Latest news with #governmentjob
Independent Singapore
4 days ago
- General
- Independent Singapore
Iron rice bowl but in boiling water? S'porean ‘miserable' in gov't job wants to know if anyone else can relate
SINGAPORE: A local Reddit user who vented about the miseries of working in their particular government job wanted to know if anyone else out there is experiencing the same thing. In a post on r/askSingapore on Thursday (July 17), u/bigDolphin1357, wondered if they're just unlucky in their job. Part of the problem is that most of the people at work are in their 50s, and the few young ones 'backstab each other because we're each other's only competition.' Adding to the misery is rampant gossip 'because there's too little work, and people have to fight for it,' and the post author claimed they are busy but openly play games on their phones. 'Information is prized and used as social currency, or if it's yours, it's weaponised against you. As a result, I don't have a single friend here, and I trust no one in my department,' they added. The post author's salary is also substantially smaller than their friends working in the private sector, and they asked why they're working for such little pay, 'when everything goes to scholars?' They'd like to quit their job but can't afford it. One popular comment on the post described the post author's job as an 'Iron bowl but on boiling water.' 'Iron rice bowl' refers to work that has guaranteed security, which is often public sector or government jobs with secure and stable income. The phrase comes from a Chinese idiom, 'tie fan wan' ( 铁饭碗 ), referring to a now-abolished system of lifetime work in China. 'I have worked in three different gov't agencies, and every single agency has really burned me out mentally and physically. If you are pushing for promotion, then you should avoid the rat race. If you wish to have higher earnings, then you should leave as soon as possible. The reason is that your portfolio may not be as attractive compared to those who are already in the private sector. It is your call. I also wish I could shake a leg, but I see more people resigning due to the workload. Iron bowl but on boiling water,' the commenter wrote. Others also expressed they were surprised that the post author had written that there's not enough work to keep people busy at the post author's work, since most government employees they know experience the opposite and are overworked. 'What agency is that? Over at my place, we're worked to the bone,' a commenter noted. 'It sounds like a localised issue. I assure you, there are other parts of the gov't where the work is overflowing,' another added. Others offered the post author advice. 'There are no friends at the workplace because everyone has a conflict of interest. I think you can consider an internal transfer or continue job hunting in private. Meanwhile, continue to upskill yourself,' one advised them. 'Why don't you just jump to another government sector like you said? Private sector may not necessarily be better btw… It could be even more competitive, and you can easily be retrenched, and office politics is everywhere, no matter where you go, so you won't be able to avoid that,' another wrote. 'Ask for a transfer out, but be prepared to be overworked elsewhere; I never had a lack of work to do while in civil service,' said a Reddit user. One who had a similar experience and could relate to the post author wrote that the young people they used to work with, 'those in their mid to late twenties, like you said, are very susceptible to politics and still kinda childish. They have trouble regulating their emotions to stay professional. IMO, millennials kinda hit the sweet spot, like those from their 30s onwards, because they have some work experience and are not too traditional-minded like the boomer generation. Best to identify your tribe and stick with them. But maaan, I feel you, I too wish I could be like my cousins or friends in a corporate or NGO setting aligned with their passions and having a better work-life balance. All the best, man, comes down to luck at this point!' /TISG Read also: No longer an iron rice bowl? Is public service losing its appeal to the new generation?
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Aussie fresh out of high school reveals $60 per hour job he nabbed with no experience: 'Straight away'
An Aussie fresh out of high school has revealed the job that pays him $60 per hour, and he didn't need any experience to nab the role. The man was stopped on the streets of Brisbane and said he worked for the government as a ground officer. His main role revolved around processing claims stemming from natural disasters, which has likely been in hot demand in the Sunshine State following ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred. While it's not what he wants to do forever, he said it's well-paid for a job that doesn't require qualifications. "I literally left high school last year, and I'm just into this job straight away," he told job app GetAhead. Aussie's $170000 per year job with no degree: 'Just fell into it' ATO warning for 2.6 million small business owners $3 million superannuation tax change sparks property warning The Brisbane worker said he's on a level in the Queensland public sector called AO4, which stands for the fourth tier of the Administrative Stream. In this sector, employees undertake various "administrative, customer, financial, information and advisory services". There are more than a dozen AO4 level jobs being advertised on SEEK at the he didn't need a certificate or experience to get the role, he did reveal the one skill set you might want to have under your belt if you wanted to get a similar job. "To be honest, man, you just gotta have really good communication and people skills," he said. "[My] biggest advice [to people in high school] is to pick up people skills. "Talk to more people. I'm telling you, if you know how to talk to people and understand people, you'll go places that money can't take you." Earning $60 per hour would see a person earn $2,400 per week, $9,600 per month and $115,200 per year. That's well above the average salary for someone, especially one who's straight out of high school with no qualifications or experience. According to GradConnection, the base annual salary for recent university graduates hovers around the $60,000 to $70,000 mark. Once you work your way out of the graduate space, the Australian Bureau of Statistics claims the average wage is $102,742. Averages can be tricky because people earning huge sums of money can skew the data higher and misrepresent how much the everyday Aussie is making. The median salary, which is far more accurate, for a full-time worker is $88,400 per year. That's $7,366 per month, $1,841 per week, and $46 per hour. When you take into account part-time workers, though, the Grattan Institute found the median wage was just $67,786. Interestingly, a Yahoo Finance poll of more than 9,000 readers found that a quarter of people said they would need to be earning more than $200,000 to live comfortably in today's economic conditions.
