PUBLIC HEALTH DIVISION (Daily-rated staff and expansion of operations)

Mr P. Govindaswamy asked the Minister for Health (a) in July 1962 and July 1966, (i) how many daily-rated labourers were employed in the Public Health Division, and (ii) how many carts, trucks and other refuse carriers were used by that Division; and (b) whether there are any plans to expand the operations of that Division in future.

Mr Yong Nyuk Lin: Sir, the number of daily-rated labourers employed in the Public Health Division, as a whole, was 4,805 as at July 1962, and 5,542 as at July 1966. In respect of Public Cleansing Department alone, they were 2,461 and 3,078 respectively. It should be stated, however, that the latter figure of 3,078 includes the Emergency Cleansing Corps whose strength was 563 then.

The number of carts, trucks and other refuse carriers used by the Public Health Division was as follows: July 1962 July 1966 Refuse carts of all types 1,065 1,442 Refuse vehicles in transport pool, including spare and obsolete vehicles 77 147 ( But of these refuse vehicles those in actual use were as follows ) 69 109

In reply to the query whether there are any plans to expand the operations of the public cleansing service in future, the answer is that ever since October 1965, a year ago, reorganisation and expansion has been going on simultaneously and will continue for some time. There cannot be any improvement in the public cleansing service merely through expansion on the basis of operations prior to October 1965, with:-

(a) Ineffective Disciplinary Code.

(b) High absenteeism on weekdays, especially on Mondays and on days following public holidays, but with practically full attendance on Sundays and on public holidays,

(c) Payout of over $1 million per annum for overtime work, on the basis of 1½ times normal pay during week-days, 2 times for Sunday and 3 times for public holiday.

With the revision of the Disciplinary Code, effective as from 25th October, 1965, it is now possible to improve and to stiffen discipline in the work force so that even the then Secretary of the Public Daily-Rated Cleansing Workers' Union (Mr M. A. Latiff), who had a long record of habitual absenteeism and frequent absences from work sites, etc., had to be dismissed in April 1966 when he refused to change for the better. Up till the end of July, there have been 7 dismissals and another 22 are the subject of disciplinary inquiries.

Other important reorganisation steps which have been taken, so far, are as follows:-

(a) In October 1965, recruitment of an auxiliary public cleansing force known as the Emergency Cleansing Corps was started. This is a uniformed and disciplined task force, and the basis of recruitment is from two sources, namely, the Work Brigade and from the thousands of our unemployed citizens, now in receipt of Social Welfare assistance.

The strength of the Emergency Cleansing Corps today is 624 and this is being stepped up, without limit at present, to keep up with requirements of reorganisation for a more efficient public cleansing service in Singapore than is available at present.

(b) In May this year, overtime work (at 1½ rates) during weekdays was stopped, unless at the request of the Public Cleansing Department. Prior to this, between 250 and 300 were on such overtime, daily, on weekdays. Now, the number on weekday overtime work is at the most around ten.

(c) We have also decided to stop Sunday work (at double rates) and public holiday work (at treble rates) with effect from 1st October, 1966. It should be brought home to the knowledge of this House that, as a rule, the amount of refuse cleared on Sundays and public holidays (after paying double and treble rates) is less than what is cleared during a normal weekday!

(d) It is also necessary for me now to reveal certain startling facts why public cleansing in Singapore needs wholesale reorganisation involving even its pattern of work before contemplating any expansion of work force:

(i) Out of 184,431 assessed buildings in Singapore, there are only 48,345 dust-bins or 26 per cent!

(ii) Out of a daily collection of over 600 tons of refuse, an estimated 245 tons or 40 per cent is removed by direct collection from household dust-bins, and this involves 230 workers.

(iii) There is therefore an estimated 60 per cent of refuse which has to be laboriously swept up by hand, dug up from drains, put into hand-carts, and then pushed to and placed into large public dust-bins at over 500 bin centres, by nearly 2,000 workers.

Most of this refuse, not collected from dust-bins, is largely due to certain irresponsible sections of the public, including hawkers and householders, who indiscriminately throw refuse on to roads and into drains or any vacant piece of land.

The revised pattern of work on re-organisation will include:

(a) A gradual switch-over to one or more direct collection and less of street cleansing. Any householder or hawker, without a proper dust-bin, will be charged and penalised with a deterrent fine for being a public health menace.

(b) A system of task work will be introduced so that a refuse vehicle and work force attached to it (not as many as eight as at present but reduced by one-half to four) will be given an allotted beat with a daily quota of dust-bins to be cleared and the vehicle and crew will be allowed to check-off, even before official knocking-off time, when they complete their allotted task, so that there will be no excuse to slacken or to resort to delaying tactics as responsibility for satisfactory task work will clearly fall on workers as well as supervisory staff.

(c) A two-shift system is to be established in place of the present unsatisfactory one-shift system of work.

(d) Something new - a bonus will be paid to workers who do not use up their 42 days of sick leave provision.

(e) A long-term health education campaign will be initiated and maintained both in schools for the children and for members of the public, through the mass media of the Press, Radio and Television.

I shall shortly be inviting the officials of both the Public Daily-Rated Cleansing Workers' Union and that section of the A.U.P.E. which represents the supervisory grades of the Public Cleansing Department for a discussion on the proposed reorganised methods and pattern of work and hope to get their full support and co-operation towards putting an end, once and for all, to the ridiculous inefficiency of our present public cleansing service, and thus to augur a new chapter for a more efficient public cleansing service for Singapore, as from October 1966.