SG Complains

Staff culling as a counter-recession tool

According to AsiaOne News:

DBS BANK’s chop of 900 jobs, half of them to be made in Singapore, reminds working people that job security is getting tenuous as business models adapt to Darwinian forces.

Workers comprehend this; they need to retool to remain useful.

But the retrenchment was still a shock for its size and the timing. Local operations of the American insurer AIG and of Wall Street and European banks devastated by derivatives losses have so far been circumspect, even accounting for their smaller staff.

Is there a hint of haste by a company business graduates looking for a career start gravitate to?

In a Straits Times interview with DBS chairman Koh Boon Hwee published yesterday, mention was made of certain financial businesses and jobs culled that will not reappear when the crisis is past.

No other financier here has hinted at ‘structural’ redesign in banking, save the multiplicity of investment products being churned out and the outsourcing of some backroom functions.

If more categories of financial jobs are to fall obsolete, it is a sobering reminder of the tsunami that has swept and is continuing to wreak havoc in the financial world.

Read more on AsiaOne News:

- It’s the vicious cycle of chicken and egg, the more people they “culled” the less money the overall public will spend causing less profit for corporations that depends on public confidence to spend money.

For banks…they might wish more people to spend on credit cards and splurge money on items that they do not need at all or borrow money from the bank so that they can charge interest on these loans.

Culling will invoke strong emotions that can be spread far and wide and damage not just public confidence but also public trust.

Fear will propagate through the market that may make everyone on their toes for the next big “chop” on their head.

They will be stressed everyday and watching over their backs for any rumors or hearsay about retrenchment and eventually suffer from mental paranoia and end up mentally ill.

This is a time to take leave and relax one corner or start to find back your health. Go exercise, eat healthy and get enough sleep. No point finding fault on the system or fighting the big “axe”, do our very best in our jobs and relax while we can.

I recommend lying at the beach or swimming pool and rest, stock up at least 2 months worth of food in case of retrenchment and learn how to enjoy life.

Say yes to things you normally avoid…and try new things as much as possible every day within limits of course.

Cut debts and bills by careful planning and innovative ideas if possible.

1. Cut credit card
2. Avoid 0% Installment as much as possible
3. Save some money
4. Shop carefully and compare prices, do your homework
5. Avoid scams, things too good to be true…usually it is.
6. Stock up 2 months of “emergency food and cash”
7. Relax
8. Exercise
9. Listen to soothing music
10. Sleep early
11. Read more tips from this website past post.
12. Love your love ones, they will be your support

There are more I can add…but that’s all for now.