3 lessons for S'poreans to learn from the way downturn was handled, says Shanmugam
By S Ramesh, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 21 November 2009 1711 hrs

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SINGAPORE: According to Law Minister K Shanmugam, there are three lessons for Singaporeans to take away from the way the Government, employers and unions responded to the downturn.

Managing the country's finances prudently and in a disciplined way – is the first lesson to be learnt from the financial crisis, said Mr Shanmugam.

Singapore's strong reserves were vital, as it enabled the Government to be decisive in introducing the S$20.5 billion Resilience Package.

The second lesson is the need to build on mutual trust.

A key factor that has helped Singapore come out of the downturn is the close relationship between the government, employers and unions. Hence, Mr Shanmugam feels it is critical for the labour movement to invest in union leaders who understand the fundamentals of Singapore's tripartite system.

Mr Shanmugam said: "You know very often we read in international rankings and reviews that in Singapore, you don't have unions which fight for workers or we rank low in this, that or the other.

"The reality is it all proceeds from misunderstanding because to protect workers rights in a real genuine sense, what you need is empowered unionists.

"And for a government to come in and make sure that there is equity between the employers and employees and working together, this is something unique that we have in Singapore and never, never let that go."

Mr Shanmugam said the third lesson is that Singaporeans must be proactive when responding to changing circumstances.

He added: "To thrive in the post recession global economic climate, Singapore must strike first. We must make full use of our advantages - our small and nimble size; our strong spirit of tripartism, an excellent business environment and the world's number one workforce to keep a few steps ahead of our competitors.

"How we harness opportunities, mitigate risks and make the kinds of choices we make today, will have a direct impact on the future of Singapore and the livelihood of Singaporeans. It is our responsibility to ensure that the choices we make will have a positive and lasting impact."

In this regard, the Ong Teng Cheong Institute for Labour Leadership has been in the forefront - conducting its "Upturn the Downturn" workshops which have been attended by some 1,300 unionists.

From 2010, the institute will start a pilot programme on e-learning, so that unionists need not absent themselves from work to attend courses.

This was revealed by the institute's chairman and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam.

- CNA/sc