ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses primarily on the arguments concerning social security, housing, trade unions and wages in Singapore. The issue of Singapore's social security system is an example of where the public has expressed increasing impatience with the lack of transparency, leading to some activism. The Central Provident Fund (CPF) system began in 1955 as a way of assuring retirement support for Singaporean citizens and permanent residents. The extension of the CPF scheme beyond retirement support and into healthcare has also introduced human rights concerns. Because of the way the CPF is structured, the right to housing is inextricably tied to concerns about retirement support. Housing Development Board (HDB) subsidies are designed to promote the 'ideal' situation of a Singaporean man and woman forming a family unit. Other than purchasing subsidised housing, the HDB also provides opportunities for rental housing. The right to housing also concerns migrant workers in Singapore, who typically rely on their employers to provide housing.
