Amy Khor Lean Suan
Singapore
“Sir, NEA does conduct inspections of these premises from time to time. For this particular premises, they actually did six inspections since 2021.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA) conducts enforcement actions against drivers who are found to have provided illegal car-pooling services. An individual who provides an illegal car-pooling service may face a fine of up to $3,000, up to six months' imprisonment, or both.”
“We will also provide the first 500 private heavy vehicle chargers co-funding of up to 50% of the charger installation cost, capped at $30,000 per charger. These measures will narrow the lifecycle cost gap between an electric and internal combustion engine heavy vehicle and spur adoption of electric heavy vehicles.”
“With regard to the extension of the lower speed limit to school zones for full day, we will work with the relevant agencies on the enhanced enforcements.”
“They will provide a certain amount of protection to the pedestrians because, as I have said, the bollards will absorb the impact of the collision from the vehicles. So, there is a protection. But ultimately, of course, road safety really depends on a multitude of factors, including road user behaviour.”
“The bollards installed at pedestrian crossings by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) are not of the K4, K8 or K12 standards stated by the Member. Bollards of these standards are typically security bollards. They are installed to protect critical infrastructure or at high security areas, such as Changi Airport, to be unyielding.”
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“The story of Mr Jai Prakash illustrates this well. Mr Prakash, aged 47, sought assistance from WDA's Career Centre at North West CDC after being retrenched as a Distribution and Marketing Manager. He was keen to hone his skills as a trainer to widen his job options. After understanding his needs, Mr Prakash's Career Consultant referred him for the Advanced Certificate in Training and Assessment (ACTA) course where he completed all six modules during a five-month period last year. On Page: 73 top of substantial course fee subsidies, he also received a training allowance. His perseverance paid off when he secured a job through his own initiative as an Assistant Operations Manager with a logistics company in December last year, after being unemployed for eight months. He was able to apply his newly-minted skills gained from the ACTA course in his new role to train new staff in handling chemical products and managing inventories. Mr Prakash is currently pursuing the Singapore Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) Advanced Certificate in Workplace Safety and Health conducted by NTUC Learning Hub, to further develop his skillsets. At the Budget debate, several Members, including Mr Zainudin Nordin, had asked about the progress we have made in CET. Back in 2008, we launched the Masterplan to develop CET into a key economic and social institution that undergirds our economy, our competitiveness and helps Singaporeans stay employable. Since then, we have more than doubled the number of CET centres from 19 to 51, and increased the coverage of WSQ frameworks to cover more than 30 industries, from Creative Industries to Precision Engineering. A total of one million workers have now been trained in WSQ.”
“Mdm Chair, I thank members who spoke passionately about the need to ensure that our workforce remains responsive, relevant and resilient. Acting Minister Tan Chuan-Jin mentioned the need to support the restructuring of our economy by promoting improvements in the quality of our workforce. I would like to elaborate on how my Ministry intends to do so. The main thrust of our efforts is to empower Singaporeans to embrace learning for life to meet the challenges of our collective future. We cannot assume that what we know or do today will continue to be relevant. The future will bring new opportunities for all Singaporeans – many new jobs have yet to be created. A number of these jobs will be in new growth sectors that Ms Foo Mee Har, Ms Denise Phua and Ms Jessica Tan alluded to earlier. We need to prepare ourselves to take advantage of these opportunities. I will first give an update on the broad-based measures that my Ministry has undertaken to improve our Continuing Education and Training system, or CET in short. These measures seek to better support our economic restructuring efforts and help our workforce seize the opportunities that restructuring will bring. I will then speak on our targeted efforts to reach out to two groups of workers who have more specific needs. Finally, I will speak about the issue of retirement adequacy. Last year, as part of Our Singapore Conversation, MOM organised several sessions to hear what Singaporeans had to say about CET. As one participant said, "Learning is living; when we stop learning, we stop living. Lifelong learning is about how you create value for yourself." Our Government recognises that CET remains the cornerstone of a resilient workforce, and will continue to empower Singaporeans to improve themselves.”
“With your permission, Mdm Chair, may I display some slides on the LED screen? Page: 72”
“I take the Member's concerns and let me assure the Member that MOH, together with the public healthcare institutions, are well aware that we need to ensure that the welfare of the healthcare professionals and staff are taken care of in view of the increasing demand for healthcare services.”
“A very good question. Indeed, we need to not just increase the absolute number of healthcare staff in the different sectors but also to look at how to channel or incentivise or encourage nurses, doctors to go into areas of specialties where there will be increasing demand. So, we are looking at different ways. Of course, it will be in terms of, say, the number of training places in different specialties. We will have to work out that with the professionals and with the healthcare institutions. We are also looking at how we can incentivise or encourage the professions to go into the different Page: 39 specialties, say, through salary and career pathways, and of course, upgrading opportunities.”
“I thank the Member for his suggestion. Let me say that with regard to the first part of the question about the total amount of benefits or subsidies that the low-wage workers would get, certainly, right now, for each of these schemes, for instance, WIS, they will be informed about their eligibility for benefits from these schemes. I take the Member's point that he would like it to be comprehensive within a letter so that the individual knows the total amount of benefits or subsidies that he is given for any year. This is something that we can consider as we look into how we can enhance measures to help our low-wage workers as a whole-of-Government effort because it is not just about WIS and what MOM does but all the other agencies as well. I would like to note that it is probably not possible to put everything into one letter because there may be certain schemes where it may be administratively costly and cumbersome or burdensome to put in. But we will see what we can do with regard to that suggestion. With regard to informing the individual about the kind of upgrading programmes that they can attend, we do a lot of this through the unions, WDA, publicity road shows, job fairs and through the employers themselves. For instance, for the cleaning sector's progressive wage model, the employers will be encouraged to train and upgrade the skills of their employees so that they can move up the career and wage ladder. Again, I take note of the Member's idea of putting them into the letter. This is something we could do, informing them about Workfare training schemes and all the other upgrading programmes that they may apply for.”
“Employers are persuaded to not restrict recruitment opportunities to individuals of certain age groups and to base their selection on objective criteria, such as the candidate's ability to perform the job. Mdm Speaker, addressing an ageing workforce is an ongoing task and Mr Ong is right to point out that this is an important one. I urge everyone to make every effort to stamp out ageist mindsets and treasure the cumulative knowledge and experience of our seniors. Meanwhile, as the labour market remains tight, we will continue to incentivise employers to tap on older workers. Over time, through a mix of promotion and legislation, we hope to nudge society as a whole, and employers in particular, to recognise older workers as a valuable asset in our workforce, rather than a liability. [(proc text) Question put, and agreed to. (proc text)] [(proc text) Resolved, "That Parliament do now adjourn." (proc text)] Adjourned accordingly at 6.45 pm. Page: 126”
“The employment rates of older residents aged 55 to 64 have also increased significantly from 47% in June 2004, to 65% in June 2013. In September 2012, we made a first step increase in CPF contribution rates for older workers aged 50 to 65. Concurrently, the Government enhanced the Special Employment Credit, or SEC, to mitigate the impact of the CPF increases on the employability of older workers above age 50. Since 2011, about 107,000 employers who employed 470,000 older workers have benefited from more than $760 million of SEC. More than 90% of workers, whose employers received SEC in the first half of 2012, had remained employed one year later. We agree that it is timely to review the CPF contribution rates for older workers. We announced in 2012, that we would equalise the contribution rates for workers aged 50 to 55, with younger workers aged 50 and below, and we Page: 125 remain committed to do so. However, we should approach this carefully and gradually so as not to adversely affect their employability. We are monitoring the employment situation of older workers and are consulting our tripartite partners on whether and when to take the next increase. Our second strategy is to shape positive perceptions towards older workers. The key lies in changing social attitudes and dispelling prejudices against them. Schemes, such as WorkPro and SEC, are already in place to inculcate positive mindsets. We have also been working closely with employers and the unions for the adoption of fair, responsible and merit-based employment through the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices, or TAFEP.”
“Division I and II Officers who are managers and executives will only experience an adjustment if their salaries are above a pre-determined maximum-minimum ratio that is reflective of the typical competencies, duties Page: 124 and responsibilities required of their jobs. Any adjustments will not be more than 15%. I agree with Mr Ong that it is crucial to help employers redesign jobs and the work environment to adapt to the ageing workforce. We encourage employers to tap on the generous funding available under WorkPro to do so. Since WorkPro was launched in April 2013, more than 600 companies have received the Age Management Grant to implement age-friendly practices. We will continue to promote awareness of these schemes. We also encourage older workers to continue to train and stay at work through the Workfare Income Supplement, or WIS scheme, and its enhancements. In 2013, we extended the WIS eligibility criteria and increased the maximum WIS quantum by 25% to $3,500. We also increased the cash proportion of WIS payouts to 40%. WIS payouts today can make up to a third of a worker's monthly income. To date, about 360,000 Singaporeans have received more than $400 million in WIS for work done in 2013. Mr Ong suggested that older workers should enjoy similar CPF contribution rates as their younger counterparts to help them save more. While we do want to help older workers accumulate more CPF savings, we have to balance this with their continued employability. CPF contribution rates were lowered for older workers when the retirement age was raised in the past so as to address employers' cost concerns, because of the prevalence of seniority-based wages. The tripartite partners have since made good progress in narrowing the wage scales.”
“The employee needs to have satisfactory work performance and be medically fit. Employers have the flexibility to make some adjustments to their employment terms for these employees based on reasonable factors, such as employees' productivity, duties and responsibilities and the extent of seniority elements in the wage structure. Overall, this allows older workers to work longer without affecting their employability. The implementation of the RRA has been smooth since it came into effect. In particular, re-employment rates have been high. Based on our 2012 survey, 98% of local employees who turned 62 in the year ending June 2012 were offered re-employment. This included 70% of retiring employees who were offered re-employment on existing contracts without any change in employment terms. Among those who accepted re-employment on new contracts in the same job, three in four retained their basic wages. Including those who continued on existing contracts, 94% experience no change in their basic wages. Re-employment disputes have also been low, numbering two to three cases a month. The RRA has been in effect for only two years. We should allow time to monitor its impact. The Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers continues to closely monitor the implementation of the RRA with the view to further extending the re-employment age, possibly to 67, at an appropriate time. With regard to the re-employment policies in the Civil Service from 1 August 2013, Division III and IV Officers who typically perform clerical and frontline operational duties were offered re-employment at the same grade and salary.”
“Mdm Speaker, I thank Mr David Ong for raising this topic and for his various suggestions. The challenges faced by our ageing workforce remain a top priority for my Ministry and our tripartite partners. I will highlight two key strategies we adopt which address some of the issues Mr Ong has raised. Mr Ong proposes removing the retirement age and giving our older workers a choice to work longer. The current minimum statutory retirement age of 62, in fact, protects workers below the age of 62 from being dismissed on the grounds of age. It is not meant to, and it does not impede people from working beyond 62. In fact, there is no statutory age at which employers must retire a worker. We did consider various options, including extending the statutory minimum retirement age or removing it all together. We also studied the approaches taken by other developed countries and concluded that re-employment is a better and more practical approach for us. Re-employment allows workers to work longer, which is what Mr Ong is calling for, while ensuring that employers have sufficient flexibility to manage their manpower needs. We should be mindful that requiring employers to continue employing Page: 123 their older workers without providing them the flexibility to manage their business needs would not be in the best interests of the workers. We adapted the re-employment approach from Japan, which introduced re-employment in 2006. Today, Japan is one of the countries with the highest employment rates for older workers. We, therefore, enacted the Retirement and Re-employment Act, or RRA, in January 2012. Employers are required to offer re-employment to their workers from age 62 to 65. The bar for re-employment is deliberately kept low.”
“To date, our adverse events database has also not indicated any safety signals associated with Ranbaxy's products. The last line, Mdm Speaker. HSA will continue to monitor Ranbaxy products to ensure that they meet safety, quality and efficacy requirements. Thank you, Mdm Speaker.”
“We are aware that the exclusive breastfeeding rate is low but, as I have noted, two out of five women are breastfeeding partially at six months. Therefore, for exclusive breastfeeding, some of the issues could be that cultural practices and beliefs are such that you cannot comply with the definition of what exclusive breastfeeding means. Nonetheless, HPB is working with the hospitals. Under the BFHI initiative, all staff in the maternity ward, the healthcare professionals, would be trained to provide counselling and support for breastfeeding mothers, that is, teach them how to breastfeed, and so on and so forth. We will continue with that. HPB also will work towards providing more support in this area. Page: 24”
“We conduct a national survey for breastfeeding periodically and that will be one of the ways that we can monitor the effectiveness. For hospitals which do not have certification, as I have noted, they have already implemented many of the guidelines in the BFHI and they are committed to getting certification. For the three hospitals that have not gotten it, we are working with them, and we Page: 23 are in communication with other hospitals, too. Regarding support for mothers who want to breastfeed, HPB actually has been working with Association for Breastfeeding Advocacy to encourage and advise employers on the establishment of breastfeeding friendly workplaces. For instance, having a lactation room as well as, of course, organising talks for women on successful breastfeeding. The "Project Liquid Gold" initiative by NTUC U Family has the same objectives. MOM has funding under WorkPro where you can get subsidies for expenditure on lactation rooms. Besides that, HPB also produces a one-stop parent toolkit called "Healthier Child Brighter Future" and it has information on the benefits of breastfeeding for mother and child and knowledge to help the women onto successful breastfeeding. We continue to work with partners to promote breastfeeding.”
“I will go in the reverse order. Firstly, for the SIFECS' Code of Ethics, as I have noted, the major infant food industry players are all committed to subscribe to the Code of Ethics. In fact, HPB is the agency that oversees compliance with this Code of Ethics. Generally, there has been good compliance with a handful of violations. What we do really is for HPB to send a warning letter to those who have violated the guidelines, firstly, to the regional HQ, and, if necessary, to the global HQ. And, generally, they will rectify the violations. We have observed that there are no continued or consistent violations by the same company. Generally, this approach has worked well, and we intend to continue with this approach, promotional as well as getting the major players involved with compliance. In fact, all of them are committed to complying with the Code. The other question on BFHI – plans to monitor the effectiveness after implementation, and then the feedback regarding the breastfeeding rate. First, let me share that between 2001 and 2011, the percentage of women who have taken to breastfeeding their infants upon delivery and then discharge from hospital, that is at initiation, has increased. In 2011, the rate was 99.1% at initiation. Continued breastfeeding, partial breastfeeding, at six months has also improved. In 2001, it was 21%. It has improved to 42% in 2011. The exclusive breastfeeding rate is still very low. We continue to see how we can encourage exclusive breastfeeding, which means that only breast milk for the first six months, excluding water. I think one of the problems really is cultural practices and beliefs that you should supplement it with water, which is not in accordance with the definition of exclusive breastfeeding.”
“Breastfeeding puts an infant on the right start to life. MOH will work together with stakeholders to ensure that mothers are provided with the appropriate skills and support to ensure that they are motivated to continue breastfeeding their babies for the recommended period.”
“Thank you. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of a baby's Page: 21 life as it provides all the energy and nutrients needed for optimal growth, development and protection against infectious and chronic diseases. The promotion of exclusive breastfeeding among mothers, by educating and supporting them in breastfeeding, before birth, during their hospital stay and after they are discharged, can contribute towards improving infants' health. HPB and the Association for Breastfeeding Advocacy (Singapore) (ABAS) have been working with five hospitals – National University Hospital (NUH), KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH), Singapore General Hospital (SGH), Mount Alvernia Hospital and Thomson Medical Centre – to implement the Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) guidelines and achieve BFHI certification. HPB and ABAS are working with the five identified hospitals as they account for 80% of the births in Singapore. Currently, NUH and SGH have achieved BFHI certification. All five hospitals are committed to the principles outlined in the BFHI guidelines and have implemented initiatives such as the provision of training to all maternity ward staff to provide breastfeeding counselling, consultation and support to mothers. Promotion of breastfeeding is also accompanied by measures to protect parents from excessive marketing of infant formula targeted at children aged 0-6 months. In this respect, the Sale of Infant Foods Ethics Committee Singapore (SIFECS)'s Code of Ethics was established to safeguard ethical standards on appropriate marketing and distribution of breast milk substitutes. Adherence to the Code is obligatory on the entire infant food industry operating in Singapore.”
“Yes, we do have those figures. The numbers are about 4% or less. Many of them would have various reasons. As I have noted earlier, only 4% say it is due to medical reasons. For many of them, reasons could be that they are unmarried, divorced, they have enough children or they feel that they are not ready to start a family. These are the reasons. Through pre-abortion counselling, some of them do change their decisions, but the number is small.”
“Even currently, under our regulations and the Act, most women, as long as they fit the criteria and regardless of their age, are required to go for pre-abortion counselling. If we look at the numbers, the majority will go for pre-abortion counselling. Pre-abortion counselling would include showing them the video of medical procedures of abortion and so on, as well as social and emotional support and alternative options to abortion, including adoption. Let me assure the Member that we will continue to look at ways to strengthen this effort.”
“We are in discussions with relevant stakeholders including MSF, and we will conduct consultations once we are ready. Assoc Prof Tan Kheng Boon Eugene (Nominated Member): Mdm Speaker, I would like to ask the Senior Minister of State whether more could be done for the pregnant women, particularly those who are married, to keep their Page: 9 unborn child. In this regard, could we do more to promote adoption, for example?”
“Mdm Speaker, with regard to the first question on whether there is a trend towards abortion at a younger age, on the contrary, looking at the numbers, there is actually a gradual decline in the number of abortions carried out on girls below 16 years of age. In 2006, the number of abortions carried out on girls below 16 years was 84. This number has declined to 47 in 2012. As for Singapore becoming a regional hub for abortion, in fact, the Termination of Pregnancy Act already has safeguards to prevent foreigners from coming into the country just for an abortion. This is because under the Termination of Pregnancy Act, the authorised medical practitioner can only carry out abortions for foreigners if they are the spouse of a Singapore Citizen or they are holders or spouse of a work pass holder under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, or they have been residents in Singapore for at least four months immediately prior to the date of the scheduled abortion. In that sense, there are already safeguards under the current Act. Of course, this will exclude cases where the abortion has to be done to save lives. I would like to share that the total number of abortions carried out has also shown some decline over the years. In 2006, the number of abortions carried out was 12,032; and it was 10,064 in 2012. On our review of the issues relating to mandatory pre-abortion counselling, let me assure the Member that we are in the midst of looking into the review of the TOP guidelines, specifically with regard to the issue of strengthening pre-abortion counselling including mandatory counselling, the criteria for mandatory counselling as well as the contents of counselling, and also improvements of the TOP guidelines.”
“I thank the Member for the supplementary question and for the opportunity to clarify regarding the ambulance charges. If the call is made to the telephone link 995 Emergency Ambulance Service that is operated by SCDF and it is ascertained by the doctor at the medical institution at the emergency department that it is an emergency case, there is no charge. If it is ascertained that it is non-emergency, there is a charge of $198. The ambulance service provider is divided into the 995 telephone link service by SCDF and there are also private operators that operate essentially non-emergency patient transport service. There are also some that operate emergency services. There is a set of guidelines for private ambulance service that MOH has stipulated but these are primarily to ensure or safeguard patients' safety. The charges are not regulated but it is actually listed or put up on the SCDF website. The advice will be that if you want to use private ambulance services, please Page: 47 check the website so you make an informed decision. The private ambulance operator is supposed to tell you what the charges are before you take up the service.”
“Our key objective is to build up a core of Singaporean healthcare workforce. So, in addition to increasing our upstream intake of doctors to the medical schools – and I have noted that we are increasing the placements or number of places in our medical schools, especially with the addition of a third medical school – we are also increasing the number of places for our pre-employment grant for doctors, that is, foreign-trained Singaporean doctors. We are trying to attract them from the various countries, of course, from accredited institutions. In addition to that, there is definitely a need to supplement our healthcare manpower with foreign manpower and we have said that a number of times. Whilst we will take in foreign manpower, say for doctors and so on, they must also be from recognised institutions. If they are not, they will not be registered. They will be working as support staff and there will be requirements for them to undergo further training and registration. I do not have the ratio at this point in time. If the Member wishes, he can submit another question.”
“The short answer would be "yes". In addition to projecting our healthcare manpower needs based on population demographic profile, as well as on the epidemiological profile, we would also need to look specifically at the different specialties required among the doctors. One of the areas that we need to look at is to promote or encourage doctors to go into specialties that will be increasingly in demand, for instance, in geriatric care.”
“I thank Mr Zainudin for the question. Indeed, it is a challenge to recruit, especially upstream in terms of attracting school Page: 32 leavers into the various healthcare courses. Recently, in the COS, the Minister has also said that we have gone on a campaign to promote these various healthcare professions, such as nursing and the allied healthcare professionals (AHPs), particularly the school leavers, with the intention of attracting more into the courses at ITE, Polytechnics as well as at the Universities. The response so far to this campaign in terms of advertisements on TV, radio, online and so on has been positive. We will continue to do what we can to promote this in terms of showcasing the good work done by the nursing profession, the AHPs and so on. They are very noble professions and we should continue to promote these professions and create awareness among the school leavers. Of course, as I have noted earlier also, we have reviewed the pay of the healthcare professionals and we have also put in place career pathways and development for the various healthcare professionals, such as nurses, AHPs and doctors, and we hope that that will also help to attract and retain healthcare professionals.”
“In the event of an outbreak of a pandemic, the public healthcare institutions would temporarily cut back on elective surgeries, outsource certain services where possible, bring back temporary healthcare support staff where appropriate, and redeploy the staff to tackle the higher load due to the pandemic. So, by cutting back, say, for instance, the electives, we will be able to redeploy some of these staff. Manpower could also be deployed across various healthcare systems, depending on where the loading and the need is. These are some of the measures that we will put into place in the event of a surge in cases.”
“For the healthcare manpower ratios, as I have noted in my reply earlier, these basically provide a broad level comparison of the adequacy of healthcare manpower across time and countries. We need to be mindful that we need to take into account differences in demographic and epidemiological profiles, healthcare systems and legislations in order to make the Page: 31 comparisons more informative and useful. As regards our current healthcare manpower ratio, the common ratio used is the healthcare manpower-to-population ratio. Thus, doctor-to-population, and nurse-to-population ratios. For these ratios, they are comparable to those of developed regional economies which have a similar proportion of elderly, such as South Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan. As I have noted, we expect to expand our healthcare professional workforce by about another 20,000 by 2020 to take into account the growing and ageing population. By 2030, we expect to expand our healthcare professional workforce by about 32,000 staff, as well as about 9,000 support care staff. With this expansion, our doctor-to-population and nurse-to-population ratios are likely to remain broadly comparable internationally with economies with similar economic development and ageing demographics. As regards the need to address pandemic outbreaks, such as SARS or H1N1, we have learnt from our experience with SARS and H1N1 and also with the surge in dengue cases previously, so we have put various processes and measures in place to deal with such a surge in cases due to, say, H1N1 or SARS.”
“The Enterprise Training Support (ETS) scheme is for all sectors. It is open to all companies. There are particular sectors that WDA is very keen to encourage to take up this scheme. Basically, it aims to develop the capability of a company in terms of their HR capability, Training Roadmap for their staff, as well as HR policies in terms of compensation benefits and so on, to benchmark these to the market so as to ensure that they pay competitive rates and then they can recruit and retain workers. It is for all companies, but there are certain sectors that the WDA would like to target. We think that it would be most useful for SMEs, and therefore the forecast that probably 70% of the companies that take up this scheme will be SMEs.”
“Regarding the second clarification, I understand that Ms Sylvia Lim is concerned, for instance, about the security sector. WDA tracks post-training attrition. For the security sector, based on the information given, post-training, there is really quite a high take-up. A majority of them do go into the sector; but some of them may be doing it on a part-time, ad hoc basis, instead of full time. They will do it during peak season, like during F1, as a second job to top up their income. Having said that, there are some sectors like security, for instance, where attrition may be an issue, simply because of the conditions of the sector – long hours, low wages, shift work and so on. This is something that cannot be resolved with training; so, we are looking at it by discussing with stakeholders. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Mr Hawazi Daipi has shared our plans as to why we are going to improve the sector in terms of wages. There are some of these sectors that we are tracking and working on. Regarding the Member's request about breaking down the data further, let me take it back to WDA.”
“A clarification. I will try and make it succinct. First of all, the WSQ system, which is competency based, has got an Industry Skills and Training Council that is set up for every one of the WSQ frameworks. It is aligned to international practices. Earlier, I shared that from the WDA surveys, we have found that even employers recognise that workers perform better with WSQ training and productivity has improved. Some 74% have said that. That is recognition of the usefulness of WSQ training. WDA will continue to do its part to promote the WSQ courses to the employers, and ensuring the usefulness of such courses.”
“Over the years, the Government has put in place a comprehensive package of assistance, and will continue to review and improve our various programmes. As we do our part to ensure that support is available for employers who need help, companies also need to take responsibility to build up their capabilities in Page: 122 adapting to the changing workforce. Workers, too, need to take ownership of their own training and career plans by proactively improving their skills. Ultimately, we hope that these efforts will help all Singaporeans progress into better jobs, earn higher wages, and fulfil their aspirations.”
“This is to encourage employers to recruit and retain this segment of workers. Fourth, we recognise that those who have not been working for some time might need more on-the-job training (OJT) initially to prepare them for work. Therefore, WorkPro will provide employers with an OJT Training Allowance equivalent to one month's salary, capped at $2,000 per worker, for each back-to-work local hired and trained. Finally, to incentivise back-to-work locals to stay on the job, those earning less than $4,500 will also receive a retention bonus of up to $1,200 each under WorkPro if they remain employed with the company over a year. There are some similarities as well as differences between WorkPro and some of the suggestions from Members of this House, but we share a common aim and that is to promote work-life harmony and offer more support to bring older workers and the economically inactives back to work. Mdm Chair, the most wonderful schemes on paper will not be effective if people find them too confusing to tap on. This is why we have combined our grants into a single WorkPro with just one application process. So, if you were confused earlier, it is okay, because all you need to do is to apply at one agency, and this is to make it easier for companies to apply for them. Companies can approach NTUC and SNEF, who will assess applicants' needs and provide advice on the relevant interventions and grants. SMEs can also find out more about WorkPro and the ETS at the SME Centres run by SPRING. Mdm Chair, let me sum up. We will continue to help Singaporeans develop and maximise their full potential. We believe that every Singaporean who is able and wants a job should be given the opportunity to do so.”
“As part of the enhanced Marriage and Parenthood Package announced earlier this year, we are committing $100 million to encourage more employers to implement flexible work arrangements through the Work-Life Grant. Employers with no or minimal flexible work arrangements can receive up to $40,000 to implement work-life strategies through the developmental programme, which will be open to applications for three years. This is double the amount that the WoW! Fund provided. Employers that have already implemented flexible work arrangements can also apply for additional financial incentives of up to $120,000 over three years, or up to $40,000 per year, if at least 30% of their employees benefit from flexible work arrangements. We hope that these will motivate more employers to implement and sustain the use of flexible work arrangements. Apart from improving work-life harmony, WorkPro will also provide holistic support to help employers hire and retain back-to-work locals and mature workers. First, a new $20,000 Age Management Grant will be provided to help employers improve their age management capabilities, such as putting in place performance management systems and making the workplace more ergonomic. 4.15 pm Page: 121 Second, companies will receive more support to redesign jobs, up to $300,000 per company. This is $60,000 higher than the combined job-redesign grants that employers enjoyed previously under ADVANTAGE! and Flexi-Works!. Employers who do not have the know-how in job redesign can also tap on the grant to seek professional advice. Third, WorkPro will provide companies on board the programme a New Hire Retention Incentive scheme of up to $2,000 for each newly-hired back-to-work local or mature worker earning below $4,500.”
“IQKidz has also managed to hire several back-to-work locals with young children as teachers, by deploying them flexibly in terms of location and working hours. Our efforts to improve work-life harmony and bring more locals into the workforce started sometime ago. Against the backdrop of our ageing local workforce, older workers and back-to-work women will play an increasingly important role in the workforce. Madam, several Members have suggested ideas, such as a Back-to-Work Employment Credit Scheme and a New Hire Wage Credit scheme. I would like to thank them for these suggestions. We agree that more can be done, and have, in fact, been reviewing our schemes with feedback from the public and our tripartite partners. One important feedback is that there are perhaps too many assistance schemes, and that we should make it easier for employers to tap on Page: 120 these schemes. Also, companies have highlighted that they need more support in terms of implementing work-life strategies and hiring and retaining older workers. Hence, we will consolidate and enhance the WoW! Fund, ADVANTAGE!, and Flexi-Works!, into a one-stop programme called "WorkPro" – to build Progressive Workplaces. First, WorkPro will help employers to improve work-life harmony and better attract and retain locals. Second, it will help companies tap on back-to-work locals and older workers by supporting job-redesign, on-the-job training, recruitment, and retention efforts. We will set aside a budget of $170 million over three years to help our workers and employers on this front. We also expect SMEs to form 70% of the companies that will benefit from WorkPro. Madam, allow me to elaborate on the different kinds of support that WorkPro will provide. First, WorkPro will promote work-life harmony.”
“Page: 119 Based on the preliminary findings from our survey, 98% of our local employees who turned 62 in the year ending June last year were offered employment beyond 62. The number of re-employment disputes lodged with MOM has been low, averaging less than three cases a month. Overall, the employment rate of older residents reached a new high of 64% last year, as I noted earlier. This is comparable to or even higher than some advanced economies, such as the US and the UK. We will continue to monitor the implementation to ensure that it is in line with the intent of the re-employment legislation. For the next phase of work, Mr Heng Chee How will be pleased to note that we will work with the Tripartite Committee (Tricom) on Employability of Older Workers to conduct a deeper study on the impact of re-employment, identify an appropriate timeframe to further raise the re-employment age, and find other ways to enhance employment opportunities for our older workers. Besides older workers, we have also been encouraging locals to return to work through Flexi-Works! introduced in 2007. The scheme encourages employers to hire back-to-work locals on flexible work arrangements by defraying the costs involved. Since 2007, more than 3,500 locals have been placed into jobs at more than 300 companies. IQKidz, an education company delivering enrichment programmes to schools, is a beneficiary of Flexi-Works!. Through the scheme, IQKidz has been able to retain and attract locals, like Ms Rina Khoo, in today's tight labour market. Rina, a 48-year-old teaching pre-schoolers in art, enjoys the flexi-time work arrangement that allows her to pursue evening courses for self-improvement as well as balance family responsibilities.”
“We also want to help those who wish to return to work find suitable jobs. This will enable employers to tap on this group of people as a valuable source of manpower. Mr Zainudin Nordin and Mr Gerald Giam have spoken on this earlier. In 2005, we introduced ADVANTAGE! to help employers hire and retain older workers. The scheme helps employers redesign jobs to match older workers' abilities. It was later enhanced to help prepare employers for re-employment. Close to $57 million has been disbursed under ADVANTAGE! since its inception. Around 3,500 companies and 25,000 older workers have benefited from the scheme. SIS'88, a sugar distributor in Singapore, tapped on ADVANTAGE! last year to automate its sugar distribution system, which made the work safer and less physically demanding. This allowed its older employees, such as Mr Mohd Amir bin Mohd Yusof, aged 62, to be more productive by controlling the equipment and operations remotely through a centralised control system. Such improvements in work processes have also made it easier for SIS to re-employ its older workers. I agree with Mr Alex Yam that it is important for us to recognise employers that go the extra mile to improve their HR practices to recruit and retain their employees, especially the older workers. Today, we recognise these employers through the biennial TAFEP Exemplary Employer Awards. And we hope that this would inspire organisations to do better. I also agree with Mr Heng Chee How and Mr David Ong on the need to continue our efforts on the re-employment front. Since the re-employment legislation came into effect in January last year, results have been positive.”
“We will intensify our efforts and work through the Tricom and the Employer Alliance to support and incentivise companies to implement work-life strategies. We will encourage positive behaviour through education and promotion, and create the conditions for sustainable work-life strategies. We will continue to keep an open mind about legislating flexi-work and consult stakeholders widely on this issue. Mr Faisal Manap and Ms Mary Liew both spoke about introducing additional leave to help workers, such as caregivers of elderly persons and mothers, better manage the demands of work. As part of the recently announced Marriage and Parenthood Package this year, we enhanced existing family-related leave schemes and introduced new ones, such as paternity leave and shared parental leave. These measures aim to help working couples better balance work and family commitments. And as pointed out by Ms Foo Mee Har and Mr Christopher de Souza, such pro-family employment practices will also help parents, especially mothers, return to the workforce. Page: 118 These schemes will take effect on 1 May this year. Let us give our businesses some time to adjust and adapt to these new schemes, before deciding whether further refinements are merited. We are mindful of the need to strike a balance between promoting work-life harmony and not to overly impose too many obligations on employers that may increase cost pressures and, ultimately, affect workers' employability. We will, nonetheless, continue to promote and encourage employers to adopt pro-family work practices. Besides creating workplaces with a pro-family culture, we also want to help all Singaporeans, especially our mature workers, work for as long as they want and are able to.”
“The success of such legislation is, in many ways, dependent on the existence of complementary conditions to support it, such as the attitude of the employers and the co-workers towards flexible work arrangements which was alluded to by Ms Jessica Tan earlier on. A recent survey by NTUC showed that seven in 10 employees felt that their employers were not supportive of flexible work arrangements, while six in 10 employees said that their colleagues were not supportive. Page: 117 Furthermore, as highlighted by the Association for Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME), many of our SMEs still need guidance on how to implement flexible work arrangements. The success of flexible work arrangements depends largely on the companies' ability to manage those on flexible work arrangements. Yahoo! and Best Buy, which recently made the headlines as they cut back on work-from-home arrangements for their employees, are cases in point. These are all possible reasons to explain why the inclination to request for flexibility by employees remains low in some countries, like Australia, even with the introduction of the Right to Request legislation in these countries. We need to be cautious about legislating flexi-work which will introduce rigidity into the labour market, and impose additional compliance costs on businesses at a time when they are already facing significant pressures to restructure. Hence, we think that it may not be desirable for the Government to use the law to prescribe flexible work arrangements at this point. The Government, however, remains a very strong advocate of flexi-work arrangements. Deputy Prime Minister Teo shared that 95% of our public agencies, including MOM, CPF and WDA, already offer flexible work arrangements.”
“This is done through platforms like the biennial Work-Life Conference, which attracted over Page: 116 400 participants in 2011. As an exemplary employer recognised at the Work-Life Excellence Award last year, Rajah & Tann LLP, which is a local law firm, has shown that even amidst our tight labour market, the firm was able to meaningfully support flexible work arrangements to meet their employees' work-life needs. Employees could work from home, on staggered hours or even work three to four days a week. All these helped the company achieve a low attrition rate of 1.3% in 2011. I, therefore, urge companies to do the same, if not better, to attract and retain talent. In addition, the TriCom works with agencies like IDA, to promote specific flexible work arrangements, such as home-based and mobile-work arrangements. To support companies in implementing work-life strategies, we launched the WoW! Fund in 2004. Since its inception, the WoW! Fund has benefited some 860 employers and their employees. Ms Foo Mee Har, Mr Patrick Tay and Ms Mary Liew suggested that we put in place legislation on the right to ask for flexible work arrangements. The PAP Women's Wing and NTUC have earlier made similar suggestions through their reports. Ms Lee Li Lian proposed that we set up an independent commission to oversee work-life balance issues. In countries like the UK, a "Right to Request" legislation, alongside institutions to administer it, formalises the process for eligible employees to request for flexible work arrangements, such as part-time work or telecommuting. Such an approach towards improving work-life harmony and helping individuals cope with their work and personal needs has its pros and cons. We have been studying this approach and several others.”
“I agree with them, and this is something that we have been working on for quite some time now. Good work-life harmony contributes positively to personal and family outcomes and is an increasingly important priority for Singaporeans. Flexible work arrangements enable employees who require them to better manage their career and personal aspirations, and remain engaged and productive. Businesses which offer flexible work arrangements will thus benefit from better staff attraction and retention, which is a key competitive advantage in today's tight labour market. Ms Jessica Tan asked about the progress of companies in offering flexible work arrangements. An increasing proportion of establishments offer at least one form of flexible work arrangements. The proportion rose from 25% in 2007 to 41% in 2012. There is also significant progress in the labour force participation and employment of our female and older residents. Our labour force participation rate for female residents aged 15 and above increased from 54.2% in 2007 to 57.7% in 2012. The employment rate of our older residents aged 55 to 64 has also increased from 56.2% in 2007 to 64% in 2012, which is just 1% shy of our target of 65% in 2015. 4.00 pm Today, the Government, together with employer groups and unions, plays an active role in promoting work-life harmony and flexible work arrangements, and these efforts are coordinated by the Tripartite Committee (TriCom) on Work-Life Strategy, which is led by Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi. Over the past two years, the TriCom has been reaching out to both employers and employees regularly to influence mindset change and foster workplace cultures that support flexible work arrangements.”
“We expect SMEs to form 70% of the companies that will benefit from this scheme and, if the response is good, WDA will be more than happy to further expand the scheme. Mdm Chairperson, as we ensure that our CET programmes remain relevant to both workers and employers, we are also expanding our CET infrastructure to meet the training demands of our workforce. The two national CET campuses will be ready in the second half of this year as planned. They will feature integrated facilities designed with adult learners in mind. Workers can look forward to more exciting training opportunities and comprehensive career services all under one roof. Our labour market will remain tight, and this will place upward pressure on wages as companies seek to hire and retain employees. To be sustainable in the longer term, wage increases need to be supported by productivity gains. Therefore, I strongly urge companies to make full use of the various productivity and training incentives that the Government has put in place, and to share their gains with their employees. As we continue to evolve our CET system to help Singaporeans excel and achieve their work aspirations, we will also continue to seek public feedback on how best to do so through the next phase of Our Singapore Conversation (OSC). Page: 115 Through Our Singapore Conversation (OSC) sessions, we have received strong feedback from Singaporeans about their desire for a more fulfilling pace of life, while being engaged at work, to pursue their personal aspirations and cope with family needs. We have just heard from Members like Ms Foo Mee Har, Mr Christopher de Souza and Dr Intan Azura, all of whom have also called for greater support for flexible work arrangements and for more employers to adopt pro-family practices.”
“Through these improvements, the company has tripled its machining production output, which translates to a projected increase in sales of more than $400,000 over three years. Workers also enjoyed the benefits of increased productivity through bigger performance bonuses. Indeed, Kim Ann Engineering intends to send more of its employees for similar training programmes. Last year, we enhanced the training support for SME-sponsored local employees by raising course fee subsidies and absentee payroll. While companies find this useful, they have also provided feedback on areas where they need more help, including more support for in-house training customised Page: 114 to their needs. This year, WDA will introduce the new Enterprise Training Support (ETS) scheme to provide a holistic HR and training package for companies to develop their employees and raise productivity. Mr Laurence Lien and Ms Jessica Tan may be pleased to note that companies, like Kim Ann Engineering, can tap on grants under the ETS scheme to develop their own company training plans and career progression pathways for employees that are linked to training roadmaps. To address companies' need for more customised training, the scheme will also fund both WSQ and non-WSQ training, including structured on-the-job training. Companies can also tap on the ETS scheme to benchmark their compensation and benefits to market rates. This will encourage competitive job remuneration for Singaporeans, and help companies to better attract and retain local talent. This is particularly useful for SMEs, many of whom lack HR expertise. We will invest $20 million in the ETS scheme over two years.”
“The ILP, to be introduced in stages over the next three years, will be an interactive online service that gives individuals access to a range of information and tools. This includes labour market information and self-help profiling tools. It also serves as a one-stop repository of an individual's education, training, skills and work achievements. And it will have different features, catering to those who are already in the workforce or preparing to enter it. What this means is that individuals will be able to better plan for their own learning and career development. The ILP will also enable employers to post jobs and search for potential employees with the best skills match for their vacancies. Besides providing individuals with more CET assistance, we will also do more to help companies upgrade and develop their workforce. The three-year Transition Support Package has been introduced in Budget 2013. This will help companies restructure and share the productivity gains with their employees through higher wages. Companies also need to invest in training to improve the skills of their workers, in order to be more productive. One example of an SME that benefited from the Government's training support is Kim Ann Engineering, which provides specialty metals and services for customers in industries, such as Precision Engineering and Oil and Gas. Last year, the company signed up for the Operations Management Innovation (OMNI) programme introduced by WDA and conducted by the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech). With knowledge acquired from the programme, Mr Jonathan Kok, the Division Manager for operations, was able to identify gaps and solutions to improve the company's operational processes.”
“WDA's move to enhance its Place-and-Train programme and step up employment facilitation efforts will also provide more support for displaced workers. Mr Ong Teng Koon asked how we can better facilitate CET for our older workers. I would like to assure him that the WSQ system is developed with the needs of adult learners in mind. It focuses on the ability to demonstrate skills and knowledge acquired, which older workers are more receptive to compared to academic-based learning and assessment. Alternative entry requirements, besides formal PET qualifications, for course enrolment, are also particularly useful for our older workers who may not have the formal educational qualifications but are actually no less able. In addition, training courses are broken down into modules to allow workers to embark on the training at a pace which is suitable for them, taking only the modules they need, or to gradually work towards the full qualifications. Mdm Chairperson, there are two core objectives of our CET framework. First, to provide employees with the right skills and knowledge to meet current and future needs. Second, to entrench a culture of continuous learning and training. The two are self-reinforcing. Mr Patrick Tay asked if more can be done to guide young PMEs to make wise career choices and second skilling our mature PMEs. I agree with Mr Tay that, in addition to our current CET programme, we should explore ways to empower individuals to better take charge and make informed decisions on their own training and career development. Page: 113 In this regard, WDA will be developing an Individual Learning Portfolio (ILP).”
“Pilot sectors that will be covered include Workplace Safety and Health, Business Management and Aerospace. Mdm Chairperson, I have shared on how we will enhance CET support for PMEs. At the same time, we will ensure that our CET system continues to be accessible and affordable, meeting the needs of our rank-and-file workers, while remaining relevant to industry. In addition, we will enhance the Workfare Training Support (WTS) scheme to provide even stronger support for our lower-income workers to upgrade their skills. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi will elaborate on the enhancements to the WTS scheme. Page: 112 Mdm Chairperson, an important component of our CET system is the Place-and-Train (PnT) programme. Under the Place-and-Train programme, workers are first hired by employers before they undergo skills training required for the job. During the training period, workers are paid their salaries, with WDA co-funding both the salary and training costs. Place-and-Train is targeted and leads to good employment outcomes. This year, we will increase our funding support for Place-and-Train, and we hope that more employers will come on board. Employers who hire Singaporeans on the Place-and-Train programme will receive higher funding of 70% of the employee's salary, capped at $2,000 per month, which is a significant increase over the current cap of $1,400 per month. Mr Laurence Lien rightly pointed out that with economic restructuring, there will be the inevitable displacement in the labour market. But alongside this negative outcome are positive results. Higher value-added jobs will also be created in the process. We will step up efforts to help Singaporeans upgrade and re-skill, so that they can seize these new opportunities.”
“To date, CaliberLink has helped more than 3,500 PMEs through its training and career consultation services, networking events and workshops. Of these, about 1,300 were provided with career coaching services, and eventually over 400 were placed. This is comparable to industry performance, and we will continue to do more for PMEs, such as improving our online facilitation services. Mdm Chairperson, I would like to share the success story of a Singaporean who has gone through CaliberLink. Having worked 22 years in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector, Mr Frank Ou took the bold step of starting his own fishing business in 2010. However, things were not to be and the 51-year-old's business venture folded a year later. While some would have become despondent, Frank was determined to quickly get back on his feet. Through CaliberLink's assistance, Frank secured an executive position in the Real Estate and Facilities Management sector. He also completed a Property Executive Conversion Programme, funded by WDA, which gave him the necessary skills for the new job. In today's economy and workplace, PMEs have no choice but to regularly upgrade and re-skill to progress as well as to remain relevant. Therefore, my Ministry and WDA will be introducing additional assistance for PMEs this year. First, WDA will expand the PME-level programmes that it funds, to include more areas, such as industry practitioner seminars, master classes, capability transfer and mentorship programmes. Second, we will expand upgrading pathways for PMEs through WSQ-aligned applied degree programmes. Besides graduating with a degree, students can also receive relevant WSQ certifications, which add value in terms of employer and industry recognition.”
“I shall elaborate on how we will further enhance our CET and employment facilitation efforts for both workers and companies, which are two very important thrusts in our overall strategy. 3.45 pm Our Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) prepare students for work by imparting to them the skills relevant to industry needs, while developing their character. But once they step into the workforce, they will need to constantly adapt, upgrade and re-skill in order to remain relevant in the fast-paced global economy. To help them, we have provided many pathways for Singaporeans to upgrade and, where necessary, to re-skill and move into growing industries. Our national WSQ system is competency-based and covers more than 30 sectors. An Industry Skills and Training Council (ISTC), comprising key players in the industry, is also established for each WSQ framework to ensure that the courses are relevant and meet industry needs. Two years ago, we introduced the Skills Training for Excellence Programme (STEP) targeted at PMEs to help them deepen their skills and expertise. STEP offers a wide range of courses tailored to the needs of PMEs in different sectors. There are now more than 830 courses under STEP, and over 65,000 PMEs have benefited from STEP. About 80 STEP scholarships have also been awarded in various sectors, such as Retail, Aerospace, Healthcare and Built Environment, to develop a PME talent core for these sectors. Page: 111 In the last two years, we have also strengthened employment facilitation services for PMEs. In 2011, we established CaliberLink, a one-stop service point to provide PMEs with training advisory and employment assistance.”
“With your permission, Madam, may I display an image of Mr Jason Chua on the screen? [A slide was shown to hon Members]. Mr Chua was a supervisor when he was sponsored by his employer, Gain City, to attend the WSQ Diploma in Retail Management on a part-time basis from 2007 to 2008. The programme was co-funded by WDA. Through the programme, Mr Chua gained new competencies like marketing strategies and management skills, which also strengthened his confidence. Through a combination of his continued hard work and newfound knowledge, he was promoted a year later to Assistant Manager, receiving a 20% salary increase. In 2011, Jason was further promoted to head a new department as Product Manager and tasked to grow Gain City's IT brands. He received a further salary increase of 25%. Nearly two years on, Gain City has enjoyed a 30% Page: 110 growth in its IT business and Jason continues to excel in his role. Jason Chua is not an isolated case. Madam, the survey findings which I shared earlier, as well as positive stories like Jason's, clearly demonstrate the benefits and positive outcomes of CET. We will continue to do more to encourage workers and employers to participate in training and get them to embrace a lifelong learning culture. Ms Jessica Tan and Mr Patrick Tay spoke about the challenges faced by PMEs. Indeed, we recognise that PMEs, the fastest-growing segment of our workforce, have diverse development needs and are a group we need to pay close attention to. Acting Minister Tan has touched on our multi-pronged strategy to create quality jobs for PMEs and help Singaporeans take on these jobs.”
“Ninety-four percent of Page: 109 trainees indicated that they were able to apply the skills they learnt, and 92% reported better work performance. The feedback from employers was likewise very encouraging. Ninety-five percent of employers found that WSQ training helped their workers perform better at work, and 74% indicated that it led to productivity improvement. In a separate longitudinal study, WDA also found out that workers who underwent WSQ training received higher wage increases, compared to workers without WSQ training. Although the results are encouraging, this is the first time we have conducted such a study. WDA will continue to closely monitor the outcomes of the WSQ training, so that we can further improve our CET system. I agree with Ms Sylvia Lim that we must minimise wastage in CET funding and I would like to assure her that WDA has put in place rigorous measures to mitigate this. Higher funding is provided to training which demonstrates stronger outcomes like job placements, wage increments and improved performance. Individuals who seek training assistance at the various CET touch points also have to undergo an assessment of their needs and suitability for training before being placed on courses. This will match training programmes to each individual's training needs. We also require co-payment for training to ensure that the individuals and the companies take training seriously. All these measures help to ensure that the majority of WSQ trainees pursue a career in that particular sector after training. WDA also actively tracks the job placement outcomes of the trainees. We note that most of the self-initiated trainees do find employment in the industry for which they are trained.”
“Mdm Chair, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam and Acting Minister Tan Chuan-Jin spoke about the need to restructure our economy. As we restructure our economy, some jobs may be lost despite our best efforts, but new, higher value-add jobs will be created. To seize these better jobs, Singaporeans have to equip themselves with the necessary skills. As part of our efforts to develop a Singaporean Core, we will continue to improve our Continuing Education and Training (CET) system to help Singaporeans up-skill and re-skill, so that they remain relevant and competitive. At the same time, we will ensure that growth is inclusive, and that more Singaporeans can benefit from it. As Mr Ong Teng Koon rightly pointed out, we need to continuously invest in CET for Singaporeans. In 2010, the Government committed to invest $2.5 billion over five years in CET to improve the coverage and the quality of our CET programmes and infrastructure, and upgrade our CET professionals. With our workforce working longer and with more rapid change in the global economy, we will need to expand CET funding over time to help our workers stay ahead of the curve. This ensures that our CET infrastructure and programmes remain relevant and accessible to all Singaporeans. Many Members have asked about the outcomes of our CET programmes. This is an area which the Manpower Ministry pays close attention to. To ensure that workers and companies achieve desired outcomes from these investments, WDA has been conducting annual surveys on the impact of CET Workforce Skills Qualification (WSQ) training since 2009. The 2012 survey findings indicate that an increasing proportion of both workers and employers find WSQ training beneficial.”