I think it may be too simplistic to conclude that foreigners create or steal away our jobs. Some years ago I was a HR professional in a mid side company and in order for the company to stay competitive within the country and internationally, we have to select the best candidates to get things done. It was never the company's policy to give jobs away to foriegners (I guess we are referring to those who are not born in Singapore), but it was of the company's interest to out perform the rest in the market so that we could continue to survive, therefore, when we were given a poll of candidates to choose from, quite often we went for those who offer the best qualification (expertise, personality, ...etc). It was not uncommon that at times we found it hard to get local candidates who suited the profile we looked for, for those instances we have to go for foreign candidates who have obtained PR status or qualified for EP, unless we couldn't get that either. These "foreigners" helped the company survive and grow (otherwise they would ve been removed from the company) and in the process more jobs were created as we expanded our biz. From this perspective, yes, I agree that hiring foreigners (or rather, hiring the best candidates regardless of the nationality) helps company grow and as the result more jobs are created. This is a process that I witnessed as a HR Professional.
As for why many Singaporeans are out of job, especially men who are in their midage or older, foreigners taking away jobs could be one factor, but is that all? When we are willing to look closer, we could always identify more than one single factor. One simple example would be the fact that most companies have less senior post than junior ones, the ratio could be 1 to 10, and therefore, there are naturally career progression may not be available for every staff, especially those who are not offering expertise that allows them to progress to the next level, they are stuck. Unless the company continue to expand or are sizable enough for them to move laterally, they may be the first to be laid off when the company has to downsize, as they have become too expensive to afford (if you are the boss, wouldn't you do the same in order that the company survive the crisis?). Will their chance of be hired again by other companies be higher if the foreigners are not here to "steal" their job away? Yes, perhaps. But what will happen to our companies when they have less choices of candidates? Good to hear their opinions before we jump to our conclusion, as the availability of jobs depends almost entirely on their chances of survival.
Also the fact that more and more younger Singaporeans are taking up senior post nowadays as compared to 10 and 20 years ago, they move upward much faster. It is so common now that a 30 year-old can be in a senior post as they are more adaptable and have the opportunities to be much better equipped than their older counterpart. Most companies prefer hring younger employees unless the older ones offer very competitive qualification, as the younger workers are cheaper and more moldable. Blame it all onto the foreigners? Perhaps we should also study the structure of our society that has changed silently and drastically over the past 30 years and the impact.
Yes, I agree that we should be more stringent when comes to opening our door to foreigners, I would also like to propose that we should expand the scope of our study of the problem of unemployment among Singaporeans (which isalready one of the lowest worldwide), instead of just blaming it on a single factor. If we want a parliment with world class standard, not only that the ruling party should have such ability to understand what's going, the opposition should be expected to have such ability as well. When the ruling party is being too simplistic, perhaps the opposition should demonstrate the ability to out perform the ruling party.
I think it may be too simplistic to conclude that foreigners create or steal away our jobs. Some years ago I was a HR professional in a mid side company and in order for the company to stay competitive within the country and internationally, we have to select the best candidates to get things done. It was never the company's policy to give jobs away to foriegners (I guess we are referring to those who are not born in Singapore), but it was of the company's interest to out perform the rest in the market so that we could continue to survive, therefore, when we were given a poll of candidates to choose from, quite often we went for those who offer the best qualification (expertise, personality, ...etc). It was not uncommon that at times we found it hard to get local candidates who suited the profile we looked for, for those instances we have to go for foreign candidates who have obtained PR status or qualified for EP, unless we couldn't get that either. These "foreigners" helped the company survive and grow (otherwise they would ve been removed from the company) and in the process more jobs were created as we expanded our biz. From this perspective, yes, I agree that hiring foreigners (or rather, hiring the best candidates regardless of the nationality) helps company grow and as the result more jobs are created. This is a process that I witnessed as a HR Professional.
As for why many Singaporeans are out of job, especially men who are in their midage or older, foreigners taking away jobs could be one factor, but is that all? When we are willing to look closer, we could always identify more than one single factor. One simple example would be the fact that most companies have less senior post than junior ones, the ratio could be 1 to 10, and therefore, there are naturally career progression may not be available for every staff, especially those who are not offering expertise that allows them to progress to the next level, they are stuck. Unless the company continue to expand or are sizable enough for them to move laterally, they may be the first to be laid off when the company has to downsize, as they have become too expensive to afford (if you are the boss, wouldn't you do the same in order that the company survive the crisis?). Will their chance of be hired again by other companies be higher if the foreigners are not here to "steal" their job away? Yes, perhaps. But what will happen to our companies when they have less choices of candidates? Good to hear their opinions before we jump to our conclusion, as the availability of jobs depends almost entirely on their chances of survival.
Also the fact that more and more younger Singaporeans are taking up senior post nowadays as compared to 10 and 20 years ago, they move upward much faster. It is so common now that a 30 year-old can be in a senior post as they are more adaptable and have the opportunities to be much better equipped than their older counterpart. Most companies prefer hring younger employees unless the older ones offer very competitive qualification, as the younger workers are cheaper and more moldable. Blame it all onto the foreigners? Perhaps we should also study the structure of our society that has changed silently and drastically over the past 30 years and the impact.
Yes, I agree that we should be more stringent when comes to opening our door to foreigners, I would also like to propose that we should expand the scope of our study of the problem of unemployment among Singaporeans (which isalready one of the lowest worldwide), instead of just blaming it on a single factor. If we want a parliment with world class standard, not only that the ruling party should have such ability to understand what's going, the opposition should be expected to have such ability as well. When the ruling party is being too simplistic, perhaps the opposition should demonstrate the ability to out perform the ruling party.