Today : Migrating Singaporeans story arc

Noticed ongoing converage on migrating Singaporeans on the Today newspaper. Here they are :

It has been a new spring that left me with mixed feelings about what it really means to be a native-born Singaporean. I realised that two of my cousins' families have migrated without saying a word or leaving any contacts. One has gone to the United States and the other to Australia after living in Hong Kong for two years.

Why are so many middle-aged university-educated professional Singaporeans leaving? Is it the National Service, our education system or the changes in our society that are pushing them away? Has the influx of foreign "talents" from India and China made them feel that being citizens count for very little nowadays or is it the pull of greener pastures where life is less pressurised and less stressful?

That my cousins left quietly the soil where they were born and educated without any fanfare or leaving any form of contacts can only mean one thing - they are cutting all ties with their motherland for good. Are our policies inadvertently driving our own talents away while taking in foreigners as new citizens? This vicious cycle cannot be good for Singapore.

While visiting relatives in the United States and Canada, I had the opportunity to chat with some elderly Asians, including Singaporeans. Most migrated when they were in their 20s and 30s, and they never looked back. Why should they when they are well taken of in terms of healthcare and welfare?

I know of some young people who choose to remain there after their studies. Most secure good jobs and do not encounter any discrimination at work. They have no intention of returning to Singapore, and it is not because they do not miss home or want to cut ties with their motherland. One reason is they find it difficult to adapt to our environment when they have a lot of breathing space where they are now. Also, they do not wish to compete with much sought-after foreign talent in Singapore. We must not be over-zealous in our pursuit of foreign talent that we lose sight of our own people. Persuading one local talent not to leave Singapore is far better than encouraging two or three foreign talents to come here.

I refer to the letter, "Puzzle of migrating S'poreans' (Feb 2). I'm 38 and am migrating to Australia in three months' time. Despite being a degree-holder armed with 10 years of working experience, having upgraded my skills a year ago and lowered my pay expectations, I still have not found a job for almost two years. I have tried switching careers but have not met an employer willing to give me a chance to even start from the bottom.

My brother and his family emigrated to New Zealand six years ago and have no intention of coming back. He disliked the work stress, government policies and the education system here.

In short, gloomy job prospects for the middle-aged and professionals, work stress and an inflexible education system are driving us out of Singapore.

A hopeful graduate, fresh from his victory in the educational system, may be in for a rude shock when he discovers that the job market - with its plentiful supply of foreign talent - is not prepared to pay him enough for a decent lifestyle. When setting up a family, most couples will learn that the house they buy will probably cost them a lifelong mortgage. The middle-aged professionals, when they are retrenched, will have to decide whether to "upgrade" themselves - taking up menial jobs despite their immense experience in white-collared posts - or to throw their savings into entrepreneurship, for which the chances of success are slim.

Unemployment fell to a low of 2.5 per cent last quarter. However, wages have yet to recover to the level they were at in the previous cycle. In other words, jobs were created but at lower value added as a whole. The private sector has been asked not to discriminate based on age when hiring, yet public organisations continue to recruit based on age limits.

The biggest issue may be the refusal to acknowledge that the problems exist - let alone working on solving them. Given such an environment, is it any wonder that some Singaporeans choose to migrate? As I hear someone saying in a coffeeshop say: "Stayers are people who do not have the means to quit!"

If Singaporeans feel that they are not given priority over foreign talent because they are more expensive, would it not be natural for them to seek greener pastures elsewhere? Many qualified Singaporeans have given up good jobs here and moved to countries such as Australia, Canada and the United States in their families because they think these countries can offer a better quality of life. In the 1940s and '50s, our forebears left their homes and came here to seek a better life. Likewise, Singaporeans may choose to emigrate to escape the ratrace and tough competition for jobs.

I refer to the letter, "Gloomy job prospects for the middle-aged professionals" (Feb 4-5). I am 32 and am considering emigrating to Australia for good. Although I am not quite a middle-aged professional, I am getting there very soon. I agree with previous writers on their views about the prospect of living in Singapore getting gloomier.

Some say that Singapore will eventually develop into a more creative society. For now however, there are many middle-aged professionals who are jobless at the same time. Others speak of Singapore's grand policies and "vision" to be a creative society. Having the experience of both as a professional and an educator, I have first-hand experience that such grand visions do not translate into real practice.

It is sad to admit that the only "stayers" are the ones who are tied down by their families and dependents, and not passion. The "leavers", like myself, are the ones who will be separated from their family and loved ones, in search for the truly creative society and place.

- My comments : well, what do you think I'm doing staying here in Singapore? (and continuing to blog on such "gloom and doom" topics all this while). I'm now 33 and on my way to falling into similar circumstances as the other 30+ folks above. My friends and colleagues are mostly in a similar age range and we share some of the same concerns. What irony. Software R&D engineers - we're supposed to be doing pretty well - at least, in theory. But, at least for myself, the reality is just that I'm biding my time. Most likely, I can't (won't? shouldn't?!) stay here forever. The only questions remaining now are money and timing. I'm working on the money part, and my blog entries chronicle the timing part somewhat.

In the next 25 years, global peak oil would have long arrived and gone by. Game over, one way or another.

Comments:

A hopeful graduate, fresh from his victory in the educational system, may be in for a rude shock when he discovers that the job market

We rather suspect the typical local graduate hasn't the balls to be an entrepeneur gao lak fryer at the newly rennovated hawker centre. (Don't you just love Mr Goh? Puts a bright sunny spin on everything)

In other news, 20% of Japan's graduates are either in part time or casual employment, according to a story in today's ST that apparently references this story. How can we know the equivalent figures for Singapore's graduates?

Posted by Akikonomu on February 07, 2006 at 05:46 PM SGT #

An ex-NUS professor has done some research on this in the Singapore context.
Link

Posted by knightofpentacles on February 08, 2006 at 10:12 AM SGT #

Hi Knightofpentacles,

that link does look rather familiar to me =D However Appold didn't manage to find out the statistics of underemployed graduates working in temp/casual jobs/contracts.

What is the best way to petition our political overlords to release this data?

Posted by Akikonomu on February 08, 2006 at 01:47 PM SGT #

Don't know. Don't care. Do I like a (imho, doomed) crusader for such change to you?

There are things in my power to change and there are things that are immutable (to me). I will just concentrate on the stuff that I have control over.

Posted by knightofpentacles on February 10, 2006 at 09:33 AM SGT #