Singapore needs to step up to continue to upgrade and improve the lives of its workers to meet challenges that may be coming in 2019.
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said this at the sidelines of his Lunar New Year morning visit to workers at SATS Inflight Catering Centre on 5 February 2019.
“There are clouds in the horizon, and we know some of the problems ... Overall the global economy is slowing, and that will affect the region. In this environment, we have to keep upgrading ourselves and keep improving the lives of our workers,” he said.
Mr Lee predicted that this year’s economic growth would be slower than the past two years.
According to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the economy expanded by about 3.6 per in 2017, and final figures from 2018 are expected to show that the economy expanded from 3 per cent to 3.5 per cent.
However, the economy is only expected to grow anywhere between 1.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent in 2019.
“This year, we will continue to grow but it may not be quite as vibrant as before, but we must work hard. Even if it is slower this year, we can make it better in the year after,” said Mr Lee.
During the visit to SATS led by NTUC, Mr Lee and his wife were accompanied by NTUC President Mary Liew, NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng, members of the NTUC Central Committee, as well as union leaders from Air Transport Executive Staff Union and Singapore Airport Terminal Services Workers’ Union.
Touching on what he saw during the visit, Mr Lee said that the workers at SATS are a key part of the aviation and aerospace sector.
“The sector is an important part of Singapore’s economy as it links Singapore to the rest of the world. So we need to maintain high standards in the sector. We need to continue expanding the sector, the business, so that we can create more job opportunities.
“SATS has been doing quite a good job, but they still face challenges. The competition is not just locally but regionally. This challenge is real for both SATS and Singapore,” said Mr Lee in Mandarin.
Mr Lee was also heartened to see that SATS incorporated high-tech Industry 4.0 processes to create a highly efficient and productive work environment and business, adding that it “signified the way ahead for Singapore.”
