NTUC Charity Dinner 2007
6 September 2007
Media Release
1. As Singapore continues to be ranked No. 1 in the Business Environment Risk Intelligence’s (BERI) Labour Force Evaluation Measure report, it is evident that we have been able to maintain our competitiveness as a united workforce. At the social front, Singapore has also made progress as a caring and compassionate people, looking after the less privileged, including lower-income families and the needy.
An Inclusive and Caring Labour Movement
2. As an inclusive and caring Labour Movement with a heart, the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), together with its affiliated unions and associations, co-operatives and tripartite partners, is further strengthening its efforts in various social enterprise activities to contribute towards Singapore’s vision of becoming a truly a first-class society.
3. As part of the overarching LM2011 (Labour Movement 2011) vision to be an inclusive Labour Movement, NTUC’s Care and Share initiatives have resulted in several programmes being administered to help union members and the community at large. These included Back-To-School vouchers, Family Recreational Fund vouchers[1], NTUC Care & Share vouchers, scholarships and bursaries, which benefited lower-income union members and their families, and the needy. Additionally, the NTUC ElderCare Trust has also received donations through fund-raising events to help NTUC ElderCare in its social mission of looking after the elderly. These programmes amounted to approximately $6.2 million[2] in 2006.
4. Against this charitable backdrop, NTUC is encouraged to have garnered over $1 million for its beneficiaries – NTUC Childcare and NTUC ElderCare – from two of its major fund-raising events this year. The total raised this year from the NTUC Charity Golf 2007 and NTUC Charity Dinner 2007 is $1,057,300 – a 35% increase from last year’s fund-raising efforts through the same events.
NTUC Charity Golf 2007
5. The NTUC Charity Golf event held on 10 July 2007 at the Orchid Country Club saw 128 golfers from the tripartite partners collectively raising $243,500 from donations and sales of golf flights. NTUC Secretary-General Lim Swee Say, Guest-of-Honour for the event, Singapore National Employers Federation President Stephen Lee, Minister of State for Education and Manpower Gan Kim Yong, and other tripartite representatives, lent their strong support towards this charitable cause.
NTUC Charity Dinner 2007
6. The second fund raising event this year – NTUC Charity Dinner 2007 – was held at the Meritus Mandarin Hotel on 6 September 2007 with NTUC Secretary-General Lim Swee Say as the Guest-of-Honour. So far, donors have committed to raise $813,800[3] through generous contributions towards the charity dinner. In no particular order, the top three donors of the charity dinner were the – AUPE Multi-Purpose Co-operative Society Ltd, ComfortDelgro and Singapore Labour Foundation.
7. The highlight of the charity dinner included the presentation of a token of appreciation to NTUC Secretary-General Lim Swee Say by two representatives from the NTUC ElderCare centres. The gift was made up of strips of colourful paper which the elderly meticulously rolled up to form the Chinese idiom - (zai xin ren hou), which meant a kind and magnanimous character. The Chinese characters, which were arranged in a glass frame, took the elderly folks approximately one month to complete. They also crafted hand-made bookmarks, in the shape of hearts, for every dinner table to thank each guest.
8. During the charity dinner, NTUC Secretary-General Lim Swee Say thanked the sponsors and said, “As a caring and compassionate Labour Movement, we have always extended our helping hand to the community, especially to low-income, needy union members and their families. As we transform ourselves into an even more inclusive labour movement, we will not only do more for the needy, but also extend our caring efforts to touch all collars, ages and nationalities of workers, members and their families.”
9. Last year, a total of $780,694 was raised from the NTUC Charity Golf 2006 and NTUC Charity Dinner 2006. The donations were put to good use by providing more affordable services at NTUC ElderCare’s four day-care centres. The money was also used to improve the quality of services and offer more holistic programmes such as Brain Gym, which is a series of simple and enjoyable movements for the elderly to enhance their experience for whole brain learning, thus, improving their physical movements and emotional states. Another pilot program funded by the donations was “Care@home”, a non-medical home care scheme that serves as an alternate care service for seniors who are weak, homebound and require some form of care and support at the convenience of their own home.
10. This year, the donations will go towards funding the NTUC Childcare Bright Horizon Trust Fund, NTUC ElderCare’s expansion of its day-care centres in view of the ageing population and engaging in programmes that enhance the elderly’s physical and mental wellness.
Looking Forward
11. For the last quarter of 2007, NTUC will also be actively implementing its various assistance programmes for the lower-income and needy. In November, NTUC will give out $1 million worth of Family Recreation Fund Vouchers at Downtown East to 10,000 low-income families. In December, NTUC will distribute $2 million worth of Back To School vouchers at the Back To School Fair in Downtown East, benefiting about 20,000 children from low-income families as well.
12. Moving forward, NTUC will strive to be even more inclusive by providing more help to more beneficiaries, including working with unions through the Welfare Home Visit initiative, where unions will engage in caring activities for residents of their adopted homes during the upcoming December Care & Share month.
Mr Ong Ah Heng
Director
Care and Share
National Trades Union Congress
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About National Trades Union Congress (NTUC)
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) is a national confederation of trade unions in the industrial, service and public sectors representing 500,000 workers in Singapore. NTUC comprises 63 affiliated unions, 6 affiliated taxi associations, 9 co-operatives and 6 related organisations. NTUC’s objectives are to help Singapore stay competitive and workers remain employable for life; to enhance the social status and well-being of workers; and to build a strong, responsible and caring labour movement. NTUC's vision is to be an inclusive labour movement for all collars, all ages and all nationalities. For more details on NTUC, please visit our website at www.ntuc.org.sg
[1] For more information on Back-To-School vouchers and Family Recreational Fund vouchers, please refer to ANNEX A.
[2] This amount does not include contributions from NTUC’s social enterprises.
[3] The figure is as of 5 September 2007; the grand total raised will be finalised on the night of 6 September 2007 at the NTUC Charity Dinner 2007.
ANNEX A
INFORMATION ON NTUC CARE AND SHARE PROGRAMMES
Back to School Voucher
The NTUC’s Back to School programme aims to help lower-income union members meet the expenses of their children at the start of the new school year. Union members with school-going children, and who meet the income criteria can use Back to School vouchers to purchase textbooks, shoes, uniforms and other items from authorised suppliers and participating retail outlets in preparation for a new school term. The Back to School programme is usually held in conjunction with NTUC FairPrice’s Used Textbooks Project so that students can get choose to get their textbooks from the Used Textbooks Project, and use the Back to School vouchers for other items. Union members whose total gross household monthly income is $1,500 or below, or whose per capita income does not exceed $450 (if household income is more than $1,500) can apply for these vouchers for their school-going children from pre-school to polytechnic levels.
Family Recreation Fund Voucher
The NTUC’s Family Recreation Fund Voucher scheme allows lower-income union members and their families to enjoy recreational facilities offered by the NTUC Club, including theme parks and chalets. To apply for these vouchers, union members should have a total gross household monthly income of $2,500 and below or per capita monthly household income not exceeding $750.
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