Will paying garbage collectors as much as bankers make Singapore a better place?
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SINGAPORE: A local Reddit user sparked an interesting debate when they asked whether fellow users of the platform believe Singapore society would be better “if service and blue collar workers like garbage men get paid more than people like bankers.”
In a post on r/askSingapore from earlier in the week, u/CryingGod0 added, “Personally, I think they provide indispensable value and often work under tough conditions. Without them, we can’t live our daily lives as we are today.”
At present, workers with Public Waste Collectors (PWCs) and General Waste Collectors (GWCs) licensed by the National Environment Agency have a starting salary of S$2,210 a month, for a total of S$26,520 a year, although this is scheduled to increase in 2028 to S$3,260 under the Progressive Wage Model, with annual raises of S$210. The salaries of senior drivers, who are earning S$2,910 a month today, will go up to S$3,960 in the same year.
Bankers’ salaries, meanwhile, may start at around S$3,000 monthly but average out at more than S$5,000 a month and can go up to twice that amount throughout a banker’s career.
In other developed countries, garbage collectors may earn more than they do in Singapore. In big cities in the United States, for example, such as San Francisco, their average yearly pay is $76,490 (S$98,600). In Australia, recycling and rubbish collectors earn an average of AUD$59,000 (S$49,630) to AUD$70,000 (S$58,900) yearly.
Commenters on the post had a lot to say as they answered u/CryingGod0’s question.
“There’s a simple rule: Your salary isn’t determined by how valuable you are. If this were the case, farming would be the highest-paid profession in the world. Your salary is determined by how replaceable you are,” observed one.
Another wrote that while Australia’s garbage workers are paid more, “It translates to a higher cost of garbage disposal for Australian citizens. If we reduce migrant labour, Singaporeans will kpkb saying that everything is so expensive, and the government should do something about it, and what the government can do is import migrant workers to reduce cost, and it’ll lead to Reddit posts like this. It’s a never-ending cycle. People just can’t be satisfied.”
“Australia doesn’t import foreign talent as much as Singapore, hence it’s harder to find someone willing to do those jobs. Harder to replace = higher salary,” another agreed.
“Na people will complain. Singaporeans are cheap. They want everything but refuse to contribute more. For example, if tomorrow suddenly, public healthcare workers’ salaries are adjusted based on what they deserve, healthcare costs will increase,” a Reddit user commented.
“I think they should be paid a livable wage in the very least (maybe 50% more to double their existing pay). Whether they ought to be paid more than bankers is something I feel should be left to the market to sort out, but in the very least, underpaying the former is tantamount to saying — I acknowledge that what you do is important, but I don’t believe you should be able to live off the money that you make,” another chimed in.
A Reddit user who appeared to tend to favour paying garbage collectors as much as bankers wrote: “I think people who trash this idea don’t appreciate how much spending power of many regular people can prop up an economy. If we have many people who are able to afford eating out, going to the cinema, hailing a private car for a ride, etc., then there is a need for many businesses around them. But we live in a shrinking economy where most of our wealth gets spent on essentials and mortgage/rent, and insurance if you are a bit fancy.
“Simple things like eating out at à hawker start to feel luxurious, so we all scale down. As spending is done by the top 10% of society, affordable services are priced out with insane rentals. We are all becoming the kids who just stand around the playground but are not allowed to play.” /TISG