SINGAPORE is still the best place for Asian expatriates to live in, a global human resources consultancy said yesterday.
Edging out Sydney and Kobe, which were ranked second and third, Singapore defended its top spot for a 10th year in ECA International's latest annual survey.
'Good infrastructure and healthcare facilities, low crime and health risks and decent air quality' are why Singapore topped the quality-of-life charts for Asian assignees, ECA's regional director for Asia, Lee Quane, said.
Poor air quality is a key reason why Hong Kong, despite rising up the charts with improved facilities for visitors, came in 11th, below other Asian cities such as Yokohama and Tokyo.
ECA's Location Ratings Survey is based on a poll of 1,800 expatriate employees of 80 different nationalities, as well as its own evaluation of data from government and independent sources, such as crime rates and pollution levels.
More than 400 locations worldwide are rated on factors including climate, air quality, health services, housing and utilities, social network and leisure facilities, infrastructure, personal safety and political tension.
These rankings are then used by HR professionals as a gauge of how much they should pay expatriate employees in 'hardship' allowances - compensation for adjusting to life in a new location. About 1,500 international clients purchase ECA's survey each year.
For Singapore, ECA recommends that companies pay a location allowance of between zero and 10 per cent of an expatriate's base salary, depending on where they relocate to Singapore from, Mr Quane said.
In its study, Singapore was also ranked the most liveable Asian location for European expatriates, out of 49 Asian locations rated. Worldwide, Copenhagen offered the best quality of life to Europeans, followed by Antwerp and Brussels. Worldwide, Singapore was ranked 54th.
Source: Business Times, 12 Mar 2009
No comments:
Post a Comment