CNA (Page 48)

REDUCED PRICE PLANS, NEW SIGN-UPS

Cordlife reported that the MOH’s expert panel has also validated an automatic system for processing wire blood units, known as AXP II. &nbsp,

The advanced sensors in the system help to ensure accurate manage while cord blood cells are processed, increasing the number of practical stem cells.

This is crucial for successful cord blood implants, said Cordlife. Additionally, it stated that it plans to reorganize and optimize its critical laboratory equipment in order to increase efficiency and reduce costs.

On Tuesday, team executive producer Chen Xiaoling said Cordlife has previously received fresh sign-ups since the partial continuation. The company, nevertheless, did not disclose how many such sign-ups there have been so much.

In addition, the cord blood bank’s price plans have been saved 20 % to 25 % over the previous suspension. Ms. Chen added that the amount needs to be changed “from time to time” to keep up with the business. &nbsp,

Some clients CNA spoke with before claiming to have spent at least S$ 6, 000 for the collection and storage of their child’s cord blood, despite Cordlife only listing its annual fee of S$ 250 ( US$ 193 ) on its website.

According to Ms. Chen, Cordlife staff has collaborated attentively with several industry specialists as well as MOH over the past nine months of its suspension.

” We intend to move from a controlled continuation to a full resumption.” She continued,” We will work hard to win back both our customers and MOH in Singapore.” &nbsp,

Mr. Yiu noted that the cable blood banks has “emerged from a big challenge” and that its services outside of Singapore are unaffected. &nbsp,

Aside from Singapore, Cordlife also has storage infrastructure in Malaysia, the Philippines, Hong Kong, India and Indonesia. &nbsp,

” We did increase our group’s functions to provide more reliable and impressive services, create strategic alliances, and increase our market share in the region”, Mr Yiu said. &nbsp,

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Singapore National Employers Federation ( SNEF ) internal processes have been reviewed by an independent body, the company announced on Tuesday ( 17 September ) and have concluded without finding any suspicious activity.

The impartial overview was initiated after the SNEF government, which is the policy-making figure of the league, was informed of a “governance legal slip” during a regular internal review.

SNEF made public knowledge of the lapse’s finding on Jun 11. Additionally, it was also made known that Dr. Robert Yap, senator and council member, would be leaving.

After the fall was discovered, the SNEF government “promptly” engaged an outside consultant to conduct a thorough internal review of its internal processes, the union claimed next.

According to a SNEF statement in the press on Tuesday,” the independent review of internal processes by an external consultant has been concluded and it did not identify proof that establishes that there were any cautious, intentional, or false activities.”

Additionally, SNEF claimed that its economic statements had no bearing.

The government “takes really SNEF’s duty in upholding management ideals and made a firm remain to do an impartial review of internal processes when the governance legal lapse was brought to their attention,” SNEF said.

As we work to advance tripartism in Singapore, the government will continue to look into and work toward improvements to leadership and domestic techniques within SNEF.

In a separate statement, the Ministry of Manpower ( MOM) said that SNEF had informed it on the outcomes of the review.

According to the ministry,” there were no suspicious activities detected from the legal fall that the SNEF committee had discovered,” based on the findings of the evaluation.

” We appreciate SNEF’s efforts to address this issue firmly, and pleasant SNEF’s determination to undertake on further efforts to strengthen its internal management processes”.

MOM added in its statement that it has built a” strong tripartite relationship” with SNEF over the decades, and that” tripartism is&nbsp, the bedrock of Singapore’s industrial harmony and economic success”.

As we continue to advance our economic and social targets for Singapore, we will continue to collaborate with SNEF as our bilateral partner in the name of respect, cooperation, and a shared responsibility to win-win options.

CNA has contacted SNEF and MOM for more information, including what the “governance procedural lapse” was and how it came to light.

SNEF and MOM previously did not respond to inquiries that CNA sent, citing the lack of an update because the independent review was still in progress at the time.

Dr. Yap, who served as SNEF’s CEO for ten years, is the CEO of YCH Group, a supply chain and logistics firm. CNA has also contacted him for more information.

One of the three tripartite partners is SNEF, a trade union of employers, along with MOM and the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

After he won the unanimous election of Mr. Tan Hee Teck as president in July, the federation is currently led by Resorts World Sentosa’s chairman and CEO.

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A man and a woman were given a jail sentence on Tuesday ( Sep 17 ) for beating an 11-year-old girl with special needs, leaving her with bruises.

The victim, who is now 15 and has high-functioning autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder ( ADHD), was kept anonymous for the identity of all parties.

The girl – the murderer’s mother– was handed 10 months ‘ prison, while the man&nbsp, – the woman’s boyfriend – was given 12 months ‘ jail.

The two 36-year-old Singaporeans had admitted guilt to a charge of each under the Children and Young Persons Act ( CYPA ) for knowingly allowing child abuse and maltreatment.

In punishment, District Judge Shaiffudin Saruwan said he took into account the man’s major depressive disorder, which affected his capacity to exercise self-control.

Because of this, he reduced the boy’s word by three times. He did point out that a physician from the Institute of Mental Health had determined that the guy was also aware of the wrongdoing of his actions and had not made any further adjustments.

Judge Shaiffudin listed a number of additional exacerbating aspects in the case, including the girl’s considerable injury to her arms and legs from being repeatedly hit with a buckle, her 10-day hospitalization, and the psychological damage the ill-treatment caused her.

The prey was afraid to go back to the apartment, and she also had feelings for sadness and fear. The judge also mentioned the recurring beatings in her nightmares and ideas.

As the child had specific needs, she was of “especially great vulnerability”, and there were intrusions of faith by both her mother and the person, whom the victim called “daddy”.

In suffering physical assault on the target, the man had acted deliberately, which means he is more guilty and should get a harsher word, the prosecutor noted.

But, he also considered the limiting factors in the case, which were the couple’s petition of grief and cooperation with the officers, as well as the man’s intellectual problem.

Context OF THE CASE

The victim’s family had a “very tough marriage”, according to her attorney Mr Kalidass Murugaiyan.

She and her child, who also has a moderate fluency disorder and dementia, met her co-accused in 2019, and he first had a good relationship with her.

The partners used a cane after beating the woman with a hanger for being rude in February 2020.

The gentleman assumed the role of caretaker, according to the army, and punished the lady in different manners for items like not wanting to wake up or complete her homework.

The victim’s family was often present and allowed it during the punishment.

A meeting was set for August 26, 2020, and the person left wood marks on the woman after they were discovered by her teacher.

However, the man gave the girl a beat with a buckle before the conference was taking place, which left her with marks and bruises on her arms and legs.

He hit her about 20 days with the pulley, using the conclusion that did not have a lock.

Eventually, the victim’s tutor spoke to her, spoke to her, and reported the incident to her university after hearing about the broad bruises on her.

The Ministry of Social and Family Development ( MSF ) received the report, and the police arrived.

The couple made it clear during studies that they had gone over and had punished the girl cruelly. &nbsp,

The defense requested four times for the person and three for the girl, while the prosecutors requested 12 to 14 months in prison for the male and 10 to 12 months for the person.

The judge ordered the couple to start their jail terms on November 1st, allowing the woman to resolve work issues and schedule an eye appointment with her father, and the man to resolve car-rental issues and arrange for his four pets.

The child has been moved to another family member, and the couple no longer serves her, according to CNA.

The penalty for ill-treating a child under the CYPA, or allowing such ill-treatment, is a jail term of up to eight years, a fine of up to S$ 8, 000 ( US$ 6, 180 ), or both.

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SINGAPORE: It was Ms Chelsey Chen’s second day at a nail salon. However, the restaurant’s staff refused to let her keep unless she agreed to receive a deal when she was finished with her nails and pedicure.

” They did n’t allow me to stand up after the pedicure … There were two ladies and they were standing there cornering me so I could n’t stand up”, said the 41-year-old housewife. &nbsp,

The package cost&nbsp, S$ 1, 000 ( US$ 770 ) for S$ 1, 200 worth of credits to use on manicure and pedicure services. &nbsp, She refused, but finally gave in and paid before she was allowed to leave.

After last week’s report on Nail Palace chain’s cruel practices, nail shops and their selling strategies have become public.

While Ms Chen’s practice was not at Nail Palace, &nbsp, additional consumers have complained about the ring. The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) conducted studies after discovering that two of its stores had made bogus or deceptive statements in an effort to promote an anti-fungal care package.

The two outlets in Bukit&nbsp, Panjang Plaza, and Eastpoint Mall were given the order to stop the unfair practices and publish declarations in four major Singapore newspapers, but they missed the deadline by almost two weeks.

When the notices were published, the words were “extremely small” and “practically unreadable”, the consumer watchdog said.

Each outlet received a fine of S$ 15 000, and their managing director received a prison sentence of four months for contempt of court.

HARD SELLING, FEARMONGERING

Even after customers pay for packages at nail salons, it is a common occurrence to be pressured into buying additional packages and treatments. &nbsp,

On Ms. Chen’s second visit to the same nail salon, she had a pedicure and the salon staff insisted that she had nail fungus on her feet. They convinced her to add on an S$ 88 treatment. She also had to fork out another S$ 128 for an anti-fungal cream that they said was necessary.

” To me, they are like professionals. You would assume that because of their experience and what they see daily, they probably see 100 feet per month, so Ms. Chen said. &nbsp,

The staff at the salon, which is located in Novena, tried to convince her to sign up for a separate S$ 500 package for six fungus treatments. Ms Chen refused, saying that she still had a lot of credits, and managed to leave the salon. &nbsp,

” After that, I felt like something was not right. I actually asked my doctor and he said there’s no fungus” .&nbsp, &nbsp,

On her next visit, she informed the salon staff, who insisted that the doctor was unaware of what he was saying. ” There was a lot of fearmongering”, said Ms Chen. &nbsp,

“( They said ) your nails, if you do a pedicure, it’s not enough. To have clean nails, you must use the anti-fungal treatment. It’ll be very dirty, it’ll look very bad, when you wear shoes, the bacteria will multiply”.

According to Ms. Chen, salons should not be able to perform false diagnoses or misdiagnoses like she experienced. &nbsp,

” ​​ I was really worried. Then after asking for professional advice, I realised it’s part of their sales tactics” .&nbsp,

COMPLAINTS TO CASE

The Consumers Association of Singapore ( CASE ) has received 89 complaints about nail salons so far this year. It received 114 complaints last year and 127 in 2022.

According to the watchdog’s president Melvin Yong, the most frequent complaints were from customers who were unable to receive refunds for packages after salons abruptly closed, customers who were unable to schedule appointments after paying for a package, and about pressure sales tactics. &nbsp,
 
In April, CASE and NAILS signed a memorandum of understanding, aiming to get 50 beauty and nail salons accredited in the next three years. &nbsp,

” This will enhance standards, resolve common consumer complaints and boost consumer confidence in the beauty industry”, said Mr Yong. &nbsp,

Some beauty and nail salons already have the CaseTrust accreditation, but the accreditation is voluntary. &nbsp,

Ms Rachel Tang, the founder of NAILS, which promotes the local nail and beauty services industry, said some salon owners have told her” they ca n’t control” &nbsp, what employees say to customers. &nbsp,

Many employees may share “more passionately” while trying to hit their commission quotas, she said. Some foreigners may have trouble interacting with customers because English or Mandarin is not their first language, and there might be issues with packages being sold. &nbsp,

For example, although the CCCS has a list of fair trading practices for the beauty industry, these employees may not be able to understand the document, said Ms Tang. &nbsp,

” As an association, we do not approve of hard selling. Our association’s push for better skills qualification aims to enable each service provider to attract customers via their technical skills and service quality, instead of only depending on packages, discounts and promotions”, she added. &nbsp,

Some salons are cognizant of the competitive nature of the industry and are willing to adapt, said Ms. Tang, noting that there are more than 500 salons in Singapore. &nbsp,

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