheepishly in the queue. I raised a complaint with the hotel management but my complaint was met with the words "...no,,no,,,no,,,Mister...Ms XXX never have had any customer complaints about her service..." I was furious and left with a written note for the hotel Management. Of course, I never received a reply from the Embassy Suites Hotel.
Now, here I am, in Singapore, blatantly discriminated against by apparently by someone who appeared to be non local??. The feeling for me is devastating, to say the least. Am I being taken as a fool?
Readers, at this point, kindly refrain from jumping to any conclusions about what I am trying to imply from the above account. I am not alluding to racial or nationality discrimination. None of these are my concerns. What I am concerned was that I was apparently discriminated against in price because I appeared to the counter cashier to be different from herself and to the other typical customers of hers. It appears to me, just because I am an "uncle" I am being sterotyped to be (1) probably seldom shop and thus don't know the market price of fruits (2) maybe can well afford a 'higher' price charged? (3) counter cashier appeared to be ignorant of the right way to treat provision shop customers in Singapore in terms of pricing. Where, I wondered is the business ethics of treating all customers fairly and equally, especially for daily necessities?
Reflecting further, with the Singapore immigration floodgates now open, we have all kinds of nationalities living side by side with locally born. We have been told to welcome foreign talents, help them to integrate and newcomers also told to make efforts to integrate. However, my questions then are:
1 What measures have been implemented to ensure that new comers have the knowledge and ability to understand how locals live their lives here and adapt appropriately?
2 Do they know the typical business ethics they should practise while working here to prevent examples of such discrimination as above from taking place?
3 What measures would be in place to ensure that new comers refrain from practicing or adopting the same behaviour or business ethics they do in their own country to the detriment of the local population or themselves? For example, typically in Singapore, for daily necessities, customers expect same prices charged to all customers and items are price labelled.
4 What else could be done by all parties, that is, everyone, to ensure that integration of new comers can be more smoothly and faster accomplished? Maybe a yearly campaign or many more community events can be organised to enable locals and new comers in have more interactions with each other?
The above are just some random thoughts that arise out of an incident this afternoon and will I soon put it aside and move on. Whilst I do not condemn nor condon the counter cashier for her exorbitant quote of a bunch of bananas, I do hope that in the midst of our busy lives in Singapore, somewhere, someone and preferably everyone, will be aware of practices/expectations between local born and new comers and make efforts to help bridge the gaps of such differences.
Have a good weekend.
