SINGAPORE — Climate justice movement SG Climate Rally will be holding and livestreaming an open meeting online titled Workers’ Rights = Climate Action! on May 1st, from 3pm to 4.30pm.
The meeting will mark Labour Day, and the submission of their petition for better rights for ride-hailing app drivers and food delivery workers to the Government.
Shortly after the petrol duty raise was announced during Budget 2021, SG Climate Rally launched their petition, calling for the Government to implement higher taxes on businesses and the wealthy, instead of taxing workers.
Even though the petrol duty raise was framed as a way to combat climate change, SG Climate Rally disagrees with the tax.
“Yes, society needs to move away from fossil fuels,” said Beverly Devakishen, one of SG Climate Rally’s members. “But a transition towards green alternatives should not be funded by the working class, who have gotten poorer during the pandemic.”
“Workers need vehicles for their livelihoods and don’t have ready access to alternatives. The demand for petrol vehicles isn’t going to go down in the short term just because of the petrol tax.”
The petition currently has over 2000 signatures.
Beyond asking for a full rebate “until zero-emissions transport modes are affordable and supporting infrastructure is widespread,” the petition’s other demands touch on rider welfare and safety.
“Singapore’s roads are not safe for riders who use e-bikes, as we’ve seen from the many injuries and tragic deaths over the years,” said Luke Levy, a member of safeNUS, one of the petition’s organisational signatories.
“Crucially, there is little to no medical protection from their companies. We want people to move away from petrol vehicles but we don’t have the support systems and infrastructures in place. This is why it is important to talk about labour rights when discussing climate change.”
The open meeting on May 1st hopes to get people to talk about these issues. There will be open mic segments where attendees can discuss, debate and share their thoughts. Additionally, there will be speeches from individuals spanning different sectors of Singapore society.
Speakers include, food couriers, Sean Francis Han, Editor-In-Chief of Wake Up Singapore, and former Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) Anthea Ong, amongst others. The movement is also accepting pre-meeting testimonial submissions, which will be read out, if people are uncomfortable sharing publicly during the meeting.
There will be Sign Language Interpretation and Live Notetaking for this meeting.
If you are interested in participating in the open meeting, you can attend the Zoom meeting directly here.
If you are interested in watching the livestream on social media, you can RSVP here. Submit a testimonial to be read out during the meeting here.
Sign SG Climate Rally’s petition here.