IF following recent months' development in how companies have experienced the recent crisis has made just one thing absolutely clear, then it is the fact that there is not 'one' economy, but many, many economies in operation within the greater economy simultaneously.

The fact that GDP may be back in black territory does not mean that each and every company is doing well.

Each company must assess its own situation and do what it takes for it to be or become competitive and profitable. In other words, there is no one size that fits all.

Henry Tan
Managing director
Nexia TS

EMPLOYERS that are doing well should reinstate their wages and review the rates as the economy recovers. However, as recovery is only in the infant stage, caution should be taken as what all should try to achieve is a balanced sustainable recovery both for the business and its employees. Having to cut wages or even retrenchment when times are bad is something all employers should try to avoid, prudent planning for expansion would be a wise move.

We have decided to reinstate the scale of pay to pre-crisis time in response to the stabilising of the economy and we are looking forward to sharing our firm's performance in bonus with our employees as a reward, especially to those who sail with us through the stormy waters.

Cheryl Tong
Managing director
(PowerPRO)
Pursuit Pte Ltd

EMPLOYERS should heed union's call to be fair to workers who had made huge sacrifices in pay cuts, reduced monetary and non-monetary benefits to help companies survive the recent recession. Otherwise, in the next recession, workers will be less forthcoming in cooperating with companies.

However, at this stage, although the macro-economic indicators show that Singapore has emerged from the recession, most SMEs have not fully recovered. There are still many uncertainties and the recovery is patchy. Thus most enterprises are still cautious and conservative in managing their expenses. Widespread restoration of pre-recession salaries is still some way off.

It is not only fair but is also a competitive imperative for SMEs that have recovered to restore the pay cuts and if they could afford to do so, they should even reward their employees with special incentives in order to retain their talent. When the recovery takes root and the markets boom, SMEs will be vulnerable to having their talents being poached especially by MNCs.

Pursuit had always been practising a performance-based reward system. We did not implement any pay cut during the recession. Of course, our employees experienced a drop in their income because their sales-based rewards were affected by the downturn. As the market picks up, their income will increase in tandem. We are focusing on improving non-monetary benefits such as sending them for more training programmes to enhance their soft skills.

Danny Lien
Managing director
Amos International (S) Pte Ltd

WE feel it is still too early to pop the champagne. Although there are many claims that the economy is already sprouting green shoots, there are still many businesses that are feeling the pressure from the recent economic tsunami. Unfortunately too much emphasis is currently being placed on businesses which have experienced recovery and not enough on those who are still steeped in despair.

We are cautiously optimistic of meeting our business targets in 2010 but will still exercise prudence. Although we were fortunate that we did not have to implement a wage cut during the recent downturn, our wage and compensation policies continue to be largely based upon performance and meeting of pre-determined Key Performance Indicators.

Victor Khaw
General manager
Allalloy Dynaweld Pte Ltd

I FEEL that the call is a little too soon, companies should instead keep their present compensation structure for at least six more months, or better still make use of this to improve their compensation structure into variable compensation, peg to their profitability, etc.

However, companies should really be sincere and fair in coming up with the compensation package. If this is done properly, you will in return have a loyal and super team that is really concerned with the well-being of the company.

Wages are inelastic, not to mention that the staff morale will be affected if their wages are increased prematurely and be corrected again if the company doesn't really recover from the current economic condition or the economy fails to recover as expected.

We had wage freeze this year, and in the middle of the year we paid out a month's bonus when our results were good and expect to give our staff good bonus at the year-end if our good results continue.

We have a highly variable compensation structure - more than 60 per cent of compensation paid is variable.

We plan to keep it this way as it is self-adjusting.

Lim Wee Li
CEO/MD
KHL Marketing Asia Pacific Pte Ltd

IT is understandable that a reinstatement of wage cuts made during the downturn would be expected in times of recovery, but it may be prudent to ensure it is indeed a sustainable and fundamental recovery before implementing changes to the status quo. As it is, many companies may still be experiencing the effects of the downturn and cash flow will still be a challenge for SMEs just coming out of the crisis.

For companies that have not made any changes to their wage structure during the downturn, such as ours, the tripartite partners' call must be sensitive to the perception and increased expectation of employees that may result from an over-generalisation of expected wage increments, and of the staffing implications it may have on SMEs that may for whatever reason be unable to respond to this call in a timely fashion.

While its intentions are clearly noble, it may be a little early to raise expectations when companies are just getting back on their feet. However, all companies which have negotiated wage cuts with its employees during the downturn should be obligated to reinstate wages at the earliest when the company is back on track.