I prefer an income relief loan to be given to workers who are retrenched or suffer a drop of income during an economic downturn.
The attached paper shows how the relief loan can work. It is based on a sample of 1,000 workers and is projected over a period of 12 months of the economic downturn.
The total amount required for the relief loan for 1,000 workers is $13 million. If this is computed for 1 million workers (i.e. one third the workforce in Singapore that is affected), the required budget is $13 billion.
This relief loan ensures that all the workers are able to maintain their income at 80% of the level for the past year and that the monthly income is sufficient to meet the living expenses.