TR EMERITUS

I read with interest the Straits Times’ Opinion piece “Many workers fear for their jobs - their firms should address this honestly” (September 6). Firstly, we need to find out why many workers fear for their jobs? I think, there are many reasons for it. Basically, there are two broad areas, one is the impact of macro economic environment and another aspect is the impact of technology. The continued sluggishness and instability of the world economy has prompted many companies to take cost-saving measures as the businesses of most companies will more or less be affected. These cost-saving measures might embrace redesigning and enlargement of job scopes, as well as redeployment and reduction of existing manpower. Therefore, the concerns of all employees are inevitable and understandable. Nonetheless, I recommend that those affected employees should be informed and emotionally reassured in advance, as well as being reasonably compensated. As for those employees who narrowly escaped being laid off, the relevant companies or relevant departments should develop and fund a comprehensive, systematic and effective retraining mechanism or programs (especially the training programs of information technology and AI-related technology) for them to grasp upon it. By doing so, it will help all current employees re-skill and hone their employability skills. This will greatly mitigate the impact of technology which cause the loss of their livelihood. Anyway, Artificial Intelligence is merely one form of technology, and the ability of a machine to display human-like capabilities such as reasoning, learning, planning and creativity. However, no matter how intelligent the machine is, it can never surpass the abilities of the human brain. In fact, the main purpose of any inventions is to make people’s life more convenient (technology and information easily accessible and for use), comfortable (in quantity of life), productive (by replacing repetitive manual and hazardous work), interesting (choices of products) and enjoyable (making life relaxing). In short, any inventions which is without the intention to make any jobs redundant, or to replace anyone’s job or threatening human survival. Thus, it serves the objectives of saving time, efforts and costs. Similarly, it is for the Artificial Intelligence.   Teo Kueh Liang (Mr)      Read More →

Around two months back, I got into an argument with someone whom unknown to me at that time, ended up being someone who would mean something to me. Our argument reached a point where I got so worked up that I felt I needed to physically remove her from the system and so, I ended up trying to pull my body weight until my arms were ready to come off and then I discovered sprinting. Basic premise of sprint training is that you pelt it down as fast as you can for around 20 to 30 seconds, rest for about four minutes and then you repeat for another four to six times (I usually stop at about three). This was a miraculous discovery. There was something about being able to shut out the world and focusing on that singular goal of getting to the end as quickly as you can push yourself. Your heart-rates goes through the roof as one can see from mine after one session: There’s one downside to the exercise, especially if you’re over 40 – namely the fact that your risk of injury increases. So, the second quarrel with the same person resulted in my hamstring getting inflamed over the weekend. When I talked about starting sprinting, I suddenly got inundated with advice. A director in the company told me that at “our age, we shouldn’t sprint and just stick with brisk walking.” Several months later, one of my cuddly toys told me “Eh – nearly 50-years old so old, cannot do intense exercise.” Then three nights ago, I met a young man who suggested that I should just do low impact exercises. All these guys mean well and I know they have my interest at heart. However, when I am told “at your age,” it’s a sign that I better do more of whatever I was doing. Sure, there’s no denying that I am getting older. I’m turning 50 next year and there’s no denying that at 50, the body isn’t what it was at 22. Let’s face it, back in national service, doing chin-ups was standard. These days, I stick with doing sets of “girl-chin and pull ups” (also known as Australian pull ups) and hopefully one day I’ll be able to drag my 90 plus kg up the bar. However, whilst I am getting older, I’m not dying and if today’s statistics are anything to go by, I’m not likely to die for another 30 odd years. Which means, I need to be in decent enough shape to get through that marathon called life and I don’t want to be a burden on Kiddo. So given that I am an overweight middle-aged man, what can I do but to do the things that will give me that wonderful sensation of looking for someone better hiding inside me. It’s admittedly tough and I usually do this at night when the body is warmed up rather than first thing in the morning where, well, things don’t seem to function quite so well. Now, what I’m saying about doing an intense exercise can be applied in the job market, where we have a class of people in their late forties and fifties who need to be in the job market to pay off things like mortgages and to get kids through school. The job search is inevitably screwed by the fact that age trumps everything else. I think of my account manager who is over 60. The man is highly qualified, having once been the financial controller of a huge company. For him, accounting is like drinking water. However, the fact that he knows what he’s doing and doesn’t need to be trained is of secondary concern. The fact is, he’s over 60 and that’s a turn off. However, the point that many employers forget is that the guy is just over a certain age. He’s not dead and there’s no reason why he can’t be used, especially when he has a record of being very useful. This should be something that gets looked at. We have an aging population but our costs are rising. These people are still useful and can be utilized. We need to let them pay off their expenses and get by and not treat them like they are dead. So, what do we need to do? Well, employers need to understand that people are just getting older and not dying. As long as the guy is useful and willing to be useful, the employer should use him or her. As for those of us over 45, we need to understand that we are just older and not dying. There are ways of surviving beyond the standard nine-to-six gig. We need to understand that we have skills that can be sold and we live in a world where the internet allows to do work across borders. We’re not dead, just older. I am by no measure of imagination fit. However, I’m still going to push myself ever now and then so that I can be something better. I need a generation of 20-somethings who have grown up sitting behind a desk and never leaving the house to look at me and say “if that geezer can still push himself – why can’t I?” Living like your dying is not an option for yourself or the people who look to you for guidance.   Tang Li *Although I’ve been based mainly in Singapore for nearly two decades, I’ve had the privilege of being able to meet people who have crossed borders and cultures. I’ve befriended ministers and ambassadors and worked on projects involving a former head of state. Yet, at the same time, I’ve had the privilege of befriending migrant labourers and former convicts. All of them have a story to tell. All of them add to the fabric of life. I hope to express the stories that inspire us to create life as it should be.      Read More →

The 43rd ASEAN Summit has opened in Jakarta. Lhl is leading the Singapore delegation. Apart from the participation of ASEAN member countries minus Myanmar, China's Prime Minister Li Gang, US's Vice President Kamala Harris, Japanese Prime Minister Kishida and other foreign leaders are also attending. At this golden opportunity, many important issues such as geopolitical tensions, bilateral issues, trade issues, the Myanmar crisis, the South China Sea and many more will be discussed and every country will fight to advance their interests and agendas. It is my fervent hope that one particular issue that has yet to adequately manifest its doom days apocalypse and existential threat to the human race be given the opportunity to be prominently and properly discussed, tackle and follow up even though the ASEAN Summit is not the United Nations assembly. The issue is Japan's dumping of its treated radioactive waters into the Pacific Ocean. The volume is massive and the numbers quoted is over 1 million metric tonnes and over an extended period of time. Japan has alearly started their discharge as planned. The natural reaction of the majority of people everywhere and most countries are even if they are concerned and worried, they cannot do much except to protest and ban the import of Japanese seafood. Apart from that, I would also like to look at the potential dire consequences from another angle. My understanding is that a significant amount of oxygen in the atmosphere originated from marine plants, algae and phytoplankton etc. They use sunlight, carbon dioxide and neutron to produce oxygen as a byproduct. It is estimated that marine plants alone contributed about 70% of earth's total oxygen production. Consequently, the health and productivity of ocean ecosystem are crucial for maintaining oxygen level and supporting life on earth. It does not takes only pap generals or scholars to be able to imagine the condemned outcome if huge, huge swath of marine ecosystem is devastated by Japan's discharge of its toxic radioactive waters into the oceans. Singapore is a maritime nation and much of our trade is seaborne. Personally, I will be much disappointed if the issue of Japan's dumping of its so called treated radioactive waters are not put forth for discussion with effective and appropriate follow up actions at such an important and senior level meeting couple with much sense of urgency. Think.   Simon Lim      Read More →