No Job, But I Still Want Fish With My Cai Png

The story

When his company shuts down over a weekend, Ming, 51, keeps ironing his shirt, kissing his wife goodbye and taking the train to nowhere. For four months, his family has no idea.

Between library basements, kopitiam lunches and private-hire fares, he discovers the two days his own father never talked about, and learns what it costs to carry a secret alone. A story about shame, family and the people who show up when you least expect them.

“A whole family said goodbye that morning to a man going to a job that didn't exist anymore, and not one of them could tell the difference.”

From Chapter One

Give it to someone who needs it

Sometimes the kindest thing you can give a person going through a hard time is a story that says: you are not alone.

To give someone hopeFor a friend between jobs, a reminder that this chapter does not define them, and that people still show up.
To help a family understandFor a spouse, parent or child who wants to know what losing a job feels like from the inside, even when it goes unsaid.
To see what unemployment in Singapore is really likeFor anyone who wants an honest look at the pressure, the silence and the small kindnesses that carry people through.

About the author

Francis Lee has spent more than 20 years in Singapore's employment space: as a Labour Relations Officer at MOM, then 13 years at NTUC and e2i, where he helped set up the first PME Centre and led retrenchment and job-matching teams.

After a career change of his own past 50, he founded The Career Athlete to help Singaporeans turn career setbacks into comebacks. This is his first novel.

Visit The Career Athlete

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