3-7-2023 (SINGAPORE) Paradise Group, a Singaporean food and beverage company, is known for its generous treatment of its long-serving employees. In addition to gifting a Rolex watch worth SGD 10,000 (MYR 34,000) to employees who have served for over 10 years earlier this year, senior staff members have now shared the other enviable rewards that the company offers, including Swiss gold bars.
According to Chen Aiju (67), a senior part-time cleaner for the group, Paradise Group places a high value on employee welfare, as evidenced by its transparent and publicly acknowledged recognition and reward system for long-serving employees. The group awards a 2.5-gram gold bar to employees who have served for five years, a 5-gram gold bar for eight years of service, and a Rolex watch worth SGD 10,000 for 10 years of service.
“This doesn’t even include the bonuses and gifts that the boss gives out during holidays,” said Chen, who is impressed by the treatment that she and her fellow employees have received from the group. Chen has decided to dedicate her life to the group and will continue to work for them as long as she can, proving the saying that “other people’s bosses never disappoint.” The group made headlines in March when it gifted 98 Rolex watches worth SGD 10,000 each to senior employees who had served for over 10 years.
Chen Aiju is one of the senior employees who received a Rolex watch. In an interview with the Straits Times, she revealed that she is not a high-ranking member of the company but merely a cleaner at the headquarters. She is responsible for cleaning the headquarters five days a week from 8 am to 2 pm, but the group treats her and all of its employees equally, gifting her a Rolex watch.
“I’ve never bought a Rolex watch in my entire life. The way the company and the boss value their employees, including a cleaner like me, is deeply moving,” Chen said.
Chen only has a sixth-grade education and has worked as a chicken rice seller, factory computer assembler, and supermarket salesperson. She joined Paradise Group in 2013, starting as a kitchen helper and later becoming a cleaner at the headquarters. “The company’s boss values the welfare and contributions of its employees, which gives me a strong sense of belonging. I see this place as a big family, and everyone is good to me and even treats me to food from time to time.”
“I plan to leave the Rolex watch to my grandson, and I will continue to work here. I like to wake up early and find something to do. If I stop working, I’m afraid I’ll get sick.”
The young owners of Paradise Group, brothers Eldwin and Edlan Chua, said that the first decade of one’s career is significant. Gifting Rolex watches is a tribute and gratitude to employees who serve the company wholeheartedly.
As the supply of Rolex watches is limited, the brothers spent nearly a year arranging with watch retailers. To add meaning, the employees’ names and job numbers are engraved on the back of each watch, preventing them from being sold.
The Paradise Group’s annual dinner was held on Monday night at the Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre, with Lee Kok Wai as the host. The event, attended by 1,600 employees, cost over SGD 2 million (MYR 6.6 million), half of which was spent on the Rolex watches.
