Immigration To Singapore Essay

It is not uncommon for Singaporeans to find themselves surrounded by foreigners in public places in Singapore these days. Statistics have shown that more than one in two persons living in Singapore is a foreigner. In Singapore, the term immigrant worker includes foreign workers and foreign talents. Foreign workers refer to little or unskilled workers who mainly work in the construction and domestic services sector while foreign talent refers to foreigners with higher qualifications or acceptable degrees to work at the higher end of Singapore's economy. So why are they all here in our little island? This is because immigrants are important to Singapore’s economy. Though Singaporeans complain about them often, it is essential for immigrants to come to Singapore.
Point 1: Firstly, Immigrants can help deal with Singapore’s ageing population. Since Singapore’s birth rate is falling drastically with a fertility rate of only 1.2 which is far below the replacement rate of 2.1 and one of the lowest in the world, Singapore is currently facing a shrinking workforce and ageing population. (Rogers, 2013, para 6) Moreover as demand for labour grew with increased industrialisation, with the limited middle-aged workers in Singapore, Singapore’s

For instance, tougher jobs like cleaning services and construction works are often in need of manpower. This is because Singaporeans are not willing to take the hardship while being paid an average wage. Probably due to the comfortable environment that Singaporeans are brought up in, we are only keen if the working conditions are favourable to us. This is why Singaporeans often see Bangladesh workers at construction sites in Singapore, and China workers as toilet cleaners in Singapore. Thanks to these foreign workers, Singaporeans are able to enjoy newly built malls, clean toilets and other services which add up to our quality of