Reaching out to disadvantaged people is something Mary Louis Rajanayagam is passionate about. She has been doing that and more as part of the welfare subcommittee of the Healthcare Services Employees’ Union (HSEU).
Mary Louis, 50 and a clinic executive at the National Dental Centre, received the Comrade of Labour Award at this year’s May Day celebrations.
She has been with HSEU since 1983 and shares with NTUC This Week that every gesture, no matter how small, counts.
NTUC This Week: What keeps you going in your work in the welfare subcommittee of HSEU?
Mary Louis Rajanayagam: To me, no act of kindness however small is ever wasted. While I agree that it is impossible to help everyone in need, every individual that I have helped matters. Perhaps it is the nature of the healthcare industry. Being in it has instilled this principle in me to look out for those in need and avail myself to help in areas I can. Similarly, in the union work that I do, my main focus is to ensure that no members are left without help when they are in need.
Q: Tell us about an incident that has stayed with you till today.
A: Sometime back, I joined the welfare team on a visit to the Singapore Leprosy Relief Association’s Home. I remember feeling anxious before the visit as I had no experience working with ex-leprosy victims. To my pleasant surprise, I was greeted with warm smiles once I entered the room. I was reminded that we do not need much to be happy. They were ex-leprosy victims and are now healed of their condition. Only a few have some form of deformity and low esteem to face the public. The lesson for me –we should treat them just like anyone of us.
Q: What about your dealings with union members?
A: A union member and her husband were struggling to make ends meet with three school-going children. I shared with her about the HSEU Bursary Award and the money came in handy for the family. I approached last year when applications opened and she told me that she was no longer qualified as both she and her husband had upskilled themselves and moved up the salary ladder. She made me proud of her achievements. In another case, I helped a sole breadwinner in her early 20s whose mother had multiple chronic illnesses. She told me that while she was in financial hardship, it meant a lot more to her that the union always brightened her life in non-monetary ways with various vouchers extended to her.
Q: How have you been upgrading and upskilling yourself?
A: I have always believed in lifelong learning. After receiving my Dental Surgery Assistant Certificate, I went on to pursue my GCE ‘A’ Levels and then an Advanced Diploma and Degree in Psychology with the then-UniSIM [now the Singapore University of Social Sciences]. Aside from formal education, being part of the union has encouraged me to continually developed my soft skills too by mingling with union leaders and voicing my views during dialogue sessions.
Source: NTUC This Week
