Behind the Broom: A Cleaner’s Story
Text:
Grace Yeoh
Upon first impression, Steven Quah’s friendly smile and easygoing persona reveals none of the setbacks life has dealt him.
The tanned 66-year-old Chinese Singaporean, who is often mistaken for a Malay because of his dark skin, can be seen around the National University of Singapore’s University Town sweeping, clearing rubbish bins and picking litter from the grass from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. He has been on what he calls a “very easy” job for eight months.
In June this year, the “I Care For My Cleaners” campaign was launched by the Labour Movement to recognise over 5,000 cleaners in more than 100 organisations, and also address the issue of wage increases for unsung heroes like Quah.
However, Quah is indifferent to how much he earns. Instead, he said the most important thing is that his job keeps him busy, and therefore he refuses to retire.
During his lunch and coffee breaks, he can often be spotted sitting by himself, choosing solitude over the idle chit-chat of his colleagues.
“I don’t want to get involved in the politics. If I mind my own business, nothing will happen to me,” he said in halting English and Mandarin.
Because he actively finds ways to be alone, his 55-year-old supervisor, Hatma Sadil, said she does not engage in meaningful interaction with Quah. Nonetheless she praised his work ethic and said Quah was “always punctual, never absent.”
However, Quah said he would put aside his casual indifference if he believes he must take vigilant action. “Once, I found a wallet with credit cards and Singapore, Malaysia and US currency. I passed it to a security guard immediately,” he said.
It is easy to mistake his determination to be alone for anti-social behaviour. In fact, it is a coping mechanism to protect him from more of life’s heartaches. He has already lost his first two wives and only son to cancer.
Yet, his divorce from his first wife was his saddest moment. “To her, it was merely a signature on paper. I was heartbroken but I gave her what she wanted. Years later, she wanted to reconcile but once a glass breaks, it can’t be put together again. I am a man. What is important is my pride,” he said.
Quah’s stubborn nature also means he prefers to be independent. He said, “Now that my son has passed away, I won’t take money from his wife. I want to depend on myself because I don’t want to feel obliged to anyone. I rarely go see my grandchildren too because I like to be alone.”
This stubbornness, coupled with a fiery temper, also got him into a fight with a customer during his previous job as a taxi driver, causing his license to be revoked. But today, he was calm and collected as he recalled his unsuccessful attempt to get his taxi license again. “I failed because my English isn’t good. Children should study hard when they can. With education, you can get better paying jobs,” he said.
However, Quah does not let his past disappointments stand in the way of his present enjoyment of life. He loves travelling with his third and present wife, and cracked up with laughter when he recounted a previous trip to Beijing, China.
“At the last minute, we discovered we were the only two on tour. Everyone else pulled out because they were scared of SARS. It was quite amusing because we couldn’t eat in restaurants since we didn’t have enough people to occupy one table. We had to eat in small coffee shops,” he said.
His wife, Annie Ho, 64, described her husband to be just as loving at home as he is when they travel together. She said, “He’s a very good husband. Without fail, he buys me breakfast and dinner every day, together with the day’s newspapers.”
Even though these might be small gestures, they mean a lot to her. Quah shares his wife’s sentiments for the simple things in life and said it was easier to celebrate small successes even more because he has experienced big setbacks.
He said, “I am happiest when my wife and I sing karaoke at the nearby community centre after work.”
Tags: profile
Upon first impression, Steven Quah’s friendly smile and easygoing persona reveals none of the setbacks life has dealt him.
The tanned 66-year-old Chinese Singaporean, who is often mistaken for a Malay because of his dark skin, can be seen around the National University of Singapore’s University Town sweeping, clearing rubbish bins and picking litter from the grass from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays. He has been on what he calls a “very easy” job for eight months.
In June this year, the “I Care For My Cleaners” campaign was launched by the Labour Movement to recognise over 5,000 cleaners in more than 100 organisations, and also address the issue of wage increases for unsung heroes like Quah.
However, Quah is indifferent to how much he earns. Instead, he said the most important thing is that his job keeps him busy, and therefore he refuses to retire.
During his lunch and coffee breaks, he can often be spotted sitting by himself, choosing solitude over the idle chit-chat of his colleagues.
“I don’t want to get involved in the politics. If I mind my own business, nothing will happen to me,” he said in halting English and Mandarin.
Because he actively finds ways to be alone, his 55-year-old supervisor, Hatma Sadil, said she does not engage in meaningful interaction with Quah. Nonetheless she praised his work ethic and said Quah was “always punctual, never absent.”
However, Quah said he would put aside his casual indifference if he believes he must take vigilant action. “Once, I found a wallet with credit cards and Singapore, Malaysia and US currency. I passed it to a security guard immediately,” he said.
It is easy to mistake his determination to be alone for anti-social behaviour. In fact, it is a coping mechanism to protect him from more of life’s heartaches. He has already lost his first two wives and only son to cancer.
Yet, his divorce from his first wife was his saddest moment. “To her, it was merely a signature on paper. I was heartbroken but I gave her what she wanted. Years later, she wanted to reconcile but once a glass breaks, it can’t be put together again. I am a man. What is important is my pride,” he said.
Quah’s stubborn nature also means he prefers to be independent. He said, “Now that my son has passed away, I won’t take money from his wife. I want to depend on myself because I don’t want to feel obliged to anyone. I rarely go see my grandchildren too because I like to be alone.”
This stubbornness, coupled with a fiery temper, also got him into a fight with a customer during his previous job as a taxi driver, causing his license to be revoked. But today, he was calm and collected as he recalled his unsuccessful attempt to get his taxi license again. “I failed because my English isn’t good. Children should study hard when they can. With education, you can get better paying jobs,” he said.
However, Quah does not let his past disappointments stand in the way of his present enjoyment of life. He loves travelling with his third and present wife, and cracked up with laughter when he recounted a previous trip to Beijing, China.
“At the last minute, we discovered we were the only two on tour. Everyone else pulled out because they were scared of SARS. It was quite amusing because we couldn’t eat in restaurants since we didn’t have enough people to occupy one table. We had to eat in small coffee shops,” he said.
His wife, Annie Ho, 64, described her husband to be just as loving at home as he is when they travel together. She said, “He’s a very good husband. Without fail, he buys me breakfast and dinner every day, together with the day’s newspapers.”
Even though these might be small gestures, they mean a lot to her. Quah shares his wife’s sentiments for the simple things in life and said it was easier to celebrate small successes even more because he has experienced big setbacks.
He said, “I am happiest when my wife and I sing karaoke at the nearby community centre after work.”
Tags: profile