With businesses suffering due to the Covid-19 pandemic, you’d think business owners would accept any financial help they can get.
But when the government announced that they would be giving out Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) payouts to help firms retain their workers during this tough time, 32 companies returned the wage subsidies worth a combined S$35 million.
Under the scheme, subsidies would cover 25% to 75% (depending on the sector) of the first S$4,600 of each local local employee’s salary.
The subsidy would be handed in three separate payouts, one in April, one in July, and one in October.
But another 29 companies that received the funds for April have pledged to decline future payouts from the Government.
Is this really happening? Are people being… generous?
It sure seems like it.
Some Businesses Even Donated Their Payouts To Charities
One of the businesses that returned their JSS payout was British bank Barclays, a company that has around 1,000 employees in Singapore, a majority of them Singaporeans and permanent residents.
Mr Bal Bagary, country manager of Barclays Singapore and chief financial officer of Barclays International Asia Pacific, said the bank returned the money because it believes the gahmen is in the best position to ensure that the funds are well-used within the various communities here.
He did not, however, reveal the amount of the payout, according to CNA.
German pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim went about things a little differently.
The German company donated S$500,000 of its payouts to five organisations: The Migrant Workers Fund, Sayang Sayang Fund (loving the name of this fund!), Invictus Fund, SG Red Cross and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).
The amount donated makes up the majority of its JSS payments, and they decided to donate the money after “considering the immediate needs of the Singapore community”.
Who knew Singapore was full of thoughtful, empathetic humans?
The company’s country managing director Gerrard McKenna added that they have not been immediately negatively affected by the Covid-19 outbreak, and they intend to refuse any future payouts.
NTUC FairPrice Using the JSS Payouts Given by Gov to Create ‘Special Package’ for Employees
But as my colleague asked in a previous article, while this is nice and everything, why not give it as a bonus to their employees instead?
Well, that’s exactly what one company is doing.
NTUC Fairprice, the popular supermarket that is now a war zone, said it’s using the gahmen’s funds for a “special package” that it had put together for its employees.
This certainly makes sense, as supermarket employees have been busier than ever during the coronavirus outbreak, with customers abandoning full baskets due to long queues and some even abusing cashiers.
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Plus, supermarkets and hypermarkets have seen higher sales of 35.9% year-on-year in March, due to the increased demand for groceries during the coronavirus pandemic, reported CNA.
While FairPrice declined to elaborate on what the “special package” is, they said it was to “recognise and show appreciation to our staff for their invaluable contributions and efforts during this challenging period”.
FairPrice also said that it has provided employment for about 3,500 temporary and casual workers to support higher transaction volumes in April.
Fellow supermarket Sheng Shiong, who declined to comment on whether it accepted the JSS payouts because it’s “commercially sensitive”, also recently rewarded their staff with an additional month’s bonus as their profits jumped by nearly 50%.
Even though these supermarkets have been seeing higher sales during the Covid-19 pandemic, it’s nice to see that their bosses are willing to share the spoils with their employees.
Boss: Are you hinting at something?
Well, it would be nice to get paid, considering I’m working 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Boss: Some companies are making their employees work 25 hours a day, so just be grateful for what you have.
Ok, but what are you going to do with the payouts from the gahmen? I saw you browsing through sgCarMart recently.
Boss: I’m declining to answer that because it’s “commercially sensitive”.
…
Boss: …
*checks NTUC job openings*
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