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Foreign student asks Govt to provide more incentives for foreigners to motivate them to stay in Singapore

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A foreign student has criticised part of the Government’s care package for Singaporeans and has asked for more incentives for foreign students to keep them motivated to stay in Singapore since they have “contributed to Singapore’s economy in one way or another.”

The foreign student’s post came on the heels of the Government’s fourth COVID-19 support package. Dubbed the ‘Fortitude Budget’, the latest support package sought to alleviate the difficulties local workers, businesses and households face as they grapple with the novel coronavirus health crisis and a severe economic downturn.

The Government has promised wage support to eligible firms that hire local workers, as part of its COVID-19 support packages. The Jobs Support Scheme was extended in the Fortitude Budget.

A foreign student has taken issue with the Jobs Support Scheme and has indicated that it is unfair to his peers who are trying to find jobs in Singapore. Reddit user u/InterimNihilist spotted the following post published by a foreign student on professional networking site LinkedIn:

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In his post, the foreign student said that he was not surprised by the incentives for local workers although he found it interesting. He wrote:

“Singapore just rolled out another COVID-19 stimulus package, the fourth of its kind. One particular area I found to be interesting and not surprising at the same time was the incentive for new hires given to companies.

“In short, the Singapore government is covering 20% monthly salary for the next six months to companies hiring local eligible workers under the age of 40.”

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The foreign student lamented that this support “would make it all the more difficult for foreign students who have studied in Singapore to find full-time opportunities” since he assumes most companies “would obviously capitalize on this initiative.”

The foreigner, who has spent the last three years studying in Singapore, said that he is now “struggling to find any motivation or incentive to work in Singapore let alone going through the mentally-draining process of applying to companies.”

Claiming that a quarter of Singapore’s workforce is comprised of foreign workers, the student added: “We, students, have spent time, money, and contributed to Singapore’s economy in one way or another. It’d be great to hear some incentives or support, to keep us motivated. In the meanwhile, the hunt remains despite tougher odds!”

The foreign student is not the first foreigner in Singapore to criticise the Government’s post-COVID measures. Earlier, another foreigner asserted that the Government’s circuit breaker lifting measures are partial towards Singapore citizens and unfair towards expats.

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In a now-deleted post, the foreigner said that the circuit breaker lifting measures are unfair to the “massive expat population” in Singapore since many of them do not have family here. She added that Singapore’s virus prevention measures have adversely affected the mental health of expats in Singapore.

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