Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Essay (Final draft)

Bridging the social gap between Singaporeans and foreign workers through proactive cultural awareness

     According to Goldin (2009), rapid globalization has triggered a multiplicity of global issues that seem to plague the world today. With growing labor needs in developed countries, the demand for cheap and unskilled laborers from less developed countries continues to rise  (McKay, 2013). A cosmopolitan city like Singapore is one such place that relies heavily on foreign workers to fill in the demand for unskilled labor in the construction industry. However, the influx of foreign workers appears to have caused problems for the local community. Media reports on the unruliness of migrant workers and the lack of social integration seem to resonate among Singaporeans and this has led to the growing animosity between locals and foreign workers. Despite the government’s fruitless efforts to encourage smooth integration, there is still much to be done to alleviate the tension between the locals and foreign workers (Ng, 2010; Lim, 2013). For instance, the state could proactively inculcate cultural awareness through the use of education and mass media for both parties, narrowing the social divide.

     The resentment between locals and foreign workers can largely be attributed to the lack of cultural understanding between the two. Despite the state actively promoting multiculturalism, this only extends to the local community and fails to include the foreign workers at large (Aricat, 2013). In fact, a large segment of the society shows little understanding of foreign cultures, and tends to expect foreign workers to conform to local norms instead of trying to foster mutual understanding. On the other hand, foreign workers, who are mostly transient, are not motivated to acculturate to the host society as they are mostly motivated by economic benefits.  Furthermore, the tendency for local residents to portray a superiority-complex as well as to dually treat foreign workers by “accepting them economically and excluding them psychologically” has led to the marginalized social status of migrant workers (Gu, Zheng & Yi, 2007, p.2). This lack of acceptance of foreign workers could in turn lead to them rejecting the host society, exacerbating the social divide. One fine example would be the riot involving migrant workers that broke out in Little India due to the death of their peer (Lim, 2013). Many have speculated that the underlying cause of the riot was recourse to the oppression and unfair treatment faced by foreign workers. Nevertheless, the media sensationalized the incident, which fueled widespread criticisms from Singaporeans, and intensified the strained relationship between locals and foreign workers.
    
     The Singapore government has employed various strategies to counter the current divide by providing cultural education for foreign workers. The Migrant Workers Centre (MWC) and NTUC LearningHub jointly conducts a one-day course in the hope of empowering foreign workers with knowledge of societal norms, which might enable these foreigners to better assimilate into local society (Ng, 2010). However, not every migrant worker is entitled to the one-day program as the hefty cost of the program ($82.50 per person) deters employers from signing up (Ng, 2010). Furthermore, government efforts of social integration have been mainly focused on the “functional type” of integration and little effort has been placed on social and emotional needs (Saad, 2014).  Thus, the government has to play a more active role in enforcing more feasible means of social integration for the foreign workers. 

      In order to create social cohesion among Singaporeans and foreign workers, the state could provide extensive cultural education for both Singaporeans and foreign workers. As mentioned earlier, it is not sufficient for workers to be integrated in a functional manner. They should be taught the norms of the local community more in-depth and such lessons should be available at an affordable rate. Singaporeans, on the other hand, should be educated on the various cultures of foreign workers and be taught to question individual undesirable behavior objectively without condemning foreign workers as a whole. One way in which the state could propagate cultural education to large masses of Singaporeans is through the usage of mass media. Advertisements on media portals such as television, radio and social media, which showcase the cultural values of migrant communities in a creative manner, may enable Singaporeans to learn more about the migrant communities. This may also aid in the debunking of stereotypes attributed to foreign workers.

     However, implementing such measures could lead to possible backlash from both the migrant workers and Singaporeans. Despite the efforts to culturally educate both groups, Singaporeans may still be unwilling to accept the differences in cultures while the foreign workers, being transient, may not be inclined to integrate with the society. Moreover, using mass media to shed a positive view of foreign cultures may invite criticisms as Singaporeans may misinterpret the state’s efforts as "pro-foreigner".  

     
     Despite the limitations of implementing such measures, doing nothing on the other hand could prove to be catastrophic as it would be a matter a time before the issue boils over. Hence, proactive cultural education is an integral step that must be undertaken in order to bridge the social divide.

References

Aricat, R. (2013). Indian migrant workers rioting in Singapore: Revisiting acculturation paradigms. Economic & Political Weekly.

Goldin, I. (2009). Navigating our global future. Retrieved fromhttp://www.ted.com/talks/ian_goldin_navigating_our_global_future?language=en

Gu, S., Zheng, L., & Yi, S. (2007). Problems of rural migrant workers and policies in the new period of urbanization. China Population, Resources and Enviornment, 17(1):1-5.

Lim, Y. L. (2013, December 10). Little India Riot: Police say situation did not call for use of service revolvers. The Straits Times. Retrieved from http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/singapore/story/little-india-riot-20131210

McKay, S. L. (2013). Globalization, localization and language attitudes: The case of “foreign workers” in Singapore. Multilingual Education 2013 3:3

Ng, G. (2010, September 20). Helping foreign workers integrate. My Paper. Retrieved fromhttp://news.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne+News/Singapore/Story/A1Story20100920-238037.html

Saad, I. (2014, January 20). More can be done to address foreign workers’ social, emotional needs: NGOs. Channel News Asia. Retrieved fromhttp://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/more-can-be-done-to/959986.html

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