Singapore to “defuse resentment towards foreigners” after racist incidents

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Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has pledged to tighten restrictions on foreign workers, tackling an issue that has sparked anger in the traditionally open city-state as it recovers from a recession induced by a pandemic.

In a key political speech at a National Day rally on Sunday night, Lee said his government would further increase visa requirements for expatriates, raise wages for low-income workers and hold companies to account for their hiring practices. The changes to the salary criteria for foreign workers would be made “gradually and gradually” to show that Singapore wishes to maintain outward-looking policies to accept competition, he added.

“We need to recognize the problem, so that we can address the legitimate concerns of Singaporeans and defuse resentment towards foreigners,” Lee said. “Only then can Singapore remain open and continue to grow and progress,” he added.

PM Lee: Low-wage workers aren’t the only ones who experience anxiety at work. Middle-income Singaporeans are also feeling the pressure. We see this in the growing unrest against foreigners, especially work permit holders. #ndrsg pic.twitter.com/A8o0m0CQEw

– leehsienloong (@leehsienloong) August 29, 2021

Lee said it was imperative for the country to reopen its doors to the world after largely closing its borders early last year, just as it has reached a milestone to fully immunize 80% of its population – surpassing the most advanced economies.

Foreign labor was a hot topic in last year’s election due to the perception of unfair hiring practices against locals and persistently low wages for blue collar workers facing rising costs and to a pandemic that led to the country’s worst economic crisis.

Discontent played a big role in driving the ruling Popular Action Party to its lowest ever result in the July 2020 elections. ‘a work pass – in managerial or specialist positions as well as in the financial services sector – and for those with an “S Pass” or mid-level technical staff.

Lee said there were often complaints about hiring practices in the tech and financial industry. He noted, however, that these companies are regionally and globally focused and the skills required for the roles are scarce.

“If we hadn’t allowed them to import the EPs they needed, businesses wouldn’t have come here and Singaporeans would have had fewer opportunities,” Lee said in reference to the coveted passes for foreign workers. .

Anti-discrimination

Nonetheless, Lee said the focus will be on hiring practices, with the government planning to pass workplace anti-discrimination laws that may result in penalties. It also intends to set up a tribunal to protect workers against “nationality discrimination” among other unfair employment practices based on sex, religion and race.

“It will give them more bite and expand the range of actions we can take,” Lee said of the anti-discrimination guidelines. So far, “the government has held back because we didn’t want the process to become legalistic or confrontational”.

Lee also unveiled other measures to ensure higher wages for Singaporeans. Companies employing foreigners will now be required to pay all their local staff an eligible salary of at least S $ 1,400 ($ 1,040) per month, compared to previous rules that stipulated that the number of locals receiving such a salary depended on the number. of foreign workers employed.

Low-wage workers

The prime minister also focused on low-paid workers, saying Singapore needs to offer more protections to the group that has been on the front lines since the start of the pandemic, delivering food or employed as a cleaner and working safely.

Most of these workers, who number around half a million, do not pay taxes and have instead obtained wage supplements and pension contributions from the government. Such payments to these workers cost around S $ 850 million per year, and Lee said the government will increase annual contributions to S $ 1.1 billion in two years.

Lee took aim at the Foodpanda-related food delivery apps of Delivery Hero SE, Grab Holdings Inc. and Deliveroo Plc, saying he was “particularly concerned” about their delivery people who do not have employment contracts, lack protections basic jobs and earn modest incomes that make it difficult to afford housing, health care and retirement.

“More and more people are taking on this type of work, so this problem is getting worse,” Lee said, adding that the Department of Manpower was looking into the matter. “We have to solve the problems to give these workers a more secure future. “

Racial harmony

Lee devoted a significant portion of his speech to racial harmony, noting that there have been racist incidents that have gone viral on social media and have specifically targeted Indians – foreigners and locals. He said these could have been triggered by the fact that a large number of foreign workers are from India and the Delta variant of Covid-19 first appeared in the South Asian subcontinent. .

“We need to solve the real problems – manage the numbers and concentrations of work passes, and improve health safeguards at the borders,” Lee said.

The government will introduce new racial harmony legislation that will combine all existing powers to deal with such issues. Currently, Singapore relies on the colonial-era sedition law to deal with serious offenses involving hate crimes or racial enmity, which critics of the past have said were used to quell dissent.

Lee said there would be “softer, gentler touches,” including laws ordering someone who has caused a racial offense to stop doing it and redeem themselves by learning about other races and by renewing ties.

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