Press release: Labour day protest on 1st May (Thurs) from 4 to 7pm Hong Lim Park - Protect The Singaporean Workers
Dear friends from the press,
Transitioning.org will be conducting our second labour day protest on 1st May (Thurs) at Hong Lim Park from 4 to 7pm. The theme of the event is Protect The Singaporean Workers.
Last year's event was attended by 4000 Singaporeans protesting against the pro-foreigner labour policies of our country.
For this year's event, we will be showcasing companies that flout our weak labour laws here and will name them one by one in detail so that they will be shamed publicly.
Some of their cases are highlighted on our transitioning.org website.
Most of the speakers on that day will be ordinary Singaporeans who are either frustrated with the system or are personally affected by it. There are a total of seven speakers.
One of the speakers is Ryan a 30-something graduate who could not find work for more than 2 years - naturally he is frustrated with his ordeal and wants to speak on that day to express his thoughts on the current employment situation.
Our Prime Minister has also advised that foreigners are here because they could bring in jobs along with them for local employment but we have increasingly see how our people are in fact displaced by incoming foreigners.
For example,a Indian recruitment firm Encora Technologies has replaced a Singaporean 36-year-old mother of three Veron with her Indian coverer after she returned to work from her maternity leave and is now jobless for the past few months. She has been with AT & T for the past 13 years and currently suffered from depression.
She is currently in mediation talk with MOM and the company to request for some compensation.She is unfortunately unable to attend the event as she has to look after her three young children.
Ms Linda Yau will however be gracing the occasion with a word of encouragement as she just got back her job with DHL after social media shamed the company for failing to extend her contract due to some management issue. Her job initially went to a Malaysian.
She is the sole breadwinner for the family of three as her husband is down with stroke.She only earns $2000.
We will also be shaming MOE who coerced a Malay girl into paying $76,000 when she failed her practicum twice. MOE managed to provide her a job after our shaming publicity but she still has to pay the loan.
We will be highlighting the woes of local Singaporeans who are frustrated by the weak labour law here and many of them face unfair dismissal from their employers.
Some of them even have to pay back the employers a sum of money for failing to complete their contract or face legal action.
One of them is Ms Jennifer Chew who owed Pawsitive Sensations $6300 for failing to complete her internship bond even though she only earned less than $300 a month for some part-time work with them.
Through social media intervention, the company backed down from their demand and even returned her the first-month repayment instalment.
Our workers often have nowhere to turn to as MOM and TAFEP could not help them much. Many of them are asked to seek their own legal recourse when faced with a work dispute.
We are also appalled by the weak trade unions here and believe that its all a show. Our workers have joined unions in the past but we hardly hear of how our unions have arbitrate successfully for workers exploited by ruthless employers.
In fact, its a shame to know that all along our trade unions have not organised labour day protest for the past few decades independently and the pro-government tripartite system is all but a symbolic sham.
This year labour day protest promises to be fiery, meaningful and passionate and we want to bring back the proper labour rights to our workers!
We will be having a press conference after the event and the press is encouraged to stay back and ask questions. The event should end by 7pm.
Thanks & Warmest Regards,
Gilbert Goh
President
Transitioning - unemployment support services
Transitioning - unemployment support services
http://www.transitioning.org/ - unemployment support services
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