Uniquely Singapore: staff shortage and the foreign worker crunch

Oct 26, 2011 special report Tough to meet orders AN UNUSUAL quiet has settled on the once bustling production floor at Apex Technologies; machines that once hummed with activity lie dormant, accumulating dust. The lack of activity is not due to the usual suspect of falling orders, but to a shortage of workers to operate the machinery, said managing director Alan Hoong. The Toa Payoh precision engineering firm makes moulds for the semiconductor industry, employing mainly foreigners. It had about 60 on the payroll a year ago, but that has fallen to around 35. The factory used to run two shifts, with one worker manning one machine, but Mr Hoong has had to combine the two shifts into one and get each employee to operate multiple machines. Even with this radical revamp, the company is struggling to regain the level of productivity it once had. 'It is quite drastic. Even right now, we are having difficulty filling orders,' Mr Hoong said, even with sales dropping due to the global economic slowdown. He estimated that the company has lost about 30 per cent of orders due to the staff shortage. Mr Hoong said it takes anywhere from six to 12 months to get workers up to speed because of the level of training required. And

while foreign workers are hard to employ, locals are simply not staying on. He has tried all avenues, from hiring local ex-convicts to older workers, but most give up after a few days of training. 'Most don't have the patience - they quit halfway and become property agents,' he said. The labour supply headache extends to senior staff as well, with foreigners who had spent almost a decade at the company working their way up to become supervisors, group leaders and project managers having to go. 'We spent so many years training them, and they were willing to stay on, so imagine the relationship, trust, goodwill. 'Now, the work permit gives us a two-year term, but by the time the workers are trained enough to be independent, we have to send them back,' said Mr Hoong. 'I feel helpless, and angry.' He said Apex Technologies has explored the possibility of moving into automation, but it would cost around $10 million, which the company cannot afford at this moment. 'That (automation) needs a much higher skilled person to manage, but that is my only hope. Right now, I have foreigners willing to undergo the training, but locals don't want to,' he said. MELISSA TAN