though she empathised with the candidates, she had to reject them. The manager's observations have not been off the mark. Very few Singaporeans have enough cash savings. If they lost their jobs, they would find themselves in a tight spot within a few months. Well, perhaps the salaried workers are not to be blamed for being caught in this situation. Not too long ago, it was common social practice for Singaporeans to go for an overseas holiday at least once a year. For those with more cash, they would dream of owning a car or a house. There is an even greater number of Singaporeans who do not see the need to save because they are already contributing to the CPF. I, too, often heard Singaporeans complain that they found it difficult to save because of the high cost of living. So, when the economy suddenly took a turn for the worse, many Singaporeans were caught unprepared. Even economic analysts were feeling optimistic that "tomorrow will be better" just before July last year, when the financial crises hit the region. No matter what the cause, the current economic situation has led to the emergence of a large number of unemployed Singaporeans, who are becoming increasingly anxious not only because they have no jobs, but also because they have put their families in dire straits. What can be done? Some of them are prepared to "lower their social status" and sell their car and property. But prices have dropped. Worse still, it is difficult to find a buyer at this juncture. For HDB property owners, buying and selling of flats are further restricted by government regulations. Someone once told me that Singaporeans used to be "property-rich but cash-poor." Today, they are equally poor in both aspects. Recently, the newspapers had reported that many Singaporeans tried to make ends meet by terminating their insurance policies, forgoing tuition classes for their children and even ending maids' contracts. But what about the other running household expenses-the daily meals, children's school fees, electricity bills and transport costs? I am sure no one will object if we suggest that something be done to help these financially-strapped families. The issue is: how do we help them? Unemployment subsidies? We have learnt from the experiences of other countries that this form of social welfare does not work. It not only puts a strain on the country's limited resources, but also does nothing to encourage the unemployed to look for a job. So we have to be steadfast against implementing such a measure. Lately, we have repeatedly heard a lot about structural unemployment and the government's and NTUC's efforts to encourage Singaporeans to train and re-train for new higher-skilled jobs. While these eff 2007-12-06 文章来自《中国免费论文网》商务英语论文论文频道 http://lunwen.52xoyo.com
