After thousands of hours of service, putting their health and safety at risk amid the Covid-19 pandemic, SMRT drivers are shocked at the rapid increase in fees instead of the company’s promise of a “new and fairer contract”.
In the last six months, drivers have had three different contracts offered to them and subsequently retracted. Each new contract came with a different, higher fee, said long-term SMRT driver Sherwin Tan to The Independent Singapore.
According to Mr Tan, fees for the daily rental of vehicles have gone from S$98 per day during the pandemic and circuit breaker period to the current S$150 per day.
The daily fee was increased by 33 per cent to S$130 for a one-year contract on April 30, 2022. Two weeks later, on May 17, the terms were changed to a two-year contract.
Less than a month after that, the contract offer was retracted, and on June 14, the daily rate offered to drivers was changed to S$150 per day on a two-year term, a 53 per cent increase in less than two months.
“The new daily rate, along with a massive increase in the cost of fuel and vehicle maintenance, is severely impacting the ability of drivers to earn a living and provide for their families,” noted the concerned drivers in a press release published on June 27.
“During the pandemic, we were honoured and eager to be helping to keep the country running safely. We felt a great sense of togetherness not only with the fellow Singaporeans but also with our company and its leadership team,” said Mr Tan, shocked at the treatment they’ve received.
“We anticipated that once things got back to normal in the country, the company would provide drivers with a fair offer. Instead, despite seeing our fuel and maintenance costs soar, we’ve been offered three different contract terms, each of them worse than the previous and each one withdrawn within a month of its being initially offered.”
He highlighted that the drivers are left without means of appeal. They were also informed of a waiting list “with hundreds of potential new drivers” willing to step in and take their jobs.
The drivers have since then started a petition, receiving hundreds of signatures from the public in support of their pleas to SMRT.
In an update on July 14, Mr Tan shared that the new contract would no longer supersede the old arrangement. There is also a cash incentive of S$300 per calendar month for drivers who fulfil a minimum of 30 corporate jobs.
“I guess the petition did help to make them make some changes, especially since NPHVA (National Private Hire Vehicles Association) did contact them several times,” said Mr Tan.
“The price of S$150 before GST is still exploring us as some drivers managed to sign the renewal at $130 for just a one-year contract,” he added.
Still, he asked why a public company like SMRT would change its rental prices frequently “and when they like?”
Mr Tan noted that the vehicles were at least two to four years old. “We are also facing an increase in operating costs such as petroleum, etc., which we all bear. The time to consider the terms were short, two to three days to accept before June 30. We got no choice but to accept.”
The Independent Singapore has reached out to SMRT for a statement.
Screenshots sent in by Mr Tan:
