Singapore-based banks under pressure to hire more locals
Kevin Lim
Reuters
Monday, Mar 18, 2013
SINGAPORE - Banks and other firms in Singapore are under pressure to hire more locals and give them opportunities to advance as the government of the wealthy Asian financial centre tries to contain public anger over its policy to attract foreign talent.
Singapore, a small island-nation with few natural resources, has historically been welcoming of foreigners who tended to take up lower-paying jobs that were not popular with locals.
But the competition has become intense in the past decade as the city-state grew into a banking and wealth management hub that attracts foreign executives and other specialised workers.
Some lawmakers, facing a backlash over rising costs and the open-door labour policy, have called for requirements that locals be considered for managerial and professional positions before foreign candidates.
Tan said there had been complaints of foreign managers preferring to hire fellow countrymen and his ministry was investigating.
One "fairly prominent company" had its work pass privileges suspended after it advertised for workers of a certain nationality, he said. He did not name the company.
Complaints about alleged bias against Singaporeans in workplaces accounted for half those received last year, according to the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices, an organisation backed by the Manpower Ministry,
Foreign banks in Singapore contacted by Reuters declined comment or did not respond to questions. Citigroup, the largest banking employer in Singapore, said more than 80 percent of its nearly 10,000 staff in the city-state were Singapore citizens or permanent residents.
http://business.asiaone.com/A1Business/N...09465.html
The Fairly prominent company must be sbi. State bank of India. They even buy condos for their management employees to stay.
(19-03-2013, 11:54 PM)Bibi Wrote: [ -> ]The Fairly prominent company must be sbi. State bank of India. They even buy condos for their management employees to stay.
Not sure if it is this company. Could be some other company.
However, there is talk that once an Indian national PMET becomes manager, it is likely that most non-Indian nationals in the department would be retrenched or 'restructured' so that the manager can bring in more of his own countrymen.
Lots of stories about such happenings, especially in the IT and banking sector. Any bros care to verify?
Is your blood thicker or your water? Human beings are all the same. You look after your own kind first. The problems is Papies looking after themselves so well to the exclusion of the ordinary citizens; until the ordinary citizens realise they can't breathe anymore.
What's the use of having the Papies who look only after themselves?
There is a limit to everything even though Singaporeans are famous for the 4Ks.
i think the Papies can't survive even one term in HK. or maybe Taiwan.
Is it time to change brothers?
imo, only.
(20-03-2013, 07:05 AM)Temperament Wrote: [ -> ]Is your blood thicker or your water? Human beings are all the same. You look after your own kind first. The problems is Papies looking after themselves so well to the exclusion of the ordinary citizens; until the ordinary citizens realise they can't breathe anymore.
What's the use of having the Papies who look only after themselves?
There is a limit to everything even though Singaporeans are famous for the 4Ks.
i think the Papies can't survive even one term in HK. or maybe Taiwan.
Is it time to change brothers?
imo, only.
I not so sure if Singaporeans are known for looking after our own kind. We are taught from young about meritocracy, about hiring the best possible candidate, even if the candidate is a foreigner.
We followed this idea of meritocracy, and we expanded that meaning to include not just 'better', but also 'cheaper' candidate. So, we gave the jobs to the foreigners.
The cruel joke is on us, when the number of foreigners in the company, including managerial level, reach a critical mass. The foreigners start behaving like they own the place, and use their authority to fire locals.
Only then, we discovered how many people were laughing at us and thinking what idiots we were, for being so naive about meritocracy. We can boast about how much meritocracy has build up Singapore to be First World and how croynism has led places like India to still be Third World. But the foreigner will point out that in Singapore, it is the foreigners from 3rd World who has our jobs, while more and more First World educated Singaporeans are now driving taxis and working as security guards.
(20-03-2013, 12:12 AM)investor101 Wrote: [ -> ] (19-03-2013, 11:54 PM)Bibi Wrote: [ -> ]The Fairly prominent company must be sbi. State bank of India. They even buy condos for their management employees to stay.
Not sure if it is this company. Could be some other company.
However, there is talk that once an Indian national PMET becomes manager, it is likely that most non-Indian nationals in the department would be retrenched or 'restructured' so that the manager can bring in more of his own countrymen.
Lots of stories about such happenings, especially in the IT and banking sector. Any bros care to verify?
Yup verified. And you are right the joke is on us because we brought this upon ourselves.
Just several years ago one day my ex indian national boss at a previous company called me up to help him vett thru a list of interviewees for job positions, he wanted to get suitable people with compatiable background for the positions and gave me a thick sheaf of resumes, as I went thru it I saw that every single applicants are indian nationals that he selected there were 2 applicants who were singapore born indians but there were no malay no chinese no eurasians obviously shows what kind of race he prefers and back then I worked then in a multinational american company suppose to be an equal opportunity employer so much for meritocracy.
I hear this is common practice in india hiring their own village cousins. These PMET that the government bring in are practicing india office politics in singapore.
Not only that, there's a lot of unfair practices that discriminate against singaporean job applicants who have not completed their national service obligations aka reservist. It seems like if during interviews(if the interviewer is a foreign manager) you say you have not completed reservist they may not hire you on grounds that taking 2-3 weeks a year for your reservist is disruptive. But when these people go back to india for vacations they frequently take 3 weeks to 4 weeks off for vacation citing india is so big we need to travel back and forth to visit relatives.
You see this kind thing everywhere in singapore today. I'm not against foreigners but I see many of these PMETS are like that, not all but many. And we are expected to give way to them.
(20-03-2013, 08:23 AM)sgd Wrote: [ -> ] (20-03-2013, 12:12 AM)investor101 Wrote: [ -> ] (19-03-2013, 11:54 PM)Bibi Wrote: [ -> ]The Fairly prominent company must be sbi. State bank of India. They even buy condos for their management employees to stay.
Not sure if it is this company. Could be some other company.
However, there is talk that once an Indian national PMET becomes manager, it is likely that most non-Indian nationals in the department would be retrenched or 'restructured' so that the manager can bring in more of his own countrymen.
Lots of stories about such happenings, especially in the IT and banking sector. Any bros care to verify?
Yup verified. And you are right the joke is on us because we brought this upon ourselves.
Just several years ago one day my ex indian national boss at a previous company called me up to help him vett thru a list of interviewees for job positions, he wanted to get suitable people with compatiable background for the positions and gave me a thick sheaf of resumes, as I went thru it I saw that every single applicants are indian nationals that he selected there were 2 applicants who were singapore born indians but there were no malay no chinese no eurasians obviously shows what kind of race he prefers and back then I worked then in a multinational american company suppose to be an equal opportunity employer so much for meritocracy.
I hear this is common practice in india hiring their own village cousins. These PMET that the government bring in are practicing india office politics in singapore.
Not only that, there's a lot of unfair practices that discriminate against singaporean job applicants who have not completed their national service obligations aka reservist. It seems like if during interviews(if the interviewer is a foreign manager) you say you have not completed reservist they may not hire you on grounds that taking 2-3 weeks a year for your reservist is disruptive. But when these people go back to india for vacations they frequently take 3 weeks to 4 weeks off for vacation citing india is so big we need to travel back and forth to visit relatives.
You see this kind thing everywhere in singapore today. I'm not against foreigners but I see many of these PMETS are like that, not all but many. And we are expected to give way to them.
Hope someone reports them to MOM.
Singaporeans are often doing themselves and fellow Singaporeans a big disservice when they are too timid to name the boss and company specifically.
Descriptions such as 'prominent company' or a 'a big bank building in the east' really does not help in any way.
While a man can have many qualities, the most important qualities is still courage. Without courage, none of the other qualities really matter. The guy will simply stonewall from fright, flee or give lots of 'rational reasons' why he won't rise to the occasion at the critical point.
The foreigners didn't come for the construction workers or bankers jobs only. They are coming for all our jobs. Don't be a traitor and sell out your own countrymen.
I had a friend who once took great pride in retrenching his own Singaporeans and replacing them with 'cheaper' or 'more capable' foreigners. Until one day, it happened to him and the boss replaced him with a foreigner too. We all wanted to laugh at him, but I think no need to, since what goes around eventually comes around.
Do sporeans have the courage to vote out the party that brought on all these problems in the first place?
(20-03-2013, 09:05 AM)investor101 Wrote: [ -> ] (20-03-2013, 08:23 AM)sgd Wrote: [ -> ] (20-03-2013, 12:12 AM)investor101 Wrote: [ -> ] (19-03-2013, 11:54 PM)Bibi Wrote: [ -> ]The Fairly prominent company must be sbi. State bank of India. They even buy condos for their management employees to stay.
Not sure if it is this company. Could be some other company.
However, there is talk that once an Indian national PMET becomes manager, it is likely that most non-Indian nationals in the department would be retrenched or 'restructured' so that the manager can bring in more of his own countrymen.
Lots of stories about such happenings, especially in the IT and banking sector. Any bros care to verify?
Yup verified. And you are right the joke is on us because we brought this upon ourselves.
Just several years ago one day my ex indian national boss at a previous company called me up to help him vett thru a list of interviewees for job positions, he wanted to get suitable people with compatiable background for the positions and gave me a thick sheaf of resumes, as I went thru it I saw that every single applicants are indian nationals that he selected there were 2 applicants who were singapore born indians but there were no malay no chinese no eurasians obviously shows what kind of race he prefers and back then I worked then in a multinational american company suppose to be an equal opportunity employer so much for meritocracy.
I hear this is common practice in india hiring their own village cousins. These PMET that the government bring in are practicing india office politics in singapore.
Not only that, there's a lot of unfair practices that discriminate against singaporean job applicants who have not completed their national service obligations aka reservist. It seems like if during interviews(if the interviewer is a foreign manager) you say you have not completed reservist they may not hire you on grounds that taking 2-3 weeks a year for your reservist is disruptive. But when these people go back to india for vacations they frequently take 3 weeks to 4 weeks off for vacation citing india is so big we need to travel back and forth to visit relatives.
You see this kind thing everywhere in singapore today. I'm not against foreigners but I see many of these PMETS are like that, not all but many. And we are expected to give way to them.
Hope someone reports them to MOM.
Singaporeans are often doing themselves and fellow Singaporeans a big disservice when they are too timid to name the boss and company specifically.
Descriptions such as 'prominent company' or a 'a big bank building in the east' really does not help in any way.
While a man can have many qualities, the most important qualities is still courage. Without courage, none of the other qualities really matter. The guy will simply stonewall from fright, flee or give lots of 'rational reasons' why he won't rise to the occasion at the critical point.
The foreigners didn't come for the construction workers or bankers jobs only. They are coming for all our jobs. Don't be a traitor and sell out your own countrymen.
I had a friend who once took great pride in retrenching his own Singaporeans and replacing them with 'cheaper' or 'more capable' foreigners. Until one day, it happened to him and the boss replaced him with a foreigner too. We all wanted to laugh at him, but I think no need to, since what goes around eventually comes around.
is not we want to sell out our own countrymen but we also lan lan ... you report maybe he kanna sack they bring another one in he may also be like that back to sq 1 and everybody will know you become the whistle blower. Or worse they let him off with a stern warning and he will marks you from then on. Your appraisal / increment all has to go thru him he can play you like anything you will need to find another job because you are screwed.
the only thing that we commoners can do is to vote, after all is said and done everything that we discuss and complain here is useless they have more than two-thirds majority and can do anything they want 7 8 10 millions also can. Are you tired already? Then please vote properly when the time comes so that there is no 2/3 majority in parliament that is wielded by any single party.
Sometimes I cannot help but feel that we are barking up the wrong tree.
Should "someone" report this to MOM or should the victims themselves do so? Do you expect people to name the company without any evidence to defend himself against potential law suit?
The parliament enacts policy and law, and the civil service executes them. Errant employers are the one who should be penalize whether they are citizen or foreign.