Tan Kin Lian's Blog: Employment of older workers

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Employment of older workers

Can we identify organisations that are willing to spend money to employ older workers to provide customer service?

I saw some customer guides at MRT stations. They are employed by SMRT to guide commuters. I appreciate the work by SMRT in creating employment and to provide good customer service.

Let us identify other organisations that make this positive effort.

Tan Kin Lian

4 comments:

Anonymous said...: REX comments as follows,

Here's a poser which i can't figure out.

The Straits Times tried to do exactly what Kin Lian is suggesting, i.e. to identify an organisation that will employ old people.

RENDEZVOUS Hotel. It took in an 85 year old doorman from ex Phoenix hotel. Willing employer willing taker (the doorman had a filial gainfully employed son, but he enjoyed working).

But the Straits Times got slammed in another blog. The blog operator condemned the move as a govt effort to encourage people to work till their last breath.

I really don;t understand it. These other blog and its commentors are saying the government wants people to work till they drop dead, by the example of Rendezvous Hotel.

SO dont make old people work.

Then when people are retired off early, the government again get slammed because they say that you shouldnt retrench experienced staff.

I thought about this paradox for a long time, i don't know what is the answer to this paradox.

rex; June 21, 2010 7:07 PM
Anonymous said...: rex,

when people refer to employment of older works, they are probably referring to the 40-60+ age group. Not 85.; June 22, 2010 11:15 AM
Anonymous said...: Allow me to offer my observation as i am distress by the phenomenon.

Me spent my first 20 years of being in a village at the Eastern part of SIN and had relatives at other villages in Sg. The prevailing culture then was that the eldest in the family were invariably the CEO of all the households. Whether or not he or and she(elders) were working or educated, they invariably took commands over domestic affairs.

Some did have children who were quite educated and worked as executives and professionals. And those said offsprings were just as controlled by their elders as those less educated and worked as menial workers. The older children tended to be less educated than those born later and more often than not worked to support the younger ones. One thing was consistent, the elders were always in command and respected by the youngs.

Later, the villagers were resettled and almost all moved into HDB livings. Due to the use of CPF for HDB Purchases, most old folks made their working children, usually the oldest and or the ones with most CPF to be co-owners of their HDB Flats. It resulted in almost a sudden turn of fate for most of the seniors.

The elders when domiciled in the villages were somehow able to etch out a living and able to generate an income, be it farming or working for farm owners or turned fishermen by learning to harvest the marine produces. Many were artisans, others made traditional foodstuffs and sold at roadsides or house to house.

Once resettled into the HDB Estates, the elderlies faced the four walls everyday unless they managed to find works. It was typical of most HDB dwellers resettled from the villages to suddenly find themselves 'useless'. Most elderlies became aimless and lost their commands in the households.

Their children too were hardly at home as the four walls cannot keep the ex-villagers in them. So, everyone lost the 'togetherness' that were once the family bindings upheld and ruled by the elders. Family relationships began to deteriorate and so were the relations of neighbours.

In the villages, almost everyone knew, helped and related to each others. The so-called 'kampong spirits'(camaraderies) were strong and desired. The highrise livings bred and breed an opposite culture to the kampong spirit. Most HDB occupants prefer to be left to their own and in most households, the elderlies are considered unhygiene and even 'look down' by their own offsprings.

We had and have old folks sent to old folks homes, others unemployed spend time at void decks and parks. Those with money gather at coffeeshops and places of leisures. Some go to gambling places.

Hope, this long article; my apology, explained a little why the older Singaporeans prefer to work than to retire even though they may not need the money which if i may add; they hardly spent(money from income).

patriot; June 22, 2010 5:16 PM
Anonymous said...: Old Chang Kee is also one employer that hires senior citizens as their staffs.; June 23, 2010 10:43 AM