Published January 30, 2009

Govt training fund should emulate Singapore's

Chinese group chief calls for changes to allowances, courses

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(BATU PAHAT) The Malaysian Chinese Association's government policy monitoring bureau chief Chua Soi Lek has suggested that the training fund set up by the government recently for retrenched workers should emulate Singapore's measures, reported the Oriental Daily News.

Mr Chua said that those retrenched should be given help to switch careers by giving them appropriate allowances based on their previous salaries and providing more professional training courses for them.

Mr Chua also said that since the government's aim of setting up the fund was to help those who were laid off, it had to study carefully how to offer them assistance. However, the RM500 (S$209) allowance for each worker had apparently failed to attract the retrenched.

The authorities should give an appropriate allowance based on the workers' previous posts and salaries, he added.

Mr Chua, who is also MCA deputy president, was speaking at the party's Batu Pahat division's Chinese New Year open house on Wednesday. He said that instead of offering some general courses, the government had to be more professional when providing training courses, the Oriental Daily News said.

'During this time, the Singapore government is helping many of its people to become kindergarten teachers so that retrenched workers who have the qualifications in this field can make a career switch. Our government should also help retrenched people do the same,' he said.