SINGAPORE: An anonymous social media post from a man who claimed to have quit his job as a university lecturer in Malaysia to move to Singapore, where his work as a cleaner earned him five times as much, has been receiving a lot of attention online.
Although the now-deleted post was published in 2024, an article on says.com about it was recently reshared and has sparked a fresh round of comments.
In the post, a Malaysian man said that he used to earn RM1,900 (around S$590 in 2024) at a university after having worked there for five years.
During his stint as a lecturer, there were some months when he did not have enough money to support himself.
“Sometimes, I couldn’t even make it through the middle of the month,” the man alleged, adding that while the cost of living kept going up, his salary remained the same.
He described the situation as one that was “hard to survive.”
The pressures he felt mounted to the point that he could no longer work, because he kept having to figure out how to pay his bills even after receiving his salary. When the stress he faced daily due to struggling financially grew to be too much for him, he decided to seek employment in Singapore.
He chanced upon the opportunity to work as a cleaner in Singapore, where he claimed that the basic salary he was offered was S$3,100 (around RM10,860 in 2024).
And while his new job was menial, it allowed him to breathe easy as his financial woes disappeared.
“It’s true that working in Singapore can change your fortune. For those who see no way of paying off their debts or are stuck with debts in the tens of thousands, this is a shortcut. With the first paycheck alone, I settled various things,” the man said, adding that the long commute between Malaysia and Singapore was worth it.
What commenters are saying
Based on comments online, the former university lecturer is not alone.
“Same like me.. I was a teacher in a private school. Now I’m working as an assistant manager in one of the famous F&B outlets in SG. It really changed my life financially. I’m able to travel abroad a few times a year. Bought my second condo, settled my study loan right after 5 months working in SG… planning to work here longer,” wrote a Facebook user.
Others, however, wondered if the story was real, saying that the salary of a lecturer in Malaysia is much higher, while the salary of a cleaner in Singapore is only around S$2,000.
Some said that they cannot blame the man for having taken a menial job in Singapore, given the financial benefits he’s been able to enjoy. /TISG
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