NTUC is an unusual Union?

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An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:

Chan Chun Sing said the unions in Singapore is unsual unlike their counterparts in the rest of the world! Do you agree?


Quote:
When I first joined the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) a year ago, I never fully appreciated how “unusual” this organisation was. It was only when I first participated in the annual International Labour Organisation (ILO) meeting in Geneva that I began to appreciate just how “unusual” we were.

Why “unusual”, and how so?

In most parts of the world, unions are seen as an anachronism of the past. Unionisation rates amongst workers in these countries have progressively declined as workers simply cannot find any reason to join them. This has resulted in many unions across the world, locked in an internecine fight over a shrinking pie with either their respective governments or companies, if not both. We, on the other hand, have been fortunate that our unionisation rate has continued to grow. This has been possible because of Singapore’s unique model of tripartism – where unions work together with the government and employers towards better outcomes for our workers.

In fact, in our many interactions with foreign MNCs, many were taken aback by our approach to working together; dealing with challenges; and perhaps most shockingly, to caring for our workers, including Professionals Managers and Executives.

Let me elaborate.

Firstly, they were surprised that we defined our mission as taking care of ALL working people, and not just the blue-collared rank and file workers. They were surprised that we saw it in our mission to help all workers, from rank and file to PMEs and even non-unionised workers in SMEs, to upgrade and stay competitive.


Source: http://g$$$$$l/bu6zKO


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