Union explains SMRT's new pay framework for bus drivers

TODAY, 23 May 2012

Following media reports that some SMRT bus drivers are fretting that their new six-day work weeks would actually result in lower pay, the National Transport Workers' Union (NTWU) yesterday stressed that the salaries will go up. 

In a letter to the media, NTWU assistant executive secretary Choo Joon See also provided a breakdown of how much more the bus drivers would be earning under the new pay framework.

Last week, the SMRT announced that since the start of this month, it has increased the pay of its bus drivers. But it later emerged that the bus drivers have to work an additional day under the new pay framework.

Mr Choo reiterated that although the bus drivers now have to work six days a week, the number of working hours each day has been reduced from 8.8 to 7.3 hours. 

Hence, the total weekly working hours remain unchanged, he said. 

Previously, under a five-day-week framework, most bus drivers volunteer to work on the sixth day, during which they are paid an overtime rate of 1.5 times the normal day rate. 

Said Mr Choo: "The fear is that with a six-day week, their overtime for working on a day off will disappear. However, with shorter working hours every day under a six-day week, they now accumulate overtime every day instead of only on the sixth day."

Mr Choo said the union has "gone through the roster cycle and is assured there is no loss in overtime overall". He added: "In fact, with a higher basic wage, the overtime rate per hour will go up, further boosting their pay." 

He noted that six-day work weeks are a norm in the service industry and that SBS Transit bus drivers have always been on six-day week, as were bus drivers from TIBS and, later, the SMRT until this arrangement was changed to a five-day work week in 2006. 

"We hope more (drivers) will be more reassured," Mr Choo added. Communication sessions with drivers are ongoing.

SMRT has been more proactive in minimising faults: Lui Tuck Yew

By Hetty Musfirah, Channel NewsAsia, 23 May 2012

Minister for Transport Lui Tuck Yew said on Wednesday that rail operator SMRT has been more proactive in its approach to minimise faults in the train network.

"I appreciate very, very much ... that it was not just the management people who have put in many extra hours, but also the people on the ground, the engineers, the maintenance staff, the technical people," Mr Lui said.

"They have worked much, much harder than in the past, over the last few months."

He made the comments during a visit to Bishan Depot in the morning to get a better sense of the work processes for components such as batteries, current collector shoes and wheels.

The emphasis in the maintenance regime of SMRT has shifted - from just repairing and maintaining assets - to replacing them.

MRT breakdown COI: Day 27

SMRT unaware vibration would disrupt power

By Jermyn Chow. The Straits Times, 24 May 2012

RAIL operator SMRT was unaware of the damage that vibration from passing trains could inflict on its system until its train services broke down for the second time in two days last December.

Its vice-president for maintenance Ng Tek Poo told the Committee of Inquiry (COI) yesterday that the rail operator did not know that vibration could dislodge the metal claws holding the power supply third rail in place.

In last December's breakdowns which hit more than 200,000 commuters, third-rail claws that had come loose caused the third rail to sag, disrupting power supply to the trains.

Ferrari or Toyota, it's the driver that matters

By Christopher Tan, The Straits Times, 24 May 2012

THE horrific Ferrari-taxi crash that happened two weeks ago has ignited public resentment and outrage, for obvious reasons. The party deemed at fault was driving an expensive, fast car and the victims included a cabby and his fare.

But linking the incident and its tragic consequences to a rising popularity of high-powered cars would be akin to holding gravity responsible in the cases of maids falling from high-rise buildings.

Let's be clear: The issue at hand is not one of the machine per se, but the person behind the wheel. A car need not be a 670-horsepower limited edition Italian racer to create mayhem on the road. Even the most modestly endowed vehicle can kill, given the wrong circumstances.

Gillian Koh: Go for 'retail politics'

By Gillian Koh, Published The Straits Times, 24 May 2012

IN MARCH, Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean said: 'We are entering an era where governance is becoming more challenging... Rather than grappling with whether we should do more or do less, really it is more productive for us to focus on doing the right things, and doing these things right.'

Doing the right thing is not always popular, but doing it right will help by more than a mile.

Hougang By-election: PAP‪ Rally, May 2‬4

Hougang By-election: WP Rally, May 2‬4

Hougang By-election: On The Campaign Trail, Day 8

Png's integrity in question: DPM Teo

WP candidate 'not truthful' about why he was not picked as NCMP

By Rachel Chang, The Straits Times, 24 May 2012

DEPUTY Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday fired a third salvo at Mr Png Eng Huat - this time charging that the Workers' Party (WP) candidate 'was not truthful' about why he was not selected for a Non-Constituency MP (NCMP) spot.

A 'new and serious question' about Mr Png's integrity has been raised by events over the last three days, said Mr Teo in a statement released yesterday.

Mr Png said he was not chosen for the 'best loser' spot because he did not want it, recounted Mr Teo. Mr Gerald Giam, Mr Png's teammate on the WP's East Coast GRC slate, took the post instead.

But Mr Png's account was contradicted by WP chief Low Thia Khiang at the WP's rally on Tuesday night, said Mr Teo.

Then, Mr Low said that 'the selection of NCMP lies solely with the CEC (central executive council)... therefore whether a candidate wanted to be an NCMP or not, the decision is not his'.

'This is the opposite of the picture Mr Png first tried to paint - that he had taken his name off the ballot, and that he was not considered for the NCMP post because he did not want it,' Mr Teo said.

'Thus, Mr Low confirmed that Mr Png had not been telling the truth, and had indeed been rejected by the WP central executive council as an NCMP. This is the real damage to the WP and Mr Png's reputations,' he added.

Meanwhile, Mr Teo's original question has still not been answered, he emphasised.

This question, posed at the PAP rally on Sunday, triggered events of the last three days. If Hougang is so important to the WP, Mr Teo asked at the rally, why did they expect voters to elect a man they themselves did not see fit to send to Parliament?

Yesterday, Mr Teo said in his statement: 'Voters should reconsider whether the WP is just tugging at their emotions, but actually taking voters for granted.'

In reference to the WP's slogan for the general election last year, he concluded: 'For a First World Parliament, the basic prerequisite is that parliamentarians must be honest and truthful.'

The WP did not respond to Mr Teo's comments last night.

'Png-gate' or 'NCMP-gate', as it has been dubbed online, has dominated the second half of the Hougang by-election campaign.

PM Lee: Self-help groups vital for mobility

He urges them to help families move up socio-economic ladder

By Robin Chan, The Straits Times, 23 May 2012

PRIME Minister Lee Hsien Loong yesterday called on self-help groups to take on the task of helping to improve the social mobility of families.

The groups play a vital role in ensuring that families have opportunities to move up the socio-economic ladder, he said.

He was speaking at the 20th anniversary dinner of the Chinese Development Assistance Council (CDAC), the self-help group set up to look after the educational needs of the less well-off in the Chinese community. There are similar groups for the Malay, Indian and Eurasian communities.

Mr Lee noted that the Chinese community group has already embarked on this new direction.

Since 2008, the council has started offering help not just to students from low income families with poor school grades - or what it calls 'the double poor' - but to any student from a low income household, regardless of grades, Mr Lee said.

It plans to do more, including extending education programmes to students from junior colleges, ITEs, polytechnics and arts schools, and students not in the mainstream education system.

It will also go beyond just academics, to help develop the character of students, equip workers with skills, and help families with financial management, he said.

'Help them do better not only in school, but also to be more successful in life,' he added.



Noting that community efforts such as those by self-help groups exist alongside the Government's programmes to create an inclusive society, Mr Lee said: 'How we fare as a nation depends on how Singaporeans respond to our challenges, individually and as a community.'

He added: 'Self-help groups will continue to play very important roles, especially in helping families and improving social mobility.'

Even so, he stressed, individuals must also try to help themselves, and he urged them to seek help if they need it, make use of programmes to lift themselves, and then in turn help others.

MRT breakdown COI: Day 26

Witness offers contradictory evidence

By Christopher Tan, The Straits Times, 23 May 2012

THERE were more questions than answers in court yesterday as the 111th witness of the Committee of Inquiry failed to corroborate a number of statements gathered so far.

In some instances, SMRT deputy director of rolling stock and tracks Ng Wai Yi even offered contradictory evidence, to the bewilderment of the court.

Mr Ng was first quizzed by the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) on the number of trains inspected at the Changi, Ulu Pandan and Bishan depots for damage to their current collector devices (CCDs) after the first breakdown on Dec 15 last year.

Mr Ng said SMRT had collated numbers from two shifts - evening and night - when it should have just done so from the night shift.

He also said he needed to check on three trains that had returned to the Bishan depot earlier in the day, as he was not certain if their CCDs had been checked.

An earlier witness had said all trains already in the depot that day were checked, but did not provide proper documentary evidence besides a handwritten note to prove it.

More calls for airbags in taxis

LTA says it will study and evaluate requirement for the safety device

By Irene Tham , Miranda Yeo, The Straits Times, 23 May 2012

CALLS have intensified for all seven taxi firms to install airbags in their fleets after a fatal accident involving a Ferrari and a cab.

The ComfortDelGro taxi in the accident two Saturdays ago did not have airbags. Both the cabby and passenger died.

Currently, airbags are not mandatory and only Prime Taxi has its entire fleet of 800 cabs fitted with the device.

Grants for wheelchair-friendly taxis

MCYS move will help offset cost of buying and operating such taxis

By Grace Chua, The Straits Times, 23 May 2012

THE London cabs they ride in will be phased out next March, but wheelchair commuters may have an alternative by then.

The Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) wants to give taxi companies grants to offset the cost of buying and operating cabs that can take large, high-backed and motorised wheelchairs.

The London cabs were due to be phased out in March this year when their licences expired. But the Government extended their leases for a year after The Straits Times broke the story and reported the plight of wheelchair users last year.