SINGAPORE: When their jobs began to interfere with their responsibilities as parents, one Singaporean couple decided to make a major life change. Despite holding stable, well-paying roles in Singapore’s civil sector, they eventually left the country and relocated to Australia in search of a more balanced lifestyle.
On Sunday (Apr 12), the husband shared their story in a Reddit post titled “Are local-born Singaporeans leaving the country for greener pastures?”
He said he and his wife were Singapore-born and raised, both from modest backgrounds, and met while studying at NTU before going on to work as civil servants in Singapore.
While their early years together were relatively smooth, life grew more demanding following the arrival of their children.
“Singapore became unbearable for my wife and me when we had kids. The long hours and the culture of never switching off from work meant our kids were in the childcare for the full 12-hour duration daily.”
Even outside of office hours, he said work continued to follow them home. “Weekends were spent with family, but the constant WhatsApp messages and emails meant we weren’t 100% present most of the time. That was not acceptable for us, as we really wanted to be hands-on in their development.”
Wanting to play a more active role in their kids’ lives, they relocated to Australia a few years ago and accepted pay cuts in the process.
