I cannot be the only one absolutely fuming right now. Have y’all seen the recent news? First it was Yeo’s packing up part of their Senoko plant to move can manufacturing to Malaysia, then APB scaling down Tuas, and now Gardenia is axing 141 of our own people at Pandan Loop just to shift their bakery production to Johor.
Wtf is this nonsense? These companies grew big on the backs of Singaporeans. We supported them for decades. We grew up eating their bread, drinking their packet drinks, and buying their products for every single festive season. Then what happens when the global economy gets a bit tight? They pack up their operations, retrench the loyal Uncle and Auntie who have worked the factory lines for years, and run across the Causeway to exploit the 3.5 exchange rate.
And the absolute audacity of the corporate PR spin! Did you read what Gardenia’s spokesperson said this week? They actually had the thick skin to claim that moving to JB “goes beyond cost-cutting” and is a “strategic step” for “business continuity.” Hello, who are you kidding?! Just say you want cheap land and cheap labour lah! Don’t wayang and insult our intelligence with this corporate BS. We are already dealing with 9% GST, insane BTO prices, and sky-high inflation. The last thing middle-class Singaporeans need is our so-called “heritage” brands abandoning the local workforce to boost their profit margins.
It really grinds my gears. When times are good, they happily take our money and brand themselves as “Proudly Singaporean” to milk our national pride. “Gardenia, so good you can even eat it on its own!” Yeah right, more like “So cheap we can even bake it in JB!” Suddenly, protecting the Singaporean core doesn’t matter when their bottom line is involved.
I’m drawing the line here. If they don’t want to employ Singaporeans, then they shouldn’t expect Singaporeans to keep funding their business. Stop supporting brands that move their company to Johor or elsewhere. Hit them where it hurts—their wallets.
Next time you go to NTUC or Sheng Siong, look at the label. If they moved their production overseas and fired our locals, leave it on the shelf. Buy from the smaller companies and bakeries that actually stay here, bite the bullet on SG rent, and provide jobs for our people. We complain all day on this sub about foreigners taking our jobs, but these companies are literally taking the jobs out of the country entirely.
Vote with your CDC vouchers and your hard-earned cash, guys. Wake up your idea and stop feeding the corporate greed. End of rant.