Universal Minimum Wage in Singapore?

I certainly, if not wholeheartedly, agree with the imposition of a universal minimum wage (pegged to sectors if necessary, and bear in mind we are not talking about universal basic income, which would perhaps be much more contested) in Singapore.

Universal minimum wage would not just be an excellent addition towards the movement to narrow the wage inequality between the higher-technically-skilled workers and the less-technically-skilled workers, who are nevertheless an indelible pillar in the societal development of any nation, but a step in addressing the often extremely exploitative and uneven bargaining power between employers and employees that the lack of any moderately powerful mediative policy entails.

While formal economic education may tell us otherwise, in so far that minimum wage laws or soft policy (such as additional legal pressures or incentives from the governments or attributing a greater power to labor unions) which advocates the achieving of similar effects do not guarantee jobs and instead price low-skilled workers out of the labor market, in reality, the evidence has been rather contradictive.

Studies have pointed to little or no employment response to the imposition or an upward adjustment in the minimum wage. The proposition of minimum wages on the conditions set up and stipulated by labor unions, whose main objective is to set minimum wages by sector and occupation, could reasonably magnify the role of these labor unions and promote unionization in some cases, does in fact increase wages, employment and promote investment (refer to references).

That said, given that a policy should not merely be viewed and evaluated on whether it is beneficial or be making the nation being less economically competitive, but also in terms of the broader ramifications that imposition of such a humane policy is a kind and perhaps much needed gesture to its citizens, that we have your back and we value not just the skills that you bring onto the table but also the time, effort and appreciation that they have shown by providing the essential services, services with human touch that is no small feat to be perform well, be it in peaceful times or in times of need. Take waiters, for example. Many who have been a waiter would know that it is certainly not easy to juggle between tasks that get thrown in your way, in which sometimes you have to figure out and plan the next course of action in seconds, that’s multitasking, decisive decision making and planning capability and can be extremely challenging for anyone without a whiff of wit.

Waiters are typically equipped with a variety of soft skills that many people lack, and I don't believe they should be valued any less highly than the technical, so-called "hard abilities" that are often touted as superior to their counterparts. Not to add that waiters are only one of many occupations that would gain from the successful implementation of such a non-revolutionary concept, given the origins of minimum wage can be traced back to the mid-thirteenth century (beats me as to why Singapore is being such hesitant in even remotely bringing up such an issue for public discussion and consideration).

It's moreover not exactly black and white, since the minimum wage need not be made a legislative law. There have been suggestions to make the minimum wage a right, not an obligation, mainly in the European region, but I do not see why the same could not be considered by Singapore. It permits a much greater degree of flexibility for the regulation to be adapted accordingly, depending on the goals and timeline of the institutions (mostly labor unions representing their constituents, the union members) that are in a position to negotiate on behalf of those that they represent.

Cleaners, leisure and hospitality workers, and the foreign workers who work menial but physically and mentally challenging jobs also stand to immensely benefit from such a "revolutionary" policy. It ensures that a minimum living standard (hopefully that the minimum wage would be pegged to contemporary inflation and/or adjusted should there be any major policy decision that adversely affects the wages and benefits they receive) can be maintained by these unfortunate individuals, who are often stuck in these supposedly dead-end jobs due to various factors, whether it be hereditary medical conditions, immense mental pressure that may have in a certain way affected their cognitive and functional ability, family factors, and/or societal pressure that they simply do not wish to conform to, which some of us may never be able to understand, but nevertheless strive to empathize and sympathize with them.

It is also an admonition to exploitative and dishonest corporations that Singapore is not an avenue for them to impose their draconian demands and exploitative practices. We are to stand firm on the ground that we do not wish our workers to be taken advantage of. The fact is, time and time again, we have seen unfettered corporate colonialism pounce at every single opportunity to take full advantage of their workers while alluding that they are creating jobs and feeding the people.

Be it Amazon in the United States (where they had, and perhaps still have, commercials that outright demonize unions while at the same time attempting to squeeze every single ounce of value out of their workers), or pretty much most countries in Latin America back in the late 19th century (where unions were the sound of the people, and labor movements were hailed by the people as the very saviors that they needed), only to have a concerted effort by corporate lobbyists in the form of exerting pressure to call for foreign interventions or appealing to the interests of those in power (the autocrats and juntas who eventually evolved into kleptocrats) to deliberately disintegrate the people’s movements to fight for the very democratic society that they so wanted, and rightfully deserve.[1]

I personally feel it is imperative that we address the persistent theme that low-skilled workers who not just suffer from long tenures but also felt that that their compensation and work environments have changed for the worse as time goes by, which should not be seen in a modern society much like ours.

References

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3590312 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212567113001196 https://publications.iadb.org/publications/english/document/The-Economic-Effects-of-Unions-in-Latin-America-Their-Impact-on-Wages-and-the-Economic-Performance-of-Firms-in-Uruguay.pdf https://www.epi.org/publication/briefingpapers_min_wage_bp/ References also made to Frontline PBS documentary – Amazon Empire: The Rise and Reign of Jeff Bezos and The Shock Doctrine – The Rise of Disaster Capitalism