Fancy job titles can raise workers’ morale

[Source: mypaper, 21 Dec 2009]

I REFER to Mr Jeffrey Law Lee Beng’s letter, “Dump fancy, meaningless job titles” (my paper, Dec 18).

It has long been acknowledged that many Singaporeans shun certain jobs because of poor pay, drudgery and lowly status.

Many who hold such jobs would not be keen to share their designations with friends and family, as they bear negative connotations.

While a fixation on status has led to an increase in the number of fancy job titles, such as “sanitation officer” for toilet cleaners and “customer- service executive” for sales staff in shops, there is really no harm in conferring such titles on employee

As Mr Law admitted, such designations could instil a sense of dignity in workers and spur them to provide better service.

After all, if such titles could alter employees’ mindsets, they would perform better than if they had no pride in their jobs.

And using fancy titles, though a small gesture, is a painless effort that could reap significant dividends if Singaporeans become more accepting of such jobs and do them well.

The salaries for such positions are low and there are few rewards and benefits.

Let us not begrudge those who take them up their fancy titles.

MR ADAM LEO ISIDORE TAN

First World country,First World work terms

Reader’s reponse in today’s mypaper (14 Dec 2009)

I REFER to the letter, “Jobseekers must leave comfort zone” (my paper, Dec 11).

The writer mentioned that,as Singapore has moved from Third World to First, the mindsets of Singaporean workers
should move in tandem.

Hence, Singaporeans should not take working regular hours or high pay for granted, so that they can remain competitive relative to foreign workers.

This line of argument is mistaken.

Developed countries move towards greater work-life balance and higher standards of living.

An example would be France, which has moved towards a 35-hour work week and better benefits for mothers, with four months’ maternity leave.

To align our expectations of pay and work-life balance with those of foreign workers from Third World countries is for our society to move backwards.

Another example would be Australia, where labour policies dictate that employers must show evidence that no citizen is able to fill a vacancy before a foreigner can be hired.

In addition, certain jobs which are considered by Singapore employers to be menial, thus leading them to hire “monkeys for peanuts” (such as pump attendants, construction workers, plumbers, carpenters, postmen, cleaners and sanitation workers), are considered respectable in Australia.

This is because over there, the contribution of such workers is not measured solely in monetary terms.

Menial workers in Singapore are not well-paid as many are not academically well-qualified. Ignoring such workers’ intangible contributions and rewarding them based solely on academic qualifications is unfair.

After all, if there should come a day when office workers are all stuck at home without their access to computers for a week because of some crisis, there may well be little disruption to our daily lives.

Compare this with what could unclog sinks and toilets for a whole week.

Also, if we insist that Singaporeans should be able to compete with foreign workers by expecting less pay, longer hours and poorer work conditions, there will definitely be citizens who cannot compete, such as mothers who cannot work long hours because of family commitments, and older workers.

If a business in a First World country is not earning enough to provide decent incomes and First World working conditions for its employees, then it is not a sustainable business by First World standards.

MS ELLEN TAN

First Post, First Call.

I don’t want to make a big fuss out of the “virgin post” on this blog other to explain how I hope this little project can help people who are unemployed find jobs through the very simple concept of using a system of free referrals to link up employed individuals and job opportunities.

Basically all that is required is this: if you know someone who is in need of a job, or if you know of any hiring opportunities that may be of help to someone who is unemployed, let us know by dropping an email to sponsorajob@asia.com and we’ll broadcast it (blog, Facebook, Twitter etc). Or you can broadcast it yourself on the Facebook and Twitter sites if you already have access.

Unfortunately, we are also aware of bogus cases out there that may try to take advantage of things, so at this point, we will actually screen through the referrals (we’ll work around that eventually!)

It doesn’t take a lot, and neither would it cost anything, but if you only took the time to do it, it could make a huge difference to the life of that someone and his/her family because they managed to find a job again.

So for the time being, get the referrals going, and help us make this project a success!