It appears that senior management of Singapore’s six autonomous universities (AUs) have recently joined the list of people take a pay cut during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This list includes the President, Prime Minister, Cabinet ministers and other political office-holders who took a three-month pay cut. It also includes high-paying civil servants, Singapore Airlines (SIA) pilots, expats and thousands of local workers.
Standing United
Answering queries from The Straits Times, a spokesman from the Ministry of Education (MOE) said: “The AUs (Autonomous Universities) decided to adjust downwards the pay for their senior staff holding leadership positions, in consultation with MOE.”
“As publicly-funded national institutions, the AUs play an important national role in educating Singaporeans.
“The AUs stand together in solidarity with the rest of the nation during this difficult period.”
Apparently, the AUs are following the recommendations set up by the National Wages Council (NWC) which includes reducing wages to cut costs and save jobs.
However, not much is known about this particular pay cut. Details such as the extent of the pay cut, whether it will be a one-off thing or even when did the pay cut happen are kept confidential, according to the spokesman.
Financial support for students
Apart from taking a pay cut, the six universities have ensured that their students are financially supported.
In May, Singapore Management University (SMU) set up a $2.5 million fund for their students. Known as the SMU Resilience Fund, up to 1,000 undergraduates were able to receive a one-off $500 grant each, which did not need to be repaid.
It is understood that the SMU Resilience Fund has grown by another $1.14 million, thanks to the contributions from faculty and staff.
Earlier this month, Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) had its own fund of about $1.5 million which were distributed to students whose families were deeply affected by the pandemic.
The National University of Singapore’s (NUS’) Students Solidarity Fund has raised about $1.6 million, and the university has disbursed grants ranging from S$200 to S$700 to some 3,100 students.
Similarly, the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) has distributed more than $1.6 million to over 1,100 students. They received sums ranging from $500 to $3,000, depending on their individual needs.
A spokesman said that NTU had also launched a fund seeded by a personal gift of $100,000 from its president Subra Suresh and his wife Mary. The NTU Priorities Fund has since grown to $1.7 million in size, thanks to the generosity of more than 1,600 other donors, she said.
The Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) has set up an emergency fund, which has raised about $260,000 for students affected by the pandemic. This is on top of existing government bursaries.
A spokesman from SUTD said about $149,000 has been disbursed to 54 students so far, who received sums ranging from $1,500 to $15,000, with the higher quantum going towards covering tuition fees in the current academic year.
If you aren’t a student and unfortunately not holding a job or had a drastic reduction to your salary, you might be eligible for the COVID-19 Support Grant. More information on that can be read here.
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