Employers who widen hiring reach have an edge

We thank Mr Ankur Gupta for his feedback and agree with his call to employers (Look beyond proven skills and experience when hiring, Oct 2).

Indeed, employers who are prepared to consider a wider range of job-seekers have an edge. Also, these employers are more attractive to job-seekers as they are prepared to put in effort to train their employees.

To help employers and job-seekers find a match, Workforce Singapore (WSG) offers various programmes under its Adapt and Grow initiative, such as Professional Conversion Programmes (PCPs). The PCPs provide support for employers to hire and train job-seekers in the skills necessary for the job.

There are over 100 PCPs in more than 30 sectors, and new ones are being introduced in partnership with employers.

Last year, close to 5,000 locals took up new jobs through PCPs. These employees are doing well, and two in three now command higher wages than in their previous jobs. Helping our workers to be mobile enables businesses and workers to do better.

Forum contributor Guan Xuemei made astute observations about the mobility issues of senior citizens (Little details make big difference to seniors who can walk, ST Online, Oct 1).

Another conversation worth having is perhaps seniors carrying too many - or heavy - things, and the potential consequences. 안전놀이터

It's not uncommon, for instance, to see seniors struggling with groceries at supermarket checkout counters. They buy too much, and overestimate their ability to lug all the groceries back home, risking falls and injuries.

It could be helpful for supermarket counter staff to politely inquire if these seniors need help and to intervene as necessary, such as offering to call a family member or the domestic helper to come and help.

This was something I observed that supermarket staff would do quite frequently during my time living and working in Melbourne.

Once, I helped an old woman who was on a travellator on her way down to the basement carpark.

Her shopping trolley was overweight with too many groceries and the anti-skid mechanism of the trolley somehow malfunctioned. The trolley started to drag the woman dangerously down as she held on and refused to let go. It was fortuitous that I happened to be standing a short distance behind her and was able to reach out and grab the shopping trolley before it dragged her further down the travellator; the fall could have been fatal for her.

Just as it takes a village to raise a child, the same could be said for watching out for seniors as well.

So let's continue to keep the conversations going as we tackle together the ageing issues of our seniors and help them to age well and to live well.