SDP’s Chee says he will push for retrenchment insurance if elected
SDP’s Dr Chee Soon Juan and his wife Huang Chih Mei (left) campaigning in Bukit Batok. On the issue of the party’s campaign, Dr Chee said it was gearing up for ‘phase two’, which will see it being ‘a bit more targeted’ in its approach. Photo: Don Wong
Singapore — If Singapore Democratic Party chief Chee Soon Juan wins the Bukit Batok by-election, he will push for a benefit that his party has been advocating since before the 2011 General Election: Retrenchment insurance to help laid-off workers.
Citing retrenchment as the “number one concern” among the area’s residents, Dr Chee said such workers would, under the proposed scheme, receive three-quarters of their last-drawn salary — capped at the prevailing median wage — for the first six months of unemployment.
Workers still unemployed after that would receive half of their last-drawn salary for the next six months. This would then be reduced to a quarter of their last-drawn pay if they are still out of a job.
This, he said, would provide respite to workers, giving them “sanity” and allowing them to find jobs without panicking.
“Whilst your income stops, your bills don’t. They continue to pile up. You still have the kids to feed, the school fees ... your electricity bills to take care of,” Dr Chee told reporters yesterday after a walk at Bukit Batok Nature Park. “And (for) many of (the residents), there are elderly parents to take care of as well.”
The idea of retrenchment insurance was also raised in parliamentary debates this month by Member of Parliament (Aljunied GRC) Sylvia Lim. In response, Manpower Minister Lim Swee Say said the priority was to help workers re-enter the workforce through available schemes.
With more layoffs expected among white-collar workers amid the gloomy economic climate, the Government also announced it would expand existing schemes to help such workers should they lose their jobs.
For example, the Career Support Programme will be expanded from next month to include unemployed professionals, managers, executives and technicians below 40 years old if they have been jobless for at least six months.
On the issue of the SDP’s campaign on the ground, Dr Chee said it was gearing up for “phase two”, which will see it being “a little bit more targeted” in its approach.
This includes reinforcing the party’s message to residents the team has already met. The SDP will also “double up” on meeting residents they have not reached out to yet.
“We might just concentrate more on the weekends, so the chances of catching them (are higher),” said Dr Chee.
Turning to the social programmes the SDP was drawing up for residents, which it first mentioned three weeks ago, Dr Chee said the party was in the final stages of ironing out the details and would announce them “probably sometime this week”.
These will focus on the elderly in Bukit Batok, Dr Chee said, adding that during his house visits, he has seen some “very tragic” cases of seniors being left alone.
The party has heard residents’ concerns about having only enough for three meals a day, with nothing else to do, and wants to look into their quality of life, he said. “It takes a toll on them, and they deteriorate very quickly,” Dr Chee added.
Asked about the National Solidarity Party’s announcement on Friday that it would not contest the by-election, Dr Chee said the SDP was glad to have a “one-to-one contest” with the People’s Action Party (PAP).
“We’ve done our part as well in the past to ensure that the opposition doesn’t split the votes and then let the PAP candidate squeak into Parliament,” he added.
The by-election is set to be a straight fight between Dr Chee and lawyer Murali Pillai from the PAP. Kenneth Cheng
