My heart broke reading this viral FB post - an 82 year old auntie earning $5/h as a dishwasher & cleaner (link below). What are your thoughts about adapting the minimum wage model in Singapore?

The Workers' Party proposed a $1,300 minimum wage in 2020. This happens to be what the 2019 Minimum Income Standards Study found to cover the basic needs for a 1 elderly person household.

I am personally supportive of a a mininum wage in Singapore.
A common objection about minimum wage is that it would reduce our competitiveness. However, as an affluent developed economy, our competitiveness does not depend on cost but on productivity and innovation.

In fact, higher wages can improve productivity in the following ways

• They incentivise employers to invest in higher productivity i.e. more efficient ways of doing things

• They reduce labour turnover and retraining costs (It is really costly to hire someone new and retrain them)

• They improve workers’ cognitive and psychological functioning.

Furthermore, rich developed countries lin Singapore should not be competing with less developed countries but with other wealthy economies which manage to be competitive with much higher wages for their workers in low-end jobs.

I've addressed more objections here including:

1) The minimum wage will cause low-wage workers to lose their jobs

2) The minimum wage will cause Singapore to lose her competitiveness

3) Having a Minimum Wage in Singapore discourages the poor from being productive

4) Minimum wage is a decision which should be left to businesses

5) Having a Minimum wage in Singapore will increase our cost of living

You can learn more here:

https://www.jeraldinephneah.com/minimum-wage-si...

I think you can report this incident to MPs and/or MOM. I believe there is a system of whistle blowing for this mistreatment of employees
There is progressive wage models for these groups of jobs.

The most important thing is to educate them to defend their rights and know the rights they are given to them

https://www.mom.gov.sg/employment-practices/pro...