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Companies are trying to hold on to their foreign workforce despite cost pressures from the circuit breaker, but if push comes to shove, this group could be the first to go, say employers and human resource experts.
Such workers are a mainstay of the economy, with around 1.15 million employed here, including those on employment passes, S passes and work permits. The number excludes foreign domestic workers.
There have been reports of cost cutting and retrenchments amid the uncertainty of the pandemic, and, typically, the first of such cuts would land on the foreign workforce, said Mr David Leong, managing director of human resources firm PeopleWorldwide Consulting.
While the Government has implemented foreign worker levy rebates and waivers to help companies retain these workers, the key Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) of wage subsidies covers only local employees.
Mr Lee Quane, regional director for Asia at human resources consultancy ECA International, said foreigners employed in the tourism, food and beverage, and transportation industries will very much be at risk of retrenchment.
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