Your views: Foreign workers with hearts of gold

RAYMOND 
ANTHONY FERNANDO

Foreign workers with hearts of gold

I am deeply touched by the kindness and bravery of the foreign workers who stepped forward to rescue Mr Terrence Tang, who was trapped in his vehicle after a tree fell on it, as described in the report("Foreign workers pull trapped man out of van", The New Paper, Dec 15).

Many of us will be scared stiff when an incident like this takes place, but the bravery of the foreign workers who risked their lives to save a man is truly commendable.

  I have read several reports of foreign workers who will not hesitate to come to the rescue of any person who is at risk of serious injury or death.

These are the kind of workers Singapore must not only welcome with open arms, but also encourage to serve in the community as grassroots leaders, as they have big hearts filled with compassion.

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ZAINAL SAPARI CHAIRMAN, TRIPARTITE CLUSTER FOR CLEANERS

Foreign cleaners not neglected

I refer to Dr Noorashikin Rahman's forum letter "Consider raising pay of foreign cleaners, too" (The Straits Times, Dec 16).

The Tripartite Cluster for Cleaners (TCC) recognises that employers, when hiring foreign workers, have to bear other manpower-related costs such as the foreign worker levy and accommodation. For this reason, the TCC has recommended that the specific wage levels of the Progressive Wage Model apply only to resident cleaners.

However, the TCC recommendations state that employers should also endeavour to incorporate the key principles of progressive wages, such as salary progression, skills upgrading, productivity improvement and career advancement, into the wage structure of their foreign cleaners.

Very importantly, we urge the industry to practise best sourcing to ensure our cleaners are paid fairly based on their quality of service.