The prestigious May Day Awards are bestowed on people and companies who have made significant contributions to the labour movement in Singapore. Organised by the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), this year’s ceremony was held on 13 May 2017 at the Orchid Country Club in Singapore.

Amongst the individuals, unionists and employers to receive the awards were also three important people from within the PSA family.

PSA Global Head of HR & Corporate Affairs Caroline Lim’s support for tripartism stems from her deep appreciation of the work done by unions and her care for the overall wellbeing of workers. Placing great value on the partnership between PSA’s management and the two unions – Singapore Port Workers Union (SPWU) and Port Officers’ Union (POU) – Caroline works closely with PSA Group Chairman and PSA Group CEO to ensure that the voices of the union leadership and the staff are heard and responded to so as to foster “win-win” solutions for both the company and the Singapore workforce.

Being the chief proponent of corporate culture change in PSA, in large part through launching the Fish! and Fish+ philosophies more than 10 years ago, Caroline has continuously partnered with the unions to build a common language for the PSA group. The Fish culture change movement has strengthened the levels of support, trust, respect, commitment and positivity in PSA’s daily work environment, in addition to bolstering the sense of pride and purpose in every staff.

“None of us is as strong as all of us,” is Caroline’s signature refrain and best sums up her commitment to ensuring that management, staff and unions serve well alongside each other, in their shared journeys.

Chow Wah joined SPWU in 1991 and was elected as a delegate in 2000. He was nominated Secretary to the Executive Committee (Exco) in 2003, after which he was elected as a Member of the Exco in 2007 and is currently the union’s first Assistant General Secretary.

He is also the Chairman for the union’s Industrial Health and Safety Committee, leading the Committee in advocating safe work practices in the port, and thus encouraging port workers to stay healthy.

He also sits on the PSA Safety Council Committee as a Member to ensure that protocols are in place to ensure a safe working environment and that worker welfare is well taken care of. Chow Wah and his team constantly engages members from the ground, and advocates adoption of best practices to ensure work is done more effectively without compromising safety.

As a veteran operations professional, Senior Manager Gillian Gan Yoke Lan brings with her a special and pragmatic perspective into the union, representing her cohort. Gillian is known for participating actively and contributing positively during the Executive Committee meetings. She became a member of POU in 1994. She was elected as Vice President into the Executive Committee in 2010 before stepping down to be an Executive Committee member in 2016.

Besides managing the social events as Vice President, she was also in-charge of all women matters for POU. Her close rapport with the members at the ground and her candid nature brought POU closer to the officers. This helped to increase the membership strength of the union and led, in 2015, to POU winning the U Achiever Award among the medium size NTUC affiliated unions.

Central to any company’s success are the people within it. The winners above fully embody this ethos by continuously striving towards success in their fields. Congratulations!