Wanted: work-life balance

The good news is more bosses are taking steps to boost staff wellness
By Mavis Toh 13 Sep 2009

BOGGED down in that job? Account manager X.Y. Lee thinks she is, and has finally decided to quit. As soon as she steps into the research firm where she works, at 8.30am, she finds it hard to leave her desk. Ms Lee, 27, gets at least 200 e-mail messages and 20 phone calls each day.

Last year, unable to cope with the work stress, she even turned to a psychiatrist. 'I was very depressed and stressed out, and had constant mood swings,' she said. 'I have now decided to quit.' She is serving out her one month's notice.

In looking for a new job, she has added a criterion to her checklist: work-life balance. 'The firm I join needs to be supportive of work-life balance and care about its employees' well-being,' she said. Increasingly, Singaporeans like Ms Lee are putting more emphasis on life beyond work. The good news is, so are many employers.
A Singapore Institute of Management survey this year said some 80 per cent of the 750 managers polled placed health and work-life balance above job and pay on their priority lists. This, at a time when jobs are not easy to come by.

Stress can be disruptive. The Straits Times recently reported that young office workers in China used unorthodox stress relief activities. Some formed groups and prowled supermarkets, swiping biscuits, defizzing soft drinks and crushing noodle packets. Others turned to stress-eating.

Meanwhile, more companies in Singapore are doing something about staff wellness. The Health Promotion Board (HPB) said the proportion of private-sector workplaces that have Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) programmes increased from 45 per cent in 2003 to 59 per cent in 2006. Almost all public-sector organisations have ongoing WHP programmes.

Mr Dhirendra Shantilal, Kelly Services' senior vice-president of Asia-Pacific, explained: 'Good employee wellness programmes help attract and retain top talent and healthy, productive employees - all key factors in the success of any business.' Employees are more likely to perform better when their physical and mental health is robust, he added.

Mr Josh Goh, the GMP Group's assistant director of corporate services, said that many corporate wellness programmes now include gym membership, yoga and pilates classes, health talks, fruit days and grooming classes.

At Singapore Airlines (SIA), staff are encouraged to join recreational and sporting activities to maintain wellness and to relieve stress. A runners' club, a cabin crew performance arts circle as well as a community service club have been set up.
Mr Goh from GMP noted that big organisations tend to have more of such programmes because they have the resources.

But in April this year, the HPB introduced a WHP grant for small and medium-sized enterprises to extend more financial support to them. The grant co-funds up to 90 per cent of the cost incurred for health promotion activities, capped at $10,000 for each application.

Read the full story in Sunday's edition of The Straits Times

Majority of GreatLink Choice Products Redeemed

TODAY - Sep 01, 2009 (Page 10)
Insurance company Great Eastern said the majority of its GreatLink Choice products have been redeemed. The affected policies involve a series of structured products and the redemption offer closed last Friday.

As of Aug 28, Great Eastern said some 62 per cent of its GreatLink Choice Series 1 and 2 policies were redeemed. The company also saw 99 per cent redemption of policies from Series 3, 4 and 5. Great Eastern expects the number to go up as more redemption forms are still in transit from various collection points. It is also following up with some policyholders who have not responded to the offer because they are overseas.

Under the redemption offer, policyholders of the affected products will receive the money they have invested, minus the total annual payouts they have received so far. This means they will recover almost all their invested capital.

The move, which affects 18,000 policyholders, could potentially cost the company $594 million.

Channel NewsAsia

Cashback scam: agent jailed

Sep 1, 2009

Cashback scam: agent jailed

By Khushwant Singh

A PROPERTY agent was jailed for two weeks on Tuesday for her role in a cashback scam in 2004.

Wong Siu Teng, 33, had pleaded guilty last week to conspiring with another agent, Nick Goh Chong Liang, and rogue lawyer David Rasif, to cheat Standard Chartered Bank by inflating the purchase price of a flat in Jurong so as to obtain a higher mortgage for the buyers.

In documents prepared by Rasif's law firm, the price of the flat was falsely listed as $260,000.

Without telling the flat-owners, Wong had raised the sale price to $212,000 so that she could pocket $2,000 on top of her commission.

Such property cashback scams were rampant before the authorities clamped downon it about four years ago.

Investigations are still continuing. Last Wednesday, 22 people were charged for their alleged involvement in these scams.

For their roles in such scams, Goh had earlier been sentenced to five years and five months in jail, while Tan was jailed for five years.

Rasif, who went missing in 2006 with about $12 million of his clients' money, is still on the run.

NTUC Income launches new logo, tagline

Firm aims to re-affirm commitment not to maximise profits, to engage using a more energetic and modern approach
By UMA SHANKARI

NTUC Income yesterday launched a rebranding campaign in a bid to make itself more relevant to younger Singaporeans.

NEW LOOK, SAME PURPOSE

NTUC Income will remain focused on its social purpose and provide affordable, accessible, sustainable insurance.

There are two aims, said Income chief executive Tan Suee Chieh. First, to re-affirm the co-operative's commitment to be different from insurance companies that maximise profits for shareholders. And second, to engage the new generation through a more energetic and modern approach to business.

The brand change marks the latest milestone in a process of transformation and modernisation that began in 2007 when Mr Tan was appointed Income's CEO.

He said that even as it modernises, it will remained focused on its social purpose - the basis of its founding about 40 years ago - and provide affordable, accessible and sustainable insurance for Singaporeans.

Income's rebranding will be launched through a new logo and an advertising campaign. The company changed its logo in 2002 in a rebranding exercise, but Mr Tan said the latest exercise is more significant.

The new logo and tagline will be unveiled at the finale of Income's new flagship sponsorship programme, the NTUC Income Kite Festival 2009, today and tomorrow.

A giant four-metre wide kite will take to the sky to dramatically launch the new logo. Income says that it chose the kite festival to showcase its rebranding because the evolution of kite-flying reflects the insurer's own transformation: 'Both are rooted in rich tradition but continue to embrace fresh and new ideas to stay relevant to the times.'

Income also gave an update yesterday on its business for the first half of this year. Weighted premium income fell 14 per cent year-on-year to $99.5 million - from $115.6 million a year back - as the entire industry took a beating amid the economic downturn. Figures provided by Income show weighted premium income for the industry fell 44 per cent to $588 million, from $1.05 billion in H1 2008.

But Income had one good news item to share - because its business contracted less than the overall industry, it increased its market share to 16.9 per cent in H1 2009, from 11 per cent in H1 2008. And Mr Tan said that he is optimistic about the rest of the year.

Motorcycle accidents top deaths

I think can use this as opener for ADD or PAC plans. Especially for clients riding bikes.



Motorcycle accidents top deaths
By Wendy Hui

The Traffic Police have noted that, in the first half of the year, 42 per cent of deaths in traffic accidents were those of motorcyclists. The figure last year was 44 per cent. -- PHOTO: BH

TWO traffic accidents involving motorcycles happening within an hour of each another left three men - aged 21 or younger - dead on Tuesday.

In the first accident in Jurong at around 12.45 am, the motorcyclist died; in the second one in Sengkang, both the motorcyclist and his pillion died.

The trio will become part of the grim statistics for this year.

Already, the Traffic Police have noted that, in the first half of the year, 42 per cent of deaths in traffic accidents were those of motorcyclists. The figure last year was 44 per cent.

In the Jurong accident, motorcyclist Ganesan s/o K. Revi Chandran, 19, and his pillion Kok Chun Kai, 18, had stopped in the left-most lane at the signalised cross junction between Jalan Bahar and Jurong West Ave 5 when they were rammed from behind by a car.

Mr Chandran was then giving Mr Kok a ride home from Safra Jurong and the pair were headed for Lim Chu Kang Road.

Mr Kok, who is due to start his National Service stint next month, woke up with head injuries in hospital, remembering little.

Mr Chandran was pronounced dead at 2.10am in hospital.

The driver of the car, aged 29, is helping police with their investigations.

Read the full report in Wednesday's edition of The Straits Times.




email print larger smaller discuss

D-day looms for GE investors

Aug 22, 2009

D-day looms for GE investors

By Lorna Tan, Senior Correspondent

DECISION-DAY looms for the 18,000 investors in the Great Eastern (GE) Life product GreatLink Choice, (GLC) with the firm's take-themoney-and-run offer expiring on Friday.

At first glance, it looks like a no-brainer. Accept the offer and walk away with your initial stake as if you have not invested in the product.

But D-Day might be a bit more complicated than that for those who invested in the first couple of GLC tranches.

The single premium product was sold in five tranches between 2005 and 2007, netting the insurer $594 million in premiums.

It was marketed as a safe investment with a minimum sum of $5,000 and with the principal sum targeted to be returned at maturity. The plans have a five- or seven-year maturity, and the first two tranches would have matured in September and October next year.

It yields annual payouts of between 3.5 and 4.9 per cent of the capital invested, depending on the tranche. Both the principal repayment on maturity and annual payouts are not guaranteed. The investor also gets some life cover.

But the product was belted by the economic downturn. As at the end of last month, the values of the GLC plans, which are linked to a class of complex financial instruments, had plunged by between 27 and 77 per cent.

It prompted GE to offer a painless exit to customers, who have until Friday to accept the goodwill offer and redeem their plans.

Those who do will get a sum equal to their original investment, less total payouts received.

Customers stuck with the worst-hit tranches - GLC 3, 4 and 5 - will likely jump at the offer but those who bought into the first two tranches have not had losses anywhere near as bad so their decision is far from clear.

CONTRIBUTIONS AND IMPACT BY CPF

The 80s: Meeting New Needs

In 1984, Medisave was introduced. CPF members could use their Medisave savings for hospitalisation expenses for themselves and their immediate family members.

CPF schemes were also extended to family members. For example, members could use their CPF to insure themselves and provide their dependants with financial protection should death or permanent disability occur.

As life expectancy increased with better living standards, Singaporeans needed more savings to meet their old age needs. From 1987, members were required to set aside a minimum sum in their CPF at age 55 to provide them with a basic monthly income when they retire.


The 90s: Healthcare for Everyone

MediShield, a medical insurance scheme to help members pay for expenses incurred by long-term and serious illnesses, was introduced in 1990. To ensure that all Singaporeans have adequate savings for healthcare, Medisave was extended to self-employed persons in 1992.