READING Mr Christopher Ng's letter ("Foreign workers fill a need"; last Wednesday) made me wonder if Singapore, with its growing prosperity and many blessings, has forgotten those immigrants from China in the past, such as the samsui women, who contributed to the early development of Singapore.
One should not forget the past in the name of progress, because history helps us to bridge the present and the future.
Blue-collar workers are often under-appreciated - but performing physical labour should not be frowned upon or, worse, despised.
Samsui women, who hailed mainly from Guangdong, China, came to Singapore between the 1930s and 1980s in search of construction jobs.
Their hard labour contributed to Singapore's early development.
It is not the cleaning industry which requires more foreign workers. If members of the public learn to be considerate, and treat public areas and public toilets the way they do their own homes, Singapore would not need to depend extensively on an army of cleaners, composed of many foreign workers.
The construction and renovation industries, however, do require more skilled workers.
As Mr Ng in his letter has rightfully pointed out, restricting the number of foreign workers in the construction and renovation industries will not improve productivity.
The Government has to boost the infrastructure so that the necessary foreign blue-collar workers can be accommodated.
Ada Chan Siew Foen (Ms)
One should not forget the past in the name of progress, because history helps us to bridge the present and the future.
Blue-collar workers are often under-appreciated - but performing physical labour should not be frowned upon or, worse, despised.
Samsui women, who hailed mainly from Guangdong, China, came to Singapore between the 1930s and 1980s in search of construction jobs.
Their hard labour contributed to Singapore's early development.
It is not the cleaning industry which requires more foreign workers. If members of the public learn to be considerate, and treat public areas and public toilets the way they do their own homes, Singapore would not need to depend extensively on an army of cleaners, composed of many foreign workers.
The construction and renovation industries, however, do require more skilled workers.
As Mr Ng in his letter has rightfully pointed out, restricting the number of foreign workers in the construction and renovation industries will not improve productivity.
The Government has to boost the infrastructure so that the necessary foreign blue-collar workers can be accommodated.
Ada Chan Siew Foen (Ms)
