By Yen Feng

MR NARAYANAN has put his suit away. He doesn't carry his briefcase anymore either. Instead, under his arm are classified sections of The Straits Times, folded and worn with red ink. In his hand, a Coke bottle re-filled with water.

'It's a hot day,' he said, seated at the canteen of the Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) in Redhill Road. Next to him is his wife, a homemaker.

They have been waiting since 10am, although their appointment letter said to come at 2pm.

Dealing with desperate, even abusive people

By Diana Othman

MR VENGADESH Naidu, 35, heads a team of 10 at South East Community Development Council (CDC) who try to help the unemployed.

Help could range from giving out $50 ez-link cards so that their clients could get to interviews, to sending them for courses on resume-writing and even confidence-building.

'Many people who are retrenched have not been job-hunting for a long time so they may need to be reminded on how to write resumes and refresh their interview skills,' said Mr Vengadesh.

Top 5 hiring industries and where to go for help

HOSPITALITY: 20,000 jobs
Positions: Croupiers, butlers, doormen, chefs, waiters, retail assistants, animal trainers. Monthly Salary Range: $800 to $1,600

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION: 7,500 jobs
Positions: Teachers, teaching assistants. Monthly Salary Range: $1,200 to $2,700

HEALTH CARE: 6,000 jobs
Positions: Nurses, health-care assistants, physiotherapists. Monthly Salary Range: $1,000 to $3,100

Small building jobs restored to help SMEs

Government will also speed up payments to firms for work done

By Joyce Teo

SMALLER government construction projects that had been deferred since end-2007 amid a building boom are being brought back on stream to help ignite the now-slumping sector.

Restarting the projects, each worth up to $50 million, will help smaller building firms that are feeling the pain more than the construction giants.

The work, which will be outlined in next Thursday's Budget, could include building schools and upgrading lifts in HDB blocks.

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