Teachers’ workload: School leaders urged to set clear expectations on work hours, says Chan Chun Sing
SINGAPORE - The Ministry of Education (MOE) has called on school principals to ease the mental burden on teachers by establishing clear expectations on teachers' availability and work hours. Responding to questions from MPs in Parliament on Tuesday (Nov 2), Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said school leaders have, for instance, been providing guidance on avoiding parent-staff communication after school operating hours except for urgent matters, such as those involving the safety and well-being of students. This can minimise the blurring of lines between work and personal time, he added. Mr Patrick Tay (Pioneer) had asked about the annual number of cases of mental distress or psychiatric issues reported by teaching staff, and what the ministry was doing to alleviate the stress they encountered. Dr Wan Rizal (Jalan Besar GRC) had asked whether there has been an increase in a teacher's workload and blurring of lines between work and personal time, and whether steps have been taken to measure teachers' mental health and ensure they are not overwhelmed and suffer from burnout. Their questions come amid reports of worsening mental health among teachers since the start of the Covid-19 p...
Companies can manage WFH fatigue by staying agile, prioritising staff well-being: Experts
SINGAPORE - Work arrangements remain in a state of flux as the pandemic wears on and authorities continue to uncover safety breaches at workplaces but companies can manage fatigue by staying agile and prioritising staff well-being, say experts. They noted that firms have largely grown familiar with remote work in the past 20 months or so although some still struggle with it. Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said on Monday (Oct 4) that the failure to implement work-from-home arrangements for staff who were able to do so is a common breach of safe management rules. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has conducted nearly 45,000 workplace inspections since March last year. "The vast majority have been compliant with the safe management measures, but there were breaches," said Dr Tan in a written reply to a parliamentary question by Workers' Party MP He Ting Ru. Dr Tan said 140 stop-work orders, 247 remedial orders and 399 composition fines were issued to 776 companies for breaches of safe management measures. Other common breaches included failure to wear masks and not keeping one metre between individuals. "Companies with serious lapses were asked to cease operations until rectifications we...
Business at Bugis Junction falls by up to 90%, with 246 Covid-19 cases in cluster linked to it
SINGAPORE - Businesses at Bugis Junction are reeling from the drastic drop in footfall since a cluster of Covid-19 cases emerged at the mall on Aug 24. Infections there ballooned to 246 on Thursday (Sept 2), from 20 cases initially. Business owners and employees at units ranging from clothing stores to restaurants said footfall had plummeted by about 90 per cent in the past week, despite measures such as deep cleaning and quarantining. Some shops have closed temporarily as it was not worth operating at present, or because employees had been infected with the virus. The manager of a clothing store, who gave his name only as Mr Eric, said this had been the worst drop in customers that he has seen this year. Ms Cheng Wei Li, 35, an employee at a gadget shop, also said footfall had been low. "Maybe it will get better after one or two weeks," she said in Mandarin. Mr Jaryl Foo, 22, who works at anime merchandise shop Otaku House, said he has seen close to zero sales in the past week. "People want to avoid this place now," he said. "At first I was very concerned about the cases as I am working here, but at least I am vaccinated." An employee who works at a food stall in the basement said...
BHG store in Bugis Junction closed for cleaning after staff gets Covid-19
SINGAPORE - The BHG department store in Bugis Junction was shut on Wednesday (Aug 25) for cleaning and disinfecting works, after a member of its staff tested positive for Covid-19. The Ministry of Health (MOH) had announced on Tuesday 20 new infections linked to the shopping mall. A spokesman for Bugis Junction said: "We are currently awaiting more details from MOH and affected shops." Meanwhile, the mall has "taken the necessary environmental cleaning measures in accordance with the authority's guidelines", the spokesman added. It includes increasing the frequency of cleaning common touchpoints, and enhancing air circulation in the mall by conducting daily air purging and fully opening air dampers to maximise outdoor air intake. These are among the guidelines spelt out in a directive issued by the Building and Construction Authority, National Environment Agency and MOH in May. Ms Koong Wei Heong, who works at Ya Kun Kaya Toast at the mall, said: "We are feeling pretty calm because we get tested every two weeks. We were just tested on Aug 20." Ms Koong was referring to the fast and easy test (FET) workers in higher-risk settings, like dine-in eateries, have to undergo every 14 days...
Students and staff can return to school once they or their close contacts test negative for Covid-19
SINGAPORE - From Thursday (Aug 19), students and school staff who are close contacts of anyone quarantined as part of Covid-19 measures can return to campus once that person tests negative. Also, those who have received a health risk warning can return to school once they test negative for Covid-19. These moves will affect students and staff from primary and secondary schools, as well as junior colleges and the Millennia Institute, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said in a letter to parents and guardians on Wednesday. The letter announced changes to both the leave of absence (LOA) and the approved absence policies. Both are used to limit Covid-19 transmission by having people stay away from school campuses if they might have been exposed to the coronavirus. Students and staff must now stay home until their LOA is over. There is no fixed length of time for an LOA, as it varies from case to case. For example, those given an LOA because a family member is under a stay-home notice are required to stay away from campus for the duration of the notice. MOE said the change is in line with Singapore's gradual easing of community safe management measures. The letter said students and staff w...
UK employers have strongest hiring plans in over 8 years: Survey
LONDON (REUTERS) - British employers plan to increase staff numbers by the most in more than eight years over the coming months and few intend to make staff redundant when government furlough support ends next month, a survey showed on Monday. The quarterly survey by Britain's Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) added to signs of labour market shortages as the economy emerges from the coronavirus pandemic, though it offered less evidence of wage or inflation pressures. The CIPD said the net employment intentions balance - the difference in percentage points between employers who are hiring and those cutting staff - rose to +32 from +27 three months earlier, its highest since the survey began in early 2013. CIPD labour market economist Jonathan Boys said: "Employers are very optimistic, indicating strong recruitment intentions, and redundancy expectations appear much lower than originally predicted during the pandemic." Only 13 per cent of employers plan to make staff redundant, down from 33 per cent a year ago when there were much greater fears that a premature end to government furlough support would create a spike in unemployment. Earlier this month, the Bank ...
Unvaccinated school staff among those who must undergo regular Covid-19 tests from Oct 1
SINGAPORE - Teachers and school staff who have not been vaccinated against Covid-19 will undergo twice-weekly antigen rapid tests (ARTs) from Oct 1, as part of the new vaccinate or regular test regime. This will also apply to non-government employees who have regular contact with students aged 12 and below, including those working in tuition and enrichment centres, Education Minister Chan Chun Sing said in a Facebook post on Friday (Aug 13). At the same time, cleaners in tuition and enrichment centres that cater to students aged 12 and below will also be required to undergo regular testing under the Fast and Easy Testing (FET) regime from Sept 3. Staff in schools working in higher-risk settings, such as cleaners and physical education (PE) teachers who conduct mask-off activities as part of PE lessons, are required to undergo testing every two weeks as part of the FET regime, even if they are vaccinated against Covid-19. These are among measures taken by the Ministry of Education (MOE) to adopt a more sustainable approach towards school cases as Singapore moves towards living with an endemic Covid-19. Earlier this month, the Ministry of Health said that the “vaccinate or regular te...
Schools, polytechnics and ITE started fast and easy Covid-19 testing in July: MOE
SINGAPORE - Staff working at schools, polytechnics and the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) have had to do fast and easy testing (FET) for Covid-19, swabbing themselves since mid-July, while autonomous universities here will start testing when term resumes this month and next. Cleaners, teachers and canteen vendors are among the staff at educational institutions who test themselves using antigen rapid test (ART) kits, under the supervision of a trained staff member. They have to do a test every 14 days, the Ministry of Education (MOE) told The Straits Times on Thursday (Aug 5). The FET requirement was introduced in June as part of a set of measures for staff working in higher-risk settings that involve unmasked individuals. They include teachers, coaches and instructors who interact with students in settings like physical education lessons, sports activities, music and drama classes and performing arts co-curricular activities. Food and beverage operators such as canteen vendors and cafe staff must also be tested, along with cleaners in schools that have unvaccinated students under the age of 12 or whose duties include cleaning venues where unmasked activities take place, lik...
London staff want big pay rises to return to office, survey says
LONDON (BLOOMBERG) - London office workers want an average pay rise equivalent to the cost of some annual railway season tickets to return to their desks full-time after the pandemic, according to a survey. With Covid-19 restrictions leaving many offices empty, white-collar staff have spent 16 months mostly working from home. Just 17 per cent now say they actively want a full-time return to the office, research for workplace analytics firm Locatee shows. However, cash would convince 43 per cent of employees, according to the research, by YouGov Plc. In London that equates to an average of £5,100 ($9,500) - virtually the same as an annual railway ticket between London and the commuter town of Tunbridge Wells, in Kent. The UK national average was 4,000 pounds, Locatee said. The research underscored the difficulties in engineering a post-pandemic "new normal" for business. Ending legal coronavirus restrictions this week, amid a surge in infections in London and around the UK, has not yet spurred a large-scale return. Many firms want staff back and are already planning for a "hybrid" future that includes regular home-working in order to keep them on-side. "The appetite for remote worki...
Morgan Stanley tells staff they’ll need Covid-19 vaccines to enter office
NEW YORK (BLOOMBERG) - Morgan Stanley told employees they will need to be vaccinated against Covid-19 to enter its New York offices, as a growing number of Wall Street firms adopt policies delaying the return of staff who are not protected against the deadly virus. The bank notified workers of the policy in a memo. Just last week, chief executive officer James Gorman fired off a warning shot to staff still uncertain about wanting to return to the office. "If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office and we want you in the office," he said at a conference. Mr Gorman estimated that more than 90 per cent of employees back in the offices were already vaccinated and expected that number to inch up closer to 100 per cent. While the bank has not mandated a full return to office like Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, Mr Gorman said if the offices were not filled up by Labour Day in September, "then we'll have a different kind of conversation". BlackRock informed its US workforce of a similar plan last week, saying it would allow only fully vaccinated workers to come back to work starting next month. Bank of America also plans to prioritise the return of vaccinated...
Blood, shattered glass at one store on first day of Ion Orchard’s reopening after closure due to Covid-19
SINGAPORE - At least one retail worker at Ion Orchard was injured after glass panel doors shattered on the first day of the mall's reopening on Wednesday (June 16). The man, who was wearing a staff lanyard from make-up brand Bobbi Brown, had cuts on his arms. Three Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officers were seen arriving at the scene at around 11.20am. Blood splatter on the floor could be seen among the shattered glass. The Straits Times has contacted Ion Orchard and the SCDF for more information. Before the incident, retail staff at Ion Orchard were seen busy tidying up their wares and preparing their storefronts in anticipation of shoppers returning after a four-day closure for deep cleaning and disinfection. The mall was ordered to close from last Saturday to Tuesday by the Ministry of Health, after a number of Covid-19 cases were linked to it. On Wednesday, the mall, which has 400 retailers, reopened its doors at 10am. At some stores, staff were seen dusting their display shelves and racks. But not all stores were ready to welcome customers by 11am. British luxury fashion house Burberry and Japanese department store Muji were among those that remained shuttered. In a ci...
Wirecard foiled staff attempts to speak out: Whistle-blower
SINGAPORE - Disgraced payments company Wirecard should have put better procedures in place for staff to flag misconduct, said the company's former senior legal counsel for the Asia-Pacific. Mr Pav Gill told The Straits Times that Wirecard had corporate governance issues that seemed to prevent wrongdoings from being brought to light. Please subscribe or log in to continue reading the full article. Get unlimited access to all stories at $0.99/month Latest headlines and exclusive stories In-depth analyses and award-winning multimedia content Get access to all with our no-contract promotional package at only $0.99/month for the first 3 months* Subscribe now *Terms and conditions apply.
5,000 inmates, staff, vendors and volunteers to be tested for Covid-19 at Changi Prison
SINGAPORE - The Singapore Prison Service (SPS) will be testing about 5,000 inmates, staff, vendors and volunteers over the next few days after a chef working in the prison kitchen at Changi Prison Complex tested positive for Covid-19 on Thursday (May 13). In a statement released on Saturday, SPS said inmate activities, including rehabilitation programmes, will be suspended to facilitate the testing. It also said that vendors and volunteers who are affected by the temporary suspension of activities will be notified. SPS said it would cease face-to-face and tele-visits and replace all inmates' visits with phone calls from May 17 until further notice. The decision comes on the heels of the Ministry of Health's (MOH) announcement on Friday on the tightening of measures in the community to reduce the risk of Covid-19 transmission. Families who have already booked their visits will have them automatically converted to phone calls. In addition to phone calls, inmates are still able to communicate with their families through e-letters. "These are important, preventive steps taken by SPS, for the safety of our inmates and their families, staff and partners, and they complement existing meas...