Amalgamated Union Of Public Employees

Civil servants can look forward to a mid-year variable payment of half a month’s salary plus $100 to $300 come July 2008.

The dollar payout will be larger for officers in lower divisions. Division III and IV officers will receive $250 and $300 respectively while Division I and II officers will receive $100.

Last year, the mid-year payment comprised half a month’s salary plus $220.

This year’s mid-year payment with higher dollar amounts for lower-division officers “has taken into consideration the National Wages Council’s call to give a one-off special payment to help rank-and-file workers, particularly low wage workers, better cope with the impact of inflation,” said Public Service Division (PSD).

According to PSD, the government will decide on the year-end payment for civil servants when the economic performance for the second half of 2008 is clearer.

“The AUPE welcomes PSD’s decision to give a higher one-off dollar quantum to the lower-wage workers. As the cost of the inflation has gone up quite quickly over the past year, this special payment will motivate our workers to continue to work hard so that we can all help Singapore do well this year.”

“The Public Service Division (PSD) at the Prime Minister’s Office has announced the Civil Service Mid-Year Payment for 2008, whereby civil servants will receive a mid-year Annual Variable Component (AVC) of 0.5 month and a dollar quantum ranging between $100 to $300.

The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and our eight affiliated civil service unions* are pleased that the Government continues to reward civil servants for their contributions, especially the lower wage group, with the mid-year AVC and a dollar quantum. Accordingly, Division 3 and 4 officers will receive more in dollar quantum – $250 and $300 respectively – than Division 1 and 2 officers who will receive $100. We feel that the dollar quantum, which the Government has been giving since 2005, will encourage lower wage civil servants to perform even better as it forms a larger percentage of their wages.

We are glad the Government has also followed the National Wages Council’s recommendations to use variable payments to reward workers and to grant a one-off special payment to help rank-and-file workers, particularly lower wage workers, cope with the impact of inflation. This year, the higher dollar quantum for the lower wage civil servants will mean a lot more to them as it also serves to help them cope better with rising cost of living and inflationary pressures.

This year’s Civil Service Mid-Year Payment has been concluded after close consultation and negotiations between representatives from NTUC and the civil service unions with PSD. We are glad that PSD has taken our views into consideration in concluding the mid-year payment.

We also hope that the private sector will take the cue from the civil service to reward their workers fairly and adequately – ensuring that built-in wage increase would be sustainable in the long-run and lag behind productivity growth, and to pay particular attention to lower wage workers by extending a special one-off payment to offset the rising cost of living and inflation. We urge the tripartite partners and workers to continue to work hard together so that Singapore’s economy will continue to perform well in 2008 despite the economic uncertainties that lie ahead.

"Our new identity is refreshing and exciting. The inclusive 'U' hallmark is most reflective of our all-embracing approach in reaching out to absolutely everybody in Singapore. This will mark a brand new beginning for the Labour Movement and take us to the next level and moves us forward in the future."

- Teo Yock Ngee, General Secretary, AUPE

About 1,500 union leaders, tripartite partners and guests at The Downtown East witnessed a momentous milestone in the history of the Labour Movement as Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong unveiled a refreshed look for the Labour Movement and National Trades Union Congress with an updated NTUC logo and U hallmark at the U Launch event on 27 April 2008.

The refreshed logo encapsulates the spirit of the Labour Movement – dynamic, progressive and keeping ahead of times. At the heart of the logo is the U hallmark which comprises three ‘U’s to represent:

The small U - working people of all collars, ages and nationalities in Singapore and their families in an inclusive Labour Movement.

The big U - a united Labour Movement made up of our affiliated unions and associations, social enterprises, staff, members and partners.

The invisible U - a Labour Movement that stands beside working people and their families at work, live and play, to help them earn a better living and live a better life.

The essence of the spanking new branding is the tagline “NTUC for U” as the Labour Movement exists for every working individual. This is expanded by three supporting messages that help people work, live and play:

“Working for U” by ensuring good working conditions and a fair return for labour, and providing ways to train and upgrade the skills of working people.

“Caring for U” by providing good quality products and services at affordable prices that help to stretch the dollar for working people.

“Fun for U” by offering high-quality recreational facilities and services that are affordable and conveniently located for working people of all collars, all ages and all nationalities.

The U hallmark may appear in an array of vibrant colours and designs that demonstrate the vivacity and diversity of the Labour Movement in Singapore.

The May Day Awards are bestowed on persons and companies that have made significant contributions to the trade union movement, including NTUC-related organisations like NTUC Clubs, Cooperatives and the Singapore Labour Foundation and its companies.

A total of 78 individuals and companies received the prestigious Awards at the May Day Dinner held at Suntec Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre on 29 May 2008.

The AUPE Group and Executive Council would like to congratulate the following awardees who were among those honoured by the labour movement at the celebration dinner this year.

Comrade Noor Shyma Abdul Latiff’s involvement with the Amalgamated Union of Public Employees began in 1979 when she served its Women’s Committee and later, a Branch Official of the Telephonist Branch of the Telecommunication Authority of Singapore. In 1985, she joined AUPE as an Industrial Relations Officer, and in 1997, was elected Assistant General Secretary and in 2001, Deputy General Secretary.

Comrade Shyma was instrumental in the smooth transition of union members during the restructuring of the government health institutions and ministry departments in 1989. She served in the Public Sector Workgroup on Employability of Older Workers and has continued to work with the Public Service Division and NTUC on the workshops for management and union leaders.

At the National Trades Union Congress level, she served in the Education Cluster Committee, Health Cluster Committee, Orchid Country Club House Committee and NTUC Costa Sands Pasir Ris Advisory Committee. Presently, she sits on the Board of NTUC Childcare and Little School House and represents NTUC on the Tripartite Committee on Enhancing Employment Choices for Women.

Comrade Shyma represents AUPE as a country representative at the Public Services International South East Asia Regional Advisory Committee and substitute titular member at the Public Services International World Women’s Committee in Geneva.

In recognition of her contributions to the Amalgamated Union of Public Employees and fellow workers, the National Trades Union Congress is pleased to present the Comrade of Labour Award to Noor Shyma Abdul Latiff.

Since assuming her role as Permanent Secretary (Public Service Division), Prime Minister’s Office in January 2005, Ms Lim Soo Hoon has been championing the development of a progressive, responsive and flexible human resource framework for the civil service. She has instituted policies to attract and retain good officers.

Ms Lim demonstrates an unwavering commitment to foster strong labour-management relations. She engages the unions through regular dialogue sessions and the biennial Public Sector Union Management Gathering. At the last gathering in 2007, she led 59 public sector agencies to sign the pledge to implement fair employment practices.

Under her stewardship, Ms Lim introduced several key initiatives to prepare the Public Sector for the re-employment legislation in 2012. She started the Evergreen Connect for retired officers to take on short-term assignments. She also guided the Job Redesign Committee to restructure jobs in the Clerical Support and Office Support Services.

The National Trades Union Congress recognises Ms Lim Soo Hoon’s contributions to promote good labour-management relations and is pleased to confer her with the Medal of Commendation.

The mission of the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports is to build a cohesive and resilient society for Singapore. It recognises the role of the union and undertakes initiatives to foster harmonious relations with the union. Through regular dialogues, it engages the union on its policies and changes that impact on its members.

The Ministry demonstrates that it has the welfare of employees at heart. Besides the sponsorship of Specialist Diploma programme, the Ministry is looking into the feasibility of tailoring other diploma courses in social work for its non-graduate officers.

The Ministry supports the re-employment of older workers and has re-employed retired officers based on their expertise and experience. It partners the union on job redesign for mature workers. The Ministry is also working on job redesign for two other groups – the disabled and staff with special worklife needs.

The National Trades Union Congress appreciates the efforts of the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports in promoting good industrial relations, supporting continued employability and skills upgrading for staff and is pleased to present it with the Plaque of Commendation.

The AUPE Multi-purpose Co-operative Society Ltd achieved a net surplus of $2,160,388 for financial year 2007, an increase of 23% over the surplus of $1,753,114 in FY 2006.

Mr Teo Yock Ngee, Chairman of the AUPE Multi-purpose Co-operative Society Ltd made the announcement during the Society’s 42nd Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on 23 May 2008 at Lee Kong Chian Hall, Wisma AUPE. Besides sharing with members what the Society had done for the past year, he also shed light on some of the strategic plans that it has for the future.

Members would receive a dividend of 3 % on their shares and subscription savings as at 31 December 2007 totalling $1,290,265 as compared to $1,280,399 in FY 2006. This is a good rate considering the current market situation.

The Society would be making a big contribution of $332,078 to the Singapore Labour Foundation, a mandatory requirement for achieving more than half a million in surplus. The money would in turn be used to support NTUC Eldercare and Childcare Co-operatives fund-raising projects, which the Society has consistently been doing in recent years.

The Society records a growth of 5.6 million in its deposits or savings over the last year totalling nearly $110 million. This clearly reflects the trust and confidence of members in the Society, its leadership and management.

For the long term, we need to look at more opportunities for investments to give us better returns. A Fund Management Unit is set up to cater for this specific purpose and it would continue to engage professional and consultancy services for advice and guidance.

The Society would strive to streamline procedures for members’ convenience without compromising safeguards and measures that it has put in place.

There was a modest loan increase of $352,317 to over $13.5 million by the end of FY 2007. The total amount outstanding was slightly more than $24.3 million in contrast to about $29.9 million in FY 2006. This credit service will remain as the core business of our Society as we explore news areas of growth.

The Amalgamated Union of Public Employees (AUPE) will be celebrating its 50th anniversary on 26 September 2009. It is timely to call for a review of the AUPE Group as a larger organisation.

The Multi-Purpose Co-operative, together with the General Services and Foundation Co-operatives in the AUPE Group could organise a special co-operatives forum to mark their anniversary celebration next year.

The various Co-operatives should discuss and work out strategic plans and directions to further complement the efforts of the Union and Sports and Recreation Club. A Master Plan 2009 and Beyond would then be drawn up for the AUPE Group.

Everybody has a part to play and contribute to the success and well being of the Society, the Union, Club and other Co-operatives. Together we shall then move towards a better and brighter future.

The Society wishes to record its appreciation to the following Directors and Internal Auditors who would be retiring or stepping down. They have made way for new faces, which are part and parcel of leadership renewal, leadership development and for the continuity of the Society.

Public Services International (PSI) Asia Pacific Regional Executive Committee (APREC) meeting opened with members of affiliates singing to Michael Jackson’s “Heal the World” with candles in their hands. The opening ceremony led by the Asia Pacific Youth Network (APYN) signifies PSI’s support for young workers’ hope and aspiration in building a strong labour movement. Among them were AUPE General Secretary Mr Teo Yock Ngee, Vice President Mr Maniam Murugiah, Secretaries Mr Jefry Bin Mohamad and Ms Tan Sze Wei. They attended the meeting held in Bali, Indonesia from 8-11 April 2008 together with participants from Singapore Urban Redevelopment Authority Workers Union (SURAWU) and Housing Development Board Staff Union (HDBSU).

The APREC discussed on pension reform, the formation of several networks, including a Steering Committee on public and state administration, and a network for fire-fighters and ambulance workers. The formation of Asia Pacific Youth Network to involve young workers in decision-making and to give them more exposure was also recognized at the meeting.

Prior to APREC, a workshop on China was conducted with guest speakers from various non-governmental organisations, global union federation and trade unions. Vivid discussions and hot debates at the workshop focused mainly on the approach PSI should take in addressing China’s labour issues and engaging its trade unions. This is a critical topic for the Asia Pacific region, in view of China’s growing influence both in the global economic market and political scene.

At the APREC meeting, I managed to get hold of newly elected PSI General Secretary, Mr Peter Waldorff and re-elected PSI President Ms Ylva Thorn who despite their hectic schedules generously shared with me their life philosophy and the work they do.

Peter Waldorff has been serving in the trade union movement since he was a 20 year-old young worker, dedicating his life and efforts for workers’ interests. His newest responsibility is to steer PSI to greater heights amidst increasing global uncertainties.

Aside from making adjustments to his lifestyle and family commitments, he has also plans to rejuvenate and revamp PSI’s policies and programmes through an intensive organisational review. For a start, he has posed a challenge to all his regional offices and staff to look into specific areas of concern and work on them. His immediate targets are to develop strong secretariat teams proficient at working out measurable objectives.

Why is he passionate about trade union work? “The trade union has been very much a part of my life. Justice and honesty also play a major role in my life. I react to injustice when I see it.” Peter first joined the municipal trade union as a member like most of his counterparts. However, as fate has it, he participated in an orientation workshop for young members and was elected as the youth representative for a Danish trade union barely four months after. He has never looked back since and was soon promoted first as a head of secretariat then as a President of a Danish trade union. He attributes his career success in the trade union field to his previous bosses and mentors whom he felt gave him lots of encouragement and inspiration.

On PSI’s future, he said, “We need to be more visible so as to get the influence we deserve. The future of PSI is very much related to membership and PSI staff together with all affiliates should work to increase the membership strength.” He mentioned that we need to concentrate our efforts in the Asia Pacific region as although this region is rich in both natural and human resources, it is also ironically where half the poor in the world dwells.

When I quizzed him on his advice for young unionists and how he finds the newly set up Asia Pacific Youth Network (APYN), he said that it is his wish to see that the present young union leaders motivate and train others who can take up their work when they cross the age limit. He complimented APYN as one of the most visible and best functioning network in PSI. According to him, the network should continue to communicate with its members in a modernised way. He posed me a challenge, as the APYN coordinator to break the code for attracting young workers to join as members and to build up APYN’s influence.

Ylva Thorn who is terrifically approachable and down-to-earth feels that there is nothing bigger in her life than helping and improving the lives of ordinary workers.

Her first trade union assignment where she was entrusted to make negotiations on behalf of her colleagues with the employer was still fresh on her mind. There was another negotiation two years ago that left a lasting memory on her. She recounted that the situation was rather bleak as there was little support from other unions. It was so bad that they were on the verge of issuing a notice for strike. However, the end results of their relentless negotiations were stunning and they got the best wage agreements amongst all unions negotiated in that year. Moreover, women made up 80 per cent of her Swedish union!

Ylva Thorn is a walking testimony of a trade union leader that can empower and impact others positively. “My working style and what I enjoy most in my work, goes hand in hand. As a leader of my union in Sweden, I would like to have as much contact with our members and their everyday working life as possible. This gives me the knowledge and information to represent the members with politicians and employers,” she said.

On the approach PSI should take to tackle the various challenges in the global uncertainties, she said, “Definitely, one needs to choose one’s battles. Even though PSI and PSI affiliates are affected by uncountable decisions taken by world leaders and politicians, we need to focus as we have done in our Global policy and strategic objectives programme which were adopted by the congress last year. But of course, we need to be more proactive and not reactive because it might be too late then to influence the development.”

About climate change, the current hot topic, she pointed out that we should tackle it in a concrete way. “Our members deliver public services like public transport, water, waste and sewage. We should tell politicians what we can accomplish and persuade them to let us deliver. Thus we can show the world how to stop global warming and at the same time develop the work of our members.“

Playing soccer when she was a teenager turned out to be good foundation for her trade union work. She said: “ It taught me a few things which I have carried with me all my life; how to work in a team and how strong we are together when we’re united with a common goal and also be able to get a knock, get back on one’s feet again and continue playing.”

Peter and Ylva impressed me with their strength, courage in adversity, resourcefulness and proved that no matter who you are, you can be a giver of light to inspire and uplift others. A thousand candles can be lit from a single candle!

Having attended XYZ number of BBQ sessions, most people would have thought that the AUPE BBQ Extravaganza held on 17 May 2008 at Pasir Ris Park would just be another normal, boring BBQ party.

But it turned out to be a very uniquely AUPE BBQ get-together session for the members, their families and staff.

One great learning point from the BBQ party was not to under estimate the creativity of AUPEians!

Instead of boring chicken wings, pre-cooked otah and sausages, AUPEians surprised the food-tasting judges which comprised the President, Mr C N Balan, Vice-Presidents Mr Rahim Alwi and Ms Helen Tan and General Secretary Mr Teo Yock Ngee with creative fare. The Best BBQ Food Competition attracted 7 branches that presented delicacies one do not usually find in a BBQ party. Some examples are sumptuous hot pepper crabs, Singapore Slings, fragrant authentic Nasi-Lemak, sweet dessert from India, melt-in-the-mouth New York style cheesecake, fiber-rich healthy organic nuts and creative marshmallows coated with chocolate sauce.

At the end of the day, everybody had great fun, sedap food which fostered bonding and camaraderie with one another. Their wish is that such events be organised more often in the future.

The BBQ Extravaganza is part of a series of events organised by Young AUPE to promote team bonding amongst branches and staff in an informal setting.

AUPE and AUPE Multi-Purpose Co-operative Society (MPC) will be holding a recruitment campaign to tie in with the NTUC launching of its membership campaign from May to Aug 2008.

During this period, the recruitment incentive will be increased from $5 to $10 per member recruited. Hence, if you recruit a union member, AUPE will give you an incentive of $10. If you recruit a MPC member, MPC will give you an incentive of $10. However, if you recruit a union member and at the same time recruit him as a MPC member, you will be given $20.

The recruitment incentive above is attractive considering that we will be riding on the NTUC’s campaign period in which a lot of publicity will be generated as well as the fact that there will be attractive incentives for both the members and recruiters.

The NTUC will be launching a membership campaign from May to August 2008 to reach out to all working people who have yet to become Union members, with the campaign tagline of "You Can Get More Out of U". For new sign-up between 1 May – 31 August 2008, you will qualify for 1 chance from the month of your application and subsequent draws where applicable.

Apart from the attractive incentives for new members, NTUC is also rewarding all existing members with monthly lucky draws and referral gifts. This is one way to connect and build lasting relationships with all union members. The lucky chances are as shown below:

There will also be four monthly lucky draws, with 50 attractive prizes each month. The top prizes for each month are as follows:

More information of the NTUC membership campaign can be obtained from its website at www.ntuc.org.sg.

We would like to request you and all those in your respective Branch Committees to step up your recruitment efforts for both AUPE and AUPE MPC. If your Branch has plans to conduct any recruitment talks or road shows, we will be pleased to assist you. For arrangement on membership recruitment, please telephone Ms Lee Cheow Gek (AUPE MPC) at 64328190 or Ms Jennifer Ho (AUPE) at 64328194.