I am happy to be here with you at this Triennial Delegates Conference of the SMMWU.
When we met at the last Triennial Delegates Conference in 2000, SMMWU has 26,000 members. Today, SMMWU has just over 50,000 members and is now the largest union in Singapore.
I congratulate all of you today for that achievement, in particular, Comrade Joseph Tan, Comrade John De Payva and the EXCO of SMMWU. The team has done well. The office building has also now been fully paid for.
SMMWU has grown from strength to strength. Not only has it grown in terms of membership size, but also in better serving and helping its members. It is during these difficult times that union leaders play a crucial role in helping their members.
During these times, union leaders not only have to understand members' concerns, but also help to explain issues and challenges so as to better prepare members for their future. It has never been easy trying to explain to members that in order to help them, they have to accept policies that can be painful in the short term, but certainly beneficial in the longer run. It is like the traditional herbal medicine.
Sometimes union leaders get scolded. But so long as you know that these painful measures will help members have a better life tomorrow, you must continue to work hard, talk to your members to help them understand.
In this regard, I congratulate Comrade John De Payva, who was involved in the ERC's work, who has done a good job representing and reflecting workers concerns.
New Challenges
Some of you attended the dialogue with DPM Lee on the ERC recommendations about 2 weeks ago. The ERC committee was set up in 2001 to comprehensively review current policies and propose strategies to promote the further growth and development of Singapore.
This is an important milestone in the development of the Singapore economy. It is also an important milestone for all of us workers.
Why is this important for all of us? It is because the world has changed, the environment, which we were once familiar with, has changed. All these changes will directly impact us.
What are these changes?
Last Friday, Straits Times reported British Telecoms moving their call centres to New Delhi and Bombay, to save costs. A BT official was quoted to say that they would be able to get highly educated young men and women, usually university graduates, who speak good English, for far lower wages than in Britain. And BT is not alone. HSBC, Prudential, Microsoft, American Express and GE Capital have already moved their call centres to India earlier.
10 years ago, it would have been unimaginable that a call centre serving the British would be located in India!
The economic competition has intensified. Who will be affected by this competition? All of us. All Singaporeans will be affected by this competition. The question is how well we cope. The better we manage the change, the better our chances of doing well in the new environment.
If we could do nothing and still live a comfortable life, many of us would have chosen to not do anything. Why bother to set up an Economic Review Committee? Why bother to engage in many discussions and dialogues, come up with painful measures, and then having to explain to workers that these changes are necessary?
Unfortunately, the hard reality is that if we do nothing, many of us will lose our jobs. Once a company moves out, it will take away not only jobs in the company but also many other jobs in related industries. If a manufacturing company goes - the packaging, the logistics, and so on, all will be affected.
As leaders, we cannot ignore this reality. Our members elect us to be their leaders, and we have a responsibility to help them. We must try to keep the jobs here, and create new jobs.
Fresh Goals
The ERC was set up with these objectives in mind. The ERC recommendations will help us remake and upgrade the Singapore economy. All of us have a part to play in helping to remake and upgrade the economy. Some of our members will be impacted and will suffer hardship. We must stay together, help each other stay on track and press on with the necessary changes.
Long Term Strategies
The ERC has map out the policies and strategies both long term and immediate. The longer-term strategies aim to restructure the economy, enhance our competitiveness, and help to attract foreign investment and talent to Singapore. These are all means to an end. What they hope to achieve, ultimately, is to create jobs and generate wealth for Singaporeans in the long term. These six key areas are:
All these strategies will help create jobs for workers. But these are long-term strategies. They are important but they are not enough to help us tackle the immediate issues. Our foremost priority is to keep the existing jobs in Singapore. We must make decisive changes to prevent these existing jobs from disappearing to the lower costs locations.
Immediate Measures
The Singapore economy has not yet fully recovered from the 2001 recession. Though growth has been slightly positive, the economy is still weak. Moreover, our prospects are clouded by three critical uncertainties.
Firstly, we are faced with security uncertainties in the region and in the world.
Secondly, the slowdown in the G-3 economies - US, Europe and Japan. The EU and the Japanese economies remain sluggish. Although most economists expect a gradual recovery in the US, the growth will be modest.
Thirdly, China and India. MNCs see attractive business opportunities in China, and are restructuring their activities and presence in Asia. This restructuring is in fact a major reason why we are experiencing higher retrenchments and unemployment.
Fortunately, through EDB, we have maintained the inflow of foreign investment. But the going is getting tougher. Companies want to know what we have to offer. They compare us against the attractions of emerging new players like China. If we don't send a clear signal that we are serious about taking steps to improve the investment climate here, we will not get these companies and the jobs that come along with them.
What do we have to offer? Our people. We need to show the world that we can stand together, accept painful measures, and move ahead as a people.
We have to take decisive steps to strengthen our position. The ERC has recommended immediate measures. These measures aim to keep as many existing jobs in Singapore as possible. They aim at tackling the immediate challenges facing workers and their livelihood.
The ERC recommendations start and end with the same objectives in mind - how do we keep the existing jobs in Singapore, and how do we bring new jobs to Singapore?
Union leaders are rightly concerned with the recommendation to defer the restoration of the CPF contribution rate for two years. They are concerned that there may not be enough to put aside for retirement. This is already a good sign. It shows that our union leaders understand and accept the need to remain competitive. But they are rightly concerned whether there will be enough for retirement.
There are two points here:
Firstly, the CPF. The CPF has to be refocused to provide for the basic needs for the majority. What is basic? It is subjective, but I think basic needs should be the first home, basic medical care and savings for old age. The problem with CPF today is that people use it for buying a bigger second or third home, without leaving enough to meet the uncertainties in the new economy. That is why the Government will be shifting the balance between the CPF used for housing and for retirement by gradually increasing the Special Account.
The second issue is on retirement. Can we really retire in the sense that we stop working altogether, relax everyday, go for holidays, and do nothing else? We have to be realistic. We have to change our expectation of retirement. Many countries now realized that there is no such thing as retirement. In the future, we will have to take on a different job, maybe lighter, maybe part-time, maybe half the pay of what we use to get. It will be more relaxing, but definitely not totally relaxed and do nothing all day. Then we will be able to look after ourselves, not only have enough for old age, but also in keeping our minds active.
Some asked, "Do we have to defer the CPF restoration? Why not wait till end of the year before we decide. The economy may surprise with a strong growth!" Maybe, and I certainly hope that we will be surprised with a strong growth. If so, our workers will get bonuses.
Given the uncertainties and restructuring that we are facing, more likely, our economy will grow moderately in 2003. Fingers crossed, full recovery will likely take place in 2004, but we also expect modest growth. If that is the case, if we do not send a clear signal now that we are determined to remain competitive, we run the risk of losing our companies to cheaper locations. We run the risk of more of our workers losing their jobs. It is not something that we, as union leaders, should do. Where some companies do well, as union leaders, we will help our workers negotiate for a bonus.
Because we support sending a clear signal to investors in Singapore, and to investors who are considering coming to Singapore, we supported the move. We want to keep the jobs here, and to bring new jobs here. We want the world to know that Singaporean workers can stand together in difficult times, that we have the guts to fight for a better Singapore!
Helping Singaporeans Cope
Even as we contain our costs and maintain our competitiveness, some companies, particularly those in the lower end of manufacturing, would still have to restructure or worst, relocate. In these cases, we must continue to help our workers cope with the current difficulties.
We will help the retrenched workers find new work, through improving our job matching efforts, through job counseling and so on. Each of you can play a part in this. Keep a lookout for new opportunities, and if you know of a company who needs workers, inform NTUC JobLink or Heng Chee How. Through our network, we can improve the dissemination of information and find new jobs for the retrenched workers in a faster way.
We must also help workers upgrade their skills so that they can qualify for the new jobs that are being created. Skills training and upgrading remains a key priority for us.
Concluding Remarks
In Singapore, we are fortunate that the close tripartite relations have allowed us to be directly involved in the ERC's work and in discussions on issues that will impact on the workers. These consultations give union leaders the opportunity to directly reflect ground concerns and express our views. At the same time, I hope union leaders also benefited from better understanding the issues and challenges that are confronting our fellow workers.
Comrade John De Payva, who is also President NTUC, represents the Singapore labour movement in many international meetings. Recently, he was appointed Executive Board Member of the ICFTU - the biggest international trade union organisation. He knows that his counterparts from other countries are impressed, and sometimes almost envious, of the strong tripartism in Singapore and the strong voice we have in shaping policies.
The strong tripartism is indeed a strategic advantage that we have over many other countries. We are different from unions in other countries. We are able to make tough decisions that will benefit the majority of workers in the company and the overall economy. We get the right things done!
Today, the delegates of SMMWU will be electing the EXCO to serve your members. The team will face tough challenges ahead. You will need to help members cope with the demands of the new economy. You will need to encourage them to train and retrain, and help those retrenched to find new jobs. You will need to understand and manage your members' expectations, and strengthen the camaraderie.
But I am confident that together as a team, under the able leadership of Comrade Joseph Tan and Comrade John De Payva, you will be able to overcome the challenges of the new economy, to a better life!
Allow me to say a few words about the retrenchment at PSA last week.
First, why? Because the competition has changed. Several ports in the region are aiming for the same transshipment business as PSA, or want direct calls by long-haul ships. They have the advantage of lower land and labour costs.
PSA had for many years retained employees they no longer needed. To fight the battle successfully against new competitors, PSA has to shed excess baggage.
I am glad that both unions, the SPWU and the POU, responded with great understanding. They had a difficult time, but they managed the past couple of weeks admirably. They got a fair deal for the retrenched workers.
I am glad also that leaders from other unions also chipped in to give their support. I wish to thank them for doing so. Most went to encourage the SPWU and POU leaders, others helped with job-matching. Why did they do so? To express their solidarity with fellow unionists and workers. It is a difficult time, but they wanted the PSA employees to know that the rest of the union movement is behind them in their battle against the competition. PSA has taken some difficult steps in the past year, and will take some more. It will be battle-fit. With the support of the rest of Singapore, PSA will triumph.
