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6) Improve our service

Being brought up in Japan, a country steeped in manners, my kids are appalled by the services they received from service staffs in Singapore, particularly those at the Hawker Centers. I cannot blame them. Even I, a true-breed Singaporean, after living in Japan for more than 8 years, find the hawkers rude.

 

When we were there for a week’s holiday in August, my kids and I took our breakfasts and/or lunches almost every day at Hawker Centers. When I ordered drinks at the drink stalls, I could not help but feel annoyed by the ladies working there. I never got a reply from them when I ordered “Kopi-O koson” or “ice Milo”. I had to assume that they had heard my orders because the next thing after I completed my orders, they would be whipping up the orders I placed. Without as much as a “Here you are”, the drinks would be slammed down in front of me. Then the lady would stretch out her hand and demand for money. If I dared ask “How much?”, I am bound to get an irritated stare by them, as if I should know better! The most ridiculous thing was that at the end of each transaction, I was always the one to mumble “Thank you”! As if I should thank these ladies for even bothering to sell me drinks!

 

Ordering food at the food stores and then having the store holders bring the food to me was even more humouring. When it was my turn to order, the hawkers would almost always say “Uh, what?” If I even dared to take my time to think, I would most definitely get a lashing out from them to hurry up or worst, they would have taken the order of the person behind me first. If you are familiar with Hawker Centers, then you will know that when you have placed your order, the hawker will ask “Eat?” “Taboa?” “Chilli?” For the benefit of people not familiar with the Singapore Hawker Center, let me explain: the hawker is asking if you are eating in or taking away and if you want chilli added. It really is funny how hawkers only speak in monosyllables.

 

Most Hawker Centers nowadays are self-service types. However at some places, hawkers will still bring the food to you. Or when your order takes time to cook, they may bring your food to your table. My kids and I would exchange looks each time a hawker brings us our food. He would literally throw the plates onto the table. Most times, the hawker would not even bother to say a word or even look at us. He would just walk away as if we had inconvenienced him.

 

The sad thing for me is that this lack of service is not just seen in Hawker Centers. I find restaurant staffs and store assistants lack of manners too. Except for the high class and expensive shops and restaurants, most places are filled with service staffs who are down-right pitiful. In Japan, such service level is unthinkable. Japanese service staffs are very polite and courteous. They greet you once you step into the shop, serve you with a bow, and say thank you loudly. In Japan, shop assistants and hairdressers are known to send off their customers right up to the doorstep!

 

As part of my work, I always tell foreigners that all Singaporeans speak English. Although not all of us can speak good, fluent English, at least foreigners would not have problems getting their way around in Singapore. Our taxi-drivers speak English. Our hotel staff speaks English. BUT, the last I checked, not all waitresses and shop assistants speak English! Service staffs are the first persons foreign tourists come into contact with. Thus, all service staff must have the minimum training in manners and the English language. It will be a shame if foreigners leave our country thinking that they have just visited an expensive, rude and non-English speaking nation!

The courteous manner in which we treat people should not just be restricted to serving customers or foreign tourists. A courteous manner should be a part of our life. To be a gracious society, we must first learn to be courteous to each other. I don’t expect Singaporeans to start saying “Hello” to people they meet on the streets like the Japanese. But as a start, we should start by not talking in monosyllables. I believe if we speak in proper sentences, be it in English or another language, others will be prompted to answer us properly. A sentence will definitely sound more polite than a monosyllable. Changes can only start from us. Let us all try and make our nation a more gracious society for our next generation.