SINGAPORE: Food guru KF Seetoh left a pointed commentary regarding Singapore’s manpower crunch in a May 27 9Saturday) Facebook post, writing, “You are actually sighing (with) relief when folks get retrenched and fill up other jobs they may not want.”
Mr Seetoh posted a photo of a Straits Times article from that day titled “Influx of laid-off tech talent in S’pore job market helps to ease labour crunch” about how the numerous layoffs from large tech companies, including Meta and Google, have helped ease the labour crunch as workers who were let go off are set to be hired by smaller companies.
The piece quotes Ms Jaya Dass, the managing director of Asia-Pacific permanent recruitment company Randstad as saying, “As tech companies let go of people, there is a small window for other industries to absorb the kind of talent they would usually be priced out of or unable to find enough (of).”
Appearing to address the government, the Makansutra owner characterized manpower quota rules as “stifling…3,6,9 locals to one foreigner who wants the job.”
Mr Seetoh also compared it to ”forcibly holding your breath, till you go blue, then scream you cannot breathe. Ownself slap ownself and cry pain.”
“You still cannot reconcile the fact Singaporeans don’t want the jobs front line blue-collared and service jobs you reserve for them.
You just watch the industry deck of cards collapse and stem entrepreneurism,” he added.
“Rethink manpower laws,” the food guru also urged, writing, “Bring in talented foreigners will ya..like your grand or great grandparents..who will nurture local future talents like you la.
The wheel of continuity of this island of migrants, must move.”
He noted that “4000 nursing (and) healthcare professionals and no clear solution in sight,” in reference, most likely, to what Health Minister Ong Ye Kung said in November of last year that the country expects to hire nearly 4,000 new nurses by the end of 2023, 60 per cent of whom are from other countries. /TISG
KF Seetoh: Home oso no privacy liao. Moral of story is what all good books say… love your neighbours