There is no "magic number" to
suitably represent the number of foreign workers needed in Singapore to help
the economy prosper, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in his May Day Rally
speech yesterday.
Addressing
about 1,600 unionists, workers and employers at Downtown East, he said this in
response to a recent question from a unionist, adding that the number would
depend on several factors.
Pursuing
economic opportunities and the country's needs across different sectors - such
as construction and health care - would bring about a need for more workers, he
said.
"In
a good year, we want to allow a few more to come in, (while) in a slow year, we
can tighten and let some of them go off," he explained.
For
instance, the construction of more Housing Board flats, the building of
infrastructure such as MRT lines, and the manpower needs of hospitals and
nursing homes will also raise foreign-labour demand.
Mr Lee
said: "If you want to have more hospitals and nursing homes, then I think
it's unavoidable as you will need some extra nurses, allied professionals and
even extra doctors from wherever you can find and who can serve us well."
Even as
he laid out the circumstances behind the need for foreign labour here, Mr Lee
said it would be essential to significantly reduce the number of foreigners who
come here in search of jobs.
"We
can't just keep on bringing in 80,000 more foreign workers a year. There's just
not (enough) space and it's not sustainable to keep on going up and up,"
he explained.
Against
a backdrop of economic instability in developed countries such as the United
States and Spain, Mr Lee identified three strategies that would stand Singapore
in good stead to tackle any problems.
These
are: to keep Singapore open; to grow the economy on a sustainable basis; and to
translate growth into higher wages and better lives.
Singapore
must remain open and "embrace the world" to attract a wide range of
foreign professionals and skilled workers.
"The
reality is we need a mix, companies need a mix and we must strike the right
balance," he said. Mr Lee reiterated that "Singaporeans will always
be our priority", and that this is the purpose of all government policies.
"We
are trying to seek the maximum advantage for Singapore and Singaporeans,"
he said.
Daryll
Nanayakara
my
paper
AsiaOne
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com
Dear
Reader,
May I
invite you to visit our new blog: IIMS-Asean http://iims-asean.blogspot.com/
News
and activities of the International Institute of Medicine and Science Asean
Chapter of IIMS, Inc. California, USA - Health care, Life Science, Education,
Research, Philanthropy. Asean is the economic organisation of ten countries
located in South East Asia: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. IIMS is a
non-profit organization.
No comments:
Post a Comment