By Ng Tze Yong

IT'S the white-collar workers - someone like your retrenched boss - who needs more help in this recession than the poor.

That's the view of Mr David Ang, 60, executive director of the Singapore Human Resources Institute (SHRI). His sixth-storey office in Tekka Mall is where the down-and-out converge after losing their jobs, looking for advice, redress and a way forward.

Here, at a place dedicated to promoting good HR practice, they ask questions of a world that no longer makes sense to them. In the privacy of his office, Mr Ang has seen them cry.

And from what he has seen since the recession started, Mr Ang feels it's the white-collar workers who have found themselves in the tough spot.

'A lot of them do not know where to get help,'he said.

Their predicament boils down to two things: pride and perception. A retrenched white-collar worker, Mr Ang explained, can turn to one of two places.

'They can go to the Workforce Development Agency (WDA). But will people who used to be high-flying managers bother to wait their turn on busy phone lines, waiting to be passed from person to person'

'Alternatively, they can turn to the Community Development Councils (CDCs).'

'But people have the impression that it's only the poor and lowly-educated who go there for help,' said Mr Ang. This may not be the best time to hold on to that ego.

Take pride into account But pride is not something we can afford to ignore, said Mr Ang.

'Everyone, whether you're a blue-collar or white-collar worker, has his or her sense of self-worth. It's what you hold on to in these tough times.'

Pride is not the only obstacle for white-collar workers. It's also the perception that CDCs are not equipped to help them. 'Most of the jobs that CDCs offer are blue-collar jobs, like security guards and cleaners,' said Mr Ang.

'In addition, these people feel that CDC staff are mainly administrators. They will listen to you, look through their database and find something for you.'

'But what a retrenched white-collar worker needs is someone who can assess his background and ascertain what makes a good job fit. It takes an experienced person to do that.'

On1 Dec, the Government announced a new $600 million two-year scheme called Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience (Spur) to retrain workers.

Under Spur, firms send employees to training centres certified by the WDA. Shortly afterwards, the criteria for funding was broadened to include in-house training programmes.

In the space of three weeks, more than 30 companies committed some 3,000 workers to programmes under Spur.

But Mr Ang said 'there is still a feeling out there that Spur can be further improved'.

'The Government has the money. It wants to help. But it's the implementation that's the problem,' said Mr Ang.

We need to ask more questions, he believes. For example, does retraining have to be a condition for the Government to provide aid? Can money meant for retraining be used in other creative ways to save jobs?

'But to be fair to the Government, helping white-collar workers is an issue that has been ignored by many countries,' said Mr Ang. 'We have done well relatively. Still, more can be done.'

One thing he hopes to see is for training programmes to be consolidated somehow. 'Right now, it's not that we don't have training programmes, but they are all over the place. It's hard to go around hunting them down,' he said.

Career advice important Also, there must be a greater emphasis on career advising, not just on creating training programmes and allocating jobs, said Mr Ang.

'The enhanced funding is restricted to only a few bodies, such as the CDCs and the Employment and Employability Institute,' he said.

'Why not distribute it to professional bodies? These are the people who know their own industries. They will be able to help more effectively.'

More closed-door dialogue sessions with white-collar workers will also help, he said, to allow workers a chance to express their needs in a confidential manner. But the crux of the problem is the mentality, feels Mr Ang.

'We cannot assume that white-collar workers are able to take care of themselves,' he said.

'These people are not getting help. They maybe suffering in silence.'

This article was first published in The New Paper on December 31, 2008.