While public sanitation work probably ranks very low as a career choice for most, this Malaysian has no complaints about crossing the border every day to be a rubbish collector here.
A TikTok video shared on Aug 11 showed Ezzaiky7 smiling while unloading several trash bins into a garbage truck.
"[Working] for my beloved family," he wrote in the accompanying caption.
Malaysians like him can earn more overseas, the 25-year-old said, adding that the typical monthly pay of a rubbish collector here in Singapore is between RM 6,000 (S$1,800) to RM 9,600.
He did not disclose how much he was earning in that video.
https://www.tiktok.com/@ezzaiky7/video/7130561346424392961?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7117449864527300098
With the video garnering over 880,000 views, several netizens praised Ezzaiky7 for working in an industry that very few locals here would choose to do.
"Thank you brother for contributing even though not everyone in Singapore would want to do this work," a netizen said, while another praised the TikTok user for his hard working attitude.
But a netizen questioned why he would choose to work in Singapore when there are jobs in Malaysia that offer a similar salary.
According to online job portals in Malaysia, similar-paying jobs such as sales executives are only available for those who have a diploma or are fresh graduates.
In a follow-up video shared on Aug 13, Ezzaiky7 pointed out that his career prospects in Malaysia are limited due to his lack of academic qualifications.
Describing how he travels across the Causeway every day, the man said: "[I] must have a strong heart to work [in Singapore]. No complaints about the traffic jam."
Some 300,000 Malaysians commute daily from Johor to Singapore for work, Malaysian news outlet the Star reported in April 2022.
There were past incidents of Malaysians crossing the border to take up blue-collar jobs that the locals are unwilling to do.
In May this year, an owner of an eatery in Orchard Road shared her struggles of employing a Singaporean dishwasher.
After a month-long search and putting up an offer of $3,500 a month, she managed to find a Malaysian worker, Chen Weixin told Shin Min Daily News.
And in Dec 2020, two Malaysians, who were working as rubbish collectors in Singapore, won praise on the internet for returning an iPad Pro.
Muhammad Khidir Samsudin and his colleague Mohd Yuamirul Che Yussoff were university degree holders, the Star reported at that time.
chingshijie@asiaone.com