Extra money will come in handy

TNP PICTURE: BENSON ANG

This retail assistant can expect to get a pay rise of $140 from next month, and she is delighted.

Madam Boon Lye Chan, 54, who works at the FairPrice Finest supermarket in Thomson Plaza, is among the 4,000 FairPrice staff who will see a pay rise soon.

Last month, the Government accepted a proposal to raise the pay of low-wage workers. It was recommended that workers earning a basic monthly salary of up to $1,000 get at least a $50 built-in wage increase.

Madam Boon, who has three children aged 21, 22 and 24, and whose husband is a driver, said: "The money will definitely come in handy.”

But another worker The New Paper spoke to felt that a $50 pay increase is "really not very much".