Posted on 08/30/2021 12:03:20 PM PDT by nickcarraway
(Singapore) Enforcement of the rule requiring diners to clear used crockery and table litter at coffee shops and food courts has been pushed back to January next year.
To help diners adjust, there will be another advisory period, of two months, before enforcement begins at these eateries.
However, enforcement of the table clearing rule begins at hawker centres as scheduled on Wednesday (Sept 1), after a three-month advisory period. It had been announced in May that enforcement at coffee shops and foodcourts would also be introduced progressively in the fourth quarter of this year.
During the coming advisory period, from Nov 1 to Dec 31, diners will be advised to clear their trays and litter, and no enforcement action will be taken, the National Environment Agency (NEA) and Singapore Food Agency (SFA) said in a joint statement on Monday.
Those who have been reminded of the rule but still refuse to follow it after enforcement begins will have their particulars taken down, and a written warning will be issued to them. Those who still don't follow the rule will face fines.
NEA and SFA said: "Enforcement will not be taken against those clearly unable to return their trays, such as the frail elderly or young children unable to purchase and carry their own food to the table."
Enforcement action at hawker centres has followed a similar approach. It was announced in May that it would be compulsory for diners to clear their tables and that the rule would be enforced after an advisory period.
Since then, the average tray and crockery return rate has improved to about 65 per cent, from about 30 per cent in February.
To complement existing tray and crockery return racks at hawker centres, trolleys will also be progressively introduced. They can be placed in areas with tight aisles in between existing tray return racks, to reduce walking distance.
There are also another 150 new permanent tray and crockery return racks in the pipeline, in addition to the 900 existing ones at hawker centres.
Coffee shops and foodcourts are now in the midst of installing tray return infrastructure.
Enforcement action will also apply to diners at steamboat and zi char outlets within hawker centres and coffee shops.
NEA said the law applies to all diners in such eateries.
"NEA will take a pragmatic approach in situations where the stall has dedicated service staff to serve food to the table and to clear the crockery and utensils during and after the meal. Where it is unclear if the tables are served by dedicated staff, diners will be reminded to clear their dirty crockery and litter after their meals," the statement added.
The cost of cleaning services is not likely to come down immediately as cleaners are still required to maintain cleanliness by wiping and sanitising tables, it said.
"By adopting a 'self-service concept' to clear up tables after meals, diners can contribute towards alleviating the shortage of cleaners in the cleaning workforce and mitigate the upward pressure on cleaning cost over time."
Didn’t people’s mamas teach them to clear the table?
Fine away for fast food, coffee shops and other small places.
Larger restaurants should provide full service.
I seem to remember, a lot of years ago, an American youth was found guilty of doing something, I want to say it was something having to do with chewing gum, and Bush Sr. Tried to get him off, but they DID cane him.
Any body remember that?
That's the problem with labeling something right wing or left wing, it doesn't tell the whole story. Singapore is a police state, everything is tightly controlled and you're under constant surveillance 24 hours a day. Some might call that "right wing", but if you use that as the criteria then you'd have to call oppressive governments like the old soviet union right wing, which traditionally were described as left wing.
Singapore is also very collectivist with healthcare, housing, and education paid for mostly by the state. That'd be thought of as left wing by most. Truth be told it's an authoritarian collectivist state, much more totalitarian in nature than free.
Singapore Airport is beautiful... It has a garden with a brook and trees in it...
I have a belt from that croc farm. Visited there a long time ago, when a lot of the island was undeveloped.
You’ll also get a fine if you don’t finish your vegetables.
If you don’t eat your meat, you can’t have any pudding.
Interesting... thanks. :-)
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