Businessman dupes migrants

From The China Daily, 1 February 2002

1,000 migrant workers from China had deposited money in a currency exchange and remittance business which failed to open its doors on 2 February with no explanation.

Police managed to locate Lam, but the money is still missing.

Staff sacked with studied sensitivity

From The Straights Times, 6 March 2002

The Overseas Chinese Banking Corporation (OCBC) sacked 200 workers on 6 March. A press release stressed that tactful managers would sack the staff with sensitivity – by allowing them more time to pack up their belongings.

Career advisors were to be on hand to offer humane advice to sacked staff at the Chulia Street branch.

Having bought the bank for $5.2 billion from Keppel Capital on 25 February, the bank mounted the delicate operation to throw out 700 staff - 345 workers were told very tenderly to get out by the end of March. The remaining 355 staff will be thoughtfully chopped, but with considered sensitivity. The bank did not say when they would be politely slung out.

The United Overseas Bank, which axed 435 workers before Christmas, is expected to continue its staff cuts any day. The management which bought the Overseas Union Bank in 2002, is rumoured to have 2,000 jobs lined up for the chop, but as the bank did not specify any respectful intentions, this may be carried out insensitively.

Attacks on domestic workers down

From The Straits Times, 13 January 2002

Singapore hosts 140,000 foreign domestic workers up from 100,000 in 1990.

Newspaper headlines for December 2001: Housewife jailed for harsh battering of slow maid; Housewife jailed for punching her maid after finding fishbones in her daughter’s porridge; Jail, caning for businessmen who molested maid; Jail for hurting maid who bought wrong bread; Business-woman jailed for scalding act.

Despite this sorry record, police statistics show that the number of substantiated maid-abuse cases fell sharply after the 1997 high of 157 cases to 89 cases in 1998, 82 in 1999, 87 in 2000 and 49 in the months of January to July last year. Observers attribute the falling figures to increased punishment for maid abuse introduced in 1998.