NANYANG INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT

MIGRATING TEMPORARY WORKERS INTO SINGAPORE

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

SUBMITTED BY GADIREDDY

KRISHNA NAGENDRA

3/12/2012

Temporary workers
Temporary work or temporary employment refers to a situation where the employee is expected to leave the employer within a certain period of time. Temporary employees are sometimes called "contractual", "seasonal", "interim", "casual staff", "freelance"; or the word may be shortened to "temps." Temporary workers may work full-time or part-time, depending on the individual case. In some instances, they are given benefits (such as health insurance), but usually the best treatment is reserved for the permanent employees. Temporary employees are also used in work that has a cyclical nature that requires frequent adjustment of staffing levels. Temp workers currently possess a myriad of other titles including: accountants, financial officers, assembly-line workers, nurses, doctors, scientists, lawyers and information technology professionals. A temporary work agency, or temp agency or temporary staffing firm finds and retains workers. Other companies, in need of short-term workers, contract with the temp agency to send temporary workers, or temps, on assignment to work at the other companies. . Not all temporary employees find jobs through a temporary Employment agency. For example, a person can simply apply at a local park for seasonal jobs.

Pros and Cons of hiring a temp

Pros

Enables your business to adjust more easily and quickly to workload fluctuations Temporary help agencies can quickly provide your business with qualified staff. Some common reasons companies hire temps: Cons Training Needs Morale Issues Safety Issues Legal Concerns Reliability Issues Employee absences: illness, vacation, maternity or disability leave, sudden departure. Unexpected or temporary demands: special projects, seasonal or peak periods, employee shortages Maintains staffing flexibility Can evaluate worker without commitment Can save time and money Temporary employees can provide specialized skills to all types of industries Can lead to a long-term positive relationship with staffing agency

Why singapore?

Singapore is one of the easiest places to settle-in. According to the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) World Competitiveness Yearbook 2006, Singapore is ranked 4th among the countries with the least restrictive immigration laws for employing foreign labour, and the least restrictive in Asia. Because of Singapore\'s history in attracting foreign professionals, most relocation requirements have been anticipated and catered for to make settling-in effortless Singapores increased reliance on both PR and temporary workers is a reversal of the 1980s policy of pushing up wages in order to force businesses to be more productive. It also has had the effect of making Singapores economic growth numbers look more impressive than they may actually be. Gross domestic product rose from 144 billion Singapore dollars ($105.6 billion) in 1999 to 265 billion Singapore dollars in 2009. But over the same period employment rose from 2.1 million to three million. Employment thus rose faster than total population, exaggerating the gains in GDP per capita. The workforce participation rate rose from 50 percent of the population in 1999 to 55 percent a decade later. As a result, many people, in particular those from China, find it easy to obtain PR status. Indians have also benefited and brought with them many skills in areas of such as information technology. Immigration is also seen as a way of offsetting the exodus of middle-class Singaporeans to more open societies such as Australia. Even more important for Singapore is the mix of its population, of whom 3.2 million are citizens, half a million permanent residents and no less than 1.3 million now temporary residents. The latter include highly-paid expatriate professionals whose numbers are far outweighed by maids and other low income workers. Non-citizens now comprise 36 percent of the population compared with 14 percent in 1990. For example Singapore is a major receiving country for Bangladeshi male migrants coming to Southeast Asia. This paper intends to illustrate major factors that contribute to the viability of temporary labor migration from Bangladesh to Singapore. The Singapore situation results partly from its immigration policy, which could be viewed as a net overall benefit. However it also points to the fact that Singapore has huge foreign reserves, which earn relatively little. Meanwhile profits there are increasingly being earned by foreign, not local capital, and in many cases subsidized by tax breaks and other incentives not enjoyed by local business. Hence Singapore becomes ever more reliant on inflow of that capital for continued growth as well as on importing foreign workers to supplement an almost static indigenous labor force. The majority of citizens continued to see real income gains but disparities widened while the increase in the percentage of low-paid foreigners in the workforce added to income disparity.Also worrying for Singaporeans is the decreasing share they have been enjoying in their GDP. In 2009, foreign companies and residents accounted for 42 percent of economic activity. Foreign talents add value to the Singapores workforce and can even exchange valuable knowledge and experiences they have obtained in their hometown or other places with our local expertise. This co-operation with our local workforce can definitely help to improve the efficiency of the workforce and thus help to improve Singapores economic. The foreign talent can also transports the technique they use in their homeland and adapt it in Singapore, making Singapore more competitive compared to other countries. Also, as these foreign talents normally migrate to Singapore from places where it is poorer, the living conditions are not that good and they could not find a suitable job, they often tend to settle for lower pay unlike locals. This can help to slow down the demand for higher wages and through this, it helps to keep the economic competitive.

Migrating into singapore

Advantages
The Singaporean government has reconfigured its permit system for temporary foreign workers amid an influx of laborers from overseas, The Singaporean government has reconfigured its permit system for temporary foreign workers amid an influx of laborers from overseas. foreigners may now enter Singapore without a work pass for short durations to perform certain activities that involve specialized skills. Their economy has grown because they have foriegn workers , that's why the companies are here. That's why Singaporeans have jobs in such big numbers.Temporary workers make up about one-third of the national workforce. Beginning this year, Singaporean companies were allowed to draw on foreigners for up to 50 percent of their labor force. New rules will also be imposed to make it a clear offence for employers to receive kickbacks to hire foreign workers, and for employment agencies to make such offers. The regulations are intended to prevent exploitation of foreign workers under rebate schemes, as some agents have been offering employers US$2,000 to US$3,000 for every worker they hire. Local government agencies that champion this are MOM (Ministry of Manpower) and MCDS (Ministry for Community Development and Sports) to open up our labour market and lookout for all the benefits of flexi-work that encourage a balanced work-life culture in Singapore since 1999. Benefits include increased productivity, better work hours and services, improved morale and reduced absenteeism as workers can cope with personal responsibilities and focus on their work, not to mention the indirect bonus of making time for Singaporeans to remedy the baby blues. Results have been mixed though as even with these pluses for employers and workers, flexi-work has been slow to catch on in Singapore. Only 3.1% of employed persons worked part-time, compared with Japan (23%), the US (17%) and UK (24%) in 1997.Generally, Singapores traditional work culture views such flexible lifestyles as unusual but its a growing trend. As the latest statistics indicate, temporary and part-time work participation has almost doubled within the last 5 years.

The prime minister said foreign workers are hardworking and willing to work long hours. Lee reiterated the Singapore government is controlling the inflow of foreign labor by setting limits. This gives Singaporean workers the edge in competing for jobs.They are not here to steal our jobs but to help us enlarge the economic pie, said Lee. "When a job comes open now, our members fill it with a temp, or they extend a part-timer's hours, or they bring in a freelancer -- and then they wait to see what will happen next,"
.

Disadvantages
The recent outcry in Singapore over allegedly excessive immigration, which is said to be putting pressure on housing, jobs and public transportation, has raised some interesting issues about what sort of society Singaporeans want to have. Data underscore dramatically how Singapores population has soared in recent years despite one of the lowest fertility rates in the world. Immigration, both via Permanent Resident status given to foreigners and temporary by recruitment of domestic servants, construction workers and others have both risen rapidly. As a result, many people, in particular those from China, find it easy to obtain PR status. Indians have also benefited and brought with them many skills in areas of such as information technology. Immigration is also seen as a way of offsetting the exodus of middle-class Singaporeans to more open societies such as Australia

The majority of citizens continued to see real income gains but disparities widened while the increase in the percentage of low-paid foreigners in the workforce added to income disparity.Also worrying for Singaporeans is the decreasing share they have been enjoying in their GDP. In 2009, foreign companies and residents accounted for 42 percent of economic activity. The Singapore situation results partly from its immigration policy, which could be viewed as a net overall benefit. However it also points to the fact that Singapore has huge foreign reserves, which earn relatively little. Meanwhile profits there are increasingly being earned by foreign, not local capital, and in many cases subsidized by tax breaks and other incentives not enjoyed by local business. Hence Singapore becomes ever more reliant on inflow of that capital for continued growth as well as on importing foreign workers to supplement an almost static indigenous labor force. Recent public disquiet over immigration may be prejudiced and seem irrational to a leadership that thinks it always knows best what is good for Singaporeans. But the nation badly needs a real debate about demographics and growth priorities. many foreigners use Singapore as a stepping stone for the west; meaning they never wanted to live in Singapore at any price; their goal being America and the west. Since Singapore is desperate to welcome foreigners, since educated Singaporeans themselves are leaving in droves; these short stay foreigners use Singapore to acquire some skills and leave for the West on the first plane out.

he claims Singapore gains far more. But he conveniently does not elaborate on the quality of these Singapore gains. If he is counting the unskilled Bangladesh, Indian and Filipina domestic workers to make up the sums, he is of course right. But if we are thinking of high quality skilled professionals and managers; no foreigner in such a category would want to stay.

conclusion
Migrating temps into singapore has lots of advantages and also some disadvantages for the real singaporeans.i conclude that singapore government should look at the disadvantages and make sure that they will also take care of real singaporeans.