Ang Hin Kee
Singapore
“But the COVID-19 pandemic has already compelled even countries to relook at their longstanding economic strategy and even geared up to becoming less reliant on others.”
“Will the Ministry consider mirroring the approach taken in the pre-school sector? Childcare centres and kindergartens are licensed under the regulatory framework. This helps to enhance the affordability, accessibility and quality of our pre-schools.”
“Chairman, I have a clarification for the Senior Minister of State Lam. Beyond monitoring the take-up rate of training for aviation crew. I know that the Senior Minister of State takes a personal interest in many transport workers.”
“While we are happy to see those businesses continue to protect and look into the riders' interest but, in the longer term, we may need to consider whether we need to license the operators so that the responsible actions of a few will be the standard for all that are in the industry. With that, Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I support the Bill.”
“Mr Speaker, on the quarantine allowance, over the week, we have spoken to some taxi drivers and private hire drivers, they are very assured that if anyone of them is quarantined, there is a $100 daily allowance given by the Government.”
“One further point of clarification. Grab and Gojek and the likes of Uber are platform operators. When they came onto the Singapore scene, we spent quite a lot of time to persuade them to co-contribute to the MediSave; to find ways to support them in their training; to support them for their healthcare needs although they are freelance dri…”
The complete record
Every one of 282 lines we hold for Ang Hin Kee, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 3 of 6.
“Fortunately, the majority of our self-employed persons ensure that they do the responsible thing and, in fact, we are glad that the majority of self-employed persons are in their preferred occupation. Day to day, they face new platform intermediaries, such as Grab, IO Talents, Caregivers Asia, that are transforming the way businesses are run, making matching of services hassle-free. More consumers and self-employed persons now go to a common platform to find each other. For example, whether you need a cleaning service, photography service or chauffeured ride service. Consumers now have easier access and more choices when it comes to selecting services. Freelancers, on the other hand, get to pitch and market their services to a bigger pool of prospective clients. These intermediaries, however, are not obliged to perform the roles of an employer, such as making CPF contributions, or providing workplace insurance cover or medical leave for the freelancers. Some, however, do so voluntarily, contributing to the self-employed persons’ MediSave account or even providing insurance cover. The majority do not do so. Instead, they can easily remove freelancers from their platforms, have huge control over payment and work arrangements, and freely set their own commission rates. Their impact will be more significant, now that the number of gig workers using such platforms may be increasing. Mr Speaker, Sir, how do we ensure that the intermediaries are fair in their practices? For example, before penalising or removing self-employed workers due to the fact that they receive poor service ratings from their customers, has there been enough thorough checks done to ensure that those allegations are properly investigated?”
“Mr Speaker, one of the major shifts mentioned in this year's Budget speech is new technologies. Indeed, among the 200,000 self-employed persons or freelancers, many operate by using new technologies that either disrupted traditional businesses or created new markets. This new form of employment should not be confused with workers who have been wrongly classified. There are generally three types of self-employed persons: first group are those who chose this profession as the preferred choice; second group are those who chose it not as a preferred choice; and third, there may be those who may have been wrongly classified as freelancers. In this last category, the workers may be deployed as freelancers at the workplace and not counted as the company's headcount. However, they report for work and comply with the company's guidelines which are no different from salaried employees. These companies may have infringed the Employment Act and should be flagged out to MOM for investigations. In fact, all allegations, including possible tax evasions by freelancers who under-declare income, should be made to the relevant authorities. This is the only responsible way of ensuring that the issues are properly dealt with. We should do all we can not to wedge a divide as to which self-employed file tax properly and who under-declare their income. For hardworking cabbies, I hope we do not undermine their integrity by making unfounded, sweeping statements that they under-declare income or may have under-declared their income. On the contrary, Mr Speaker, Sir, we have been working with IRAS very closely to ensure that volunteer groups come into the taxi community to explain to the drivers how to file income tax returns and to do them properly.”
“One supplementary question for the Senior Minister of State is that he mentioned that by 2022, there will be autonomous vehicles or buses and shuttle buses serving PDD. Is that going to be island-wide? What is the potential for such autonomous vehicles being deployed across the island and will there be a displacement impact on drivers who currently take on such vocational jobs?”
“A supplementary question for Second Minister: what advice would she have for younger freelancers to start preparing for retirement adequacy before they reach 55 years old?”
“Beyond just ensuring that we have a healthy regulatory environment, Mr Speaker, we also need the right tools, the right people, the right players and the right culture. We have just started operations in Terminal 4. This is a key tourism infrastructure. We will need to continue to invest heavily into future-ready tools, make our travel manpower ready for the challenges ahead and create a platform for stakeholders to resolve disputes and set standards, so as to cement our status as a travel hub. Mr Speaker, I support the amendments. 5.05 pm”
“How will STB help to equip our travel agents and tour guides with the necessary skills and tools in order to compete in an ever-changing travel and tourism landscape? I am glad to learn that this amendment will enable certain exemptions for travel agent businesses that are niche and unique in nature. I think that is a step in the right direction. There is a strong impetus for STB to rally industry stakeholders to co-drive the transformation for the travel industry. In short, the authority cannot do it alone. It requires the commitment and partnership of everybody in the travel industry. I hope STB will have the staff to work alongside the travel industry's stakeholders to develop more professional agents and workforce. These are industry development and capability development in nature, not necessarily enforcement. A more professional travel industry will mean fewer instances of bad practices that will require regulatory intervention. How do we start building that culture? As they say, more dialogues can only mean more understanding and that is a good thing. To this end, I would like to suggest a conciliation service or a platform whereby STB can set it up with the unions, travel associations, agents, guides, to resolve disputes, to discuss matters and to set standards for professionalism. Such a platform will enable views to be heard, even though they may be diverging. Eventually, they will come to a convergence whereby it will be used to promote the betterment of the industry. Finally, I would like to commend STB for doing a great job in attracting tourists to Singapore and to facilitate our locals going overseas.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, we have heard of travel agents who defaulted in fulfilling their commitment to travellers, going bankrupt or shutting their business without giving notice to consumers or staff. How do we ensure that the interests of consumers and tour guides and even staff who are engaged by the travel agents are safeguarded? I agree with Mr Desmond Choo's emphasis on the vulnerability of guides and the need to do more to protect them, as well as Mr Lim Biow Chuan's plea for us to do more to safeguard the interest of consumers. We need to keep a tight rein on offenders and a tighter rein on repeat offenders, especially the key appointment holders and directors of travel agencies. Giving STB more or new powers to impose financial penalties, suspend or revoke a licence is a strong indication that we want to safeguard our reputation as a reliable travel hub. We want a healthy travel eco-system with honest players. My question is: will the amendments make errant travel agents act more responsibly? Or will it lead to a cat-and-mouse scenario whereby evading the regulators becomes the mode of operation? I am, therefore, keen to know if STB will have adequate manpower and authority to intervene and act when signs of early concerns are detected. The Minister earlier mentioned that they will be able to act more promptly. But I think the need is to really focus on them coming in to rectify the issue rather than when major damage has been committed. Apart from regulations, Mr Speaker, we also need to evolve a culture of co-ownership and investing to grow the industry. Technological advances, coupled with changes in consumer travel habits, have seen the travel agent business evolve. We need to keep track of what is happening elsewhere. How future-ready is our travel industry?”
“I would like to ask if the Ministry or agency finds challenges in attracting MTL early childhood teachers and what are the challenges faced in trying to attract and retain local teachers to enter this particular subject specialisation.”
“I would like to seek a clarification from the Ministry whether or not, in the Minister of State's experience, were there cases whereby the SEP deployed by the company or the services purchased by the company were people who were disguised contract-for-service? What I mean is basically that these companies should have hired them. Instead, they purchased their services under this contract-for-service, therefore, making them self-employed. What has the Ministry's experience been like?”
“Mdm Speaker, a supplementary question. How does LTA, therefore, ensure that traffic signs are also visible and well-maintained?”
“I agree with what the Minister mentioned earlier for us not to just look at cohort size going to the universities, let us also not look at how many percent find jobs, but rather, whether will they be able to meet job requirements not of today's but also for future needs. Having a job today does not mean that you are ready with adaptable skills for the future. So, with the university's focus on lifelong learning, I am confident that SUSS will be able to enable our adult learners to find jobs for today as well as jobs for tomorrow. With that, I support the Bill.”
“On the Minister's note about Applied Social Sciences, I would like to suggest that we could also ensure that beyond social work, early childhood and HR, there could be other applied contents, such as counselling, coaching, organisation behaviour, clinical psychology, data analytics, consumer behaviour and even labour management relations to complement HR content. These, I believe, are useful knowledge that graduands will find that the workplace strongly requires many of our students to possess. Furthermore, I would also like to encourage the Ministry to consider working with SUSS to include corporate governance, cross cultural knowledge, business ethics and corporate sustainability as applicable knowledge that the workplace will require and, if these could be modules in the university, I believe it will be an advantage that SUSS will be able to possess. The Minister earlier mentioned that they will be working with the lecturers, SkillsFuture and sectoral representatives to ensure that the content will be relevant to the workplace. I am very confident that with this approach, there will be a competency-based system ensuring that the graduands stay updated, having possessed skills and knowledge that are required at the workplace. Deputy Speaker, in conclusion, I am confident that the learning in the new university can have a strong weightage assigned to relevance to the market and content with a strong emphasis on applied learning. Whilst our graduate employment rate remains healthy at 90% after six months of graduation, I hope that we do not see that as the only yardstick.”
“For working people, I hope that MOE will consider how, at the enrolment phase, to allow working people with workplace experience to be given special consideration when enrolling in a university place in SUSS. Furthermore, for those of them who have participated in internship programmes, or those who have acquired experience in the SkillsFuture Earn and Learn programme, that these be considered additional admission points when they are applying for a place in the university. The reason for doing so is to continue what they have learnt at the workplace so that they can re-learn and un-learn and learn new skills at SUSS. On the academic field, I hope there will be a good representation of lecturers or guest speakers who are experts in their respective industries or respective fields so that the students can learn from the best, not just from lecturers, but also from industry practitioners. The lecturers and speakers in the university should have the appropriate pedagogy on providing adult learners with authentic learner engagements and also the ability to integrate work experiences into the tertiary curriculum. On a related note, I would like to declare my interest as an Executive Secretary of the Education Services Union. As we transit UniSIM into an AU, we should also prepare the non-academic staff in the university for this transition. In their new work environment, student engagements, requirements from MOE, there may be new yardsticks, new key performance indicators (KPIs). I hope that the management will work closely with the union to ensure that the workers on the ground will be able to manage this transition without being impacted by the change.”
“Deputy Speaker, with UniSIM set to become our newest and sixth AU, I think this is a great opportunity for us to chart a different learning experience for SUSS graduands. As mentioned by the Minister, there will be a strong SkillsFuture focus and I suggest also that it means "the now" and "the later". It means that our graduates should meet the skill requirements of jobs, that is, now, but also be adaptable to learn how to meet changing workplace needs. The alignment to SkillsFuture, as mentioned by the Minister earlier, is very closely to what we know about the brand that UniSIM currently carries. It is traditionally known for its focus on continuing education and training for adult learners. Many of the students enrolled in its programmes, continuing their education in a degree on a part-time basis, are all working adults. And today, they have a good mix of young and old students who hail from diverse backgrounds, adding to a rich learning experience. As a champion for lifelong leaning, I am glad the new AU will continue to retain its distinctive offering and stay relevant to working professionals as the university for lifelong learning. Beyond that, I look forward to SUSS being closely aligned to our direction of providing Singaporeans with the opportunity to attain mastery of skills. Working adults, having already had a taste of working life, will now better understand the skills gaps and needs at the workplace, and they are eager to hone their skills and competencies. I am very confident that the new university will be able to bridge that gap. I agree that we need to inculcate a culture of lifelong learning amongst our students and help our workers pick up industry-relevant skills and transferrable skills.”
“This continuing growth will lead to an increase in pressure on skilled manpower, in competition with other sectors that have growing manpower needs. At the same time, the improved regulatory regime will no doubt increase the requirements, including manpower training, for operators in this sector. Only one question: despite the fact that the excess capacity is a sign of responsiveness by the Government, it comes at a cost. How has the Ministry been managing this cost? Quality of Childcare”
“Despite these increases, the strong growth in demand is likely to continue. As average household sizes fall, as the number of households with both parents working rises, and as older persons extend their participation in the workforce, childcare needs will have to be increasingly taken up by service providers. This is clearly a happy situation from a demographic perspective. Even though we are far from reversing low birth rates, this indicates that a combination of efforts is making inroads. However, the day-to-day situation is much more complex and full of coordination challenges for both parents and childcare providers. On the one hand, we have heard, as well as seen, rapid increases in demand for childcare and preschool services. Colleagues in this House often remind us that they come across working couples with young children who depend heavily on childcare and preschool support and, are very sensitive to gaps in supply. One common situation we have heard of often occurs in new housing developments, when there is a lag between new childcare centres that commence operations and when residents shift into a development. This suggests that it is not just the quantity of demand that is increasing, the pattern of demand changes is also adding to the pressure on service providers. These gaps occur against a backdrop in which there is not only no shortage of overall capacity, there has, in fact, been excess capacity of around 15% since 2008. According to the latest published figures, and even before taking into account the Finance Minister's recent Budget speech update, the excess capacity has been increasing and reached 23% in 2015. That is a lot of excess capacity.”
“This registry can serve as an alternative solution for parents who are unable to take leave or seek childcare support from family members to care for their children when the kids are unwell or come down with infectious diseases, such as Hand, Foot and Mouth. Can ECDA coordinate with Government agencies to operate schemes and grants to help preschools tap on or work with partner vendors to set up systems, whether in the design of their programme or setting up apps to tie up for this thing of a registry of allied care-takers so that parents can gain access to resources to help them in minding their children? Supply of Childcare and Preschool Services Assoc Prof Randolph Tan (Nominated Member): Mdm Chairman, in this Budget, Finance Minister Heng has announced a doubling in the capacity of centre-based infant care to be achieved by 2020. This is just the latest expansion in funding for this sector that we have seen over the last few years. As the Finance Minister mentioned in his Budget Statement, the current capacity is already enough to accommodate more than half of all children between 18 months and six years of age. Beyond increases in capacity, the Government has also been focused on quality of childcare provision and the training of manpower. Just last week, the House passed the Early Childhood Development Centres Bill which will impose additional requirements on all kindergartens and childcare centres, including a stricter licensing regime. Since the number of births began its somewhat tentative recovery from the record lows around a decade ago, we have seen a large increase in childcare centres, with the number growing by two-thirds from 2008 to 2015. The number of centres providing infant care services grew by much more during that time, 245%.”
“To make sure our children receive quality care and education in their foundation years, the Government and, specifically, ECDA, has made substantial investments in the early childhood sector over the past years. Madam, more preschools are built to cater to growing demand and the Singapore Preschool Accreditation Framework has been put in place to make sure that the centres meet quality standards. The recent tightening of the regulatory framework to raise quality is another good move. Given the rapid expansion of childcare facilities in recent years, what are the Ministry's plans to fill shortages in manpower, especially in the area of infant care? What else can an individual or centre operators do to contribute to the need for more manpower? Can we explore new job roles, such as that of an allied role, to support and complement the work of the infant and childcare teachers? The scope of work can focus on child-minding, routine care of children and helping with early detection of symptoms of infectious diseases, such as Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease, or to look out for signs when a child is feeling unwell. They can also help with child-minding work on Saturdays, while the teachers concentrate on curriculum planning or attend training. This allied role will open up new job opportunities for the elderly and stay-at-home moms who wish to take up this kind of job. Most would be a good natural fit for the job as they would have relevant experiences and skillsets caring for their children or grandchildren. Will the Ministry also explore setting up a registry of allied care-takers?”
“Earlier, the Minister mentioned that people calling up taxi operators for the person over the other side of the phone to book a taxi, that being relatively overtaken by third-party apps and the likes of other bookings. So, if that is already obsolete, will, therefore, the Call Catering Quality of Standard yardstick be removed from the taxi operators' standards?”
“Madam, I have a question for Minister Ng Chee Meng. He mentioned earlier that he found that the calls made to taxi operators being rather ineffective and already overtaken by disruption. Therefore, I would like to ask if he will work with LTA to remove Call Catering from the Quality of Standard yardstick measurement for taxi operators.”
“Changi Airport Terminal 4, slated to open in the latter part of this year, will be our latest aviation investment to be realised. As part of the Committee on the Future Economy's (CFE) recommendations, aviation falls under one of the sectors identified to have an Industry Transformation Map to up productivity and workers' skills and to promote innovation and adoption of technology. How is the newest airport terminal a showcase of industry transformation? What are the efforts to develop and implement productivity initiatives for higher efficiencies in airport operations, such as baggage handling and cargo management, at Terminal 4? How are the roles of workers in Terminal 4 different from Terminals 1, 2 and 3? For example, will there be less reliance on manpower and manual work; and a bigger push for automation, self-serve counters for commuters and even the use of robotics? Competitiveness of Singapore Sea Port”
“Can we allow for the cycling infrastructure, such as docking stations and smart locks systems, be extended to other private bicycles and PMDs not on the national bicycle-sharing scheme as well?”
“We are on track to achieving a car-lite environment with a well-connected bus and train network, more sheltered walkways and the push for bicycles and PMDs. To make our city bicycle-friendly will entail building cycling infrastructure, extensive cycling paths that are clearly marked out, and putting up signages. With our cycling tracks gradually getting more crowded because they are popular with more cyclists and PMD users, we all need to do more to promote a cycling culture and inculcate a mindset for all on safety and etiquette, such as giving way to cyclists, road users and pedestrians. As Minister Khaw mentioned earlier, Ang Mo Kio has completed Phase 1 of its dedicated cycling path project. I wonder if his Ministry has an initial assessment of its effectiveness and what lessons have we learnt from this project. The national bicycle-sharing scheme to be piloted in some areas by year-end is another good initiative. Will the Ministry consider extending this scheme to Ang Mo Kio as well? The necessary infrastructure is already in place to support the rolling out of such a scheme. Apart from the national bicycle-sharing scheme, other privately operated schemes are also in play. Are there plans to have more of these schemes ply other parts of the island which are not covered in the pilot trial of the national bicycle-sharing scheme? And what concerns will the Ministry have with regard to these privately run schemes? In addition, how would the privately run bicycle-sharing scheme be addressing safety concerns? For example, how will the users' minimum age be ascertained should they participate in the bicycle-sharing scheme and use it on the roads? Beyond bicycle-sharing, can we also push for greater inclusiveness and more efficient use of resources?”
“There are about 100,000 people who possess a Taxi Driver Vocational Licence (TDVL). However, only about half of them are actively driving a taxi. Some of them have commented that hiring agreements with taxi operators are cumbersome and opportunities to drive a taxi on a part-time basis are limited. Today, there are more flexible hiring options, including even an hourly rental scheme. Will the Ministry, therefore, consider piloting a trial to encourage inactive TDVL holders to keep their licence and driving skills current by driving a taxi? As an incentive, the Ministry can consider reducing their licence renewal fee if they clock a stipulated minimum number of hours driving taxis on the roads within the year. Secondly, there is the impact of a double whammy. The new diesel tax does translate to additional business costs burden on taxi drivers. Cabbies told me that they want to be made more competitive and not to seek less competition. So, will LTA consider reviewing the overall business operating costs of the taxi business, to seek new and effective ways to manage rental costs incurred by drivers, especially since they are also facing intense competition from private hire car drivers as well? Public Transport for Disabled”
“Freelancing work is becoming an attractive option either on a full-time, part-time or project basis. Freelancers make up about close to 10% of the workforce. Aided by the emergence of the "sharing economy" platforms, this work has become more feasible for many. While freelancers do have some flexibility of time, they face concerns, such as an unstable income stream, inadequate savings for retirement and, sometimes, lack of protection when disputes between them and the service buyer occur. I look forward to the results of the survey by MOM which will reveal changes and trends in the freelancing landscape. It was also announced earlier that the Ministry is forming a task force to address the concerns faced by freelancers. This, I believe, will help us tackle the issues surrounding freelancers in a targeted manner. I have myself seen how the Minister for Manpower act on his concerns or the needs of low-wage workers, PMEs, foreign workers, including conservancy workers. He has put in place laws to be enforced, jobs that are redesigned, contracts that are best sourced, and machinery put in place to help the work of, for example, conservancy workers. So, the cases highlighted earlier by Mr Png Eng Huat about modern slaves in the conservancy work is a very serious one. Because if there are such cases, they should be highlighted to MOM to be investigated and action taken against those employers. I hope those cases will be surfaced to MOM and action taken. I would also like to ask the Manpower Minister how his team will go about gathering views of the freelancer communities and aggregators to identify their freelancing concerns. Will there be focus group and feedback channels? What are the Minister's own concerns pertaining to the challenges facing freelancers?”
“I hope we can continue to render targeted support for SMEs and their workers as well as freelancers to help them operate and thrive in the future economy. I am very confident that our SMEs, our SMEs' workers and freelancers can do their part to stay resilient, adaptable and be bold to experiment with new ideas. Madam, I support the Budget.”
“The union also work with the taxi operators to facilitate training, offer hardship grant and funds to aid taxi drivers in need. Moreover, taxi operators also co-contribute to their hirers' MediSave contribution on this drive-and-save scheme. This level of support, while not very extensive and comprehensive, still shows a stark contrast to what other freelancers in the market enjoy. We hope other sectors can at least take the first step and follow suit. In fact, various Government agencies work closely with freelancers in their respective industry development plans. We hope that the Government can also take the lead and work with the freelancers and the various buyers in that community to ensure that measures can be rolled out to better protect and give support to the freelancers. Recently, the Manpower Minister shared that his Ministry has started to gather information on the changing freelancing landscape in Singapore. The purpose is to better understand the profiles of these freelancers, to find out if freelancing is their primary or secondary source of income, as well as the various sectors and occupations they are in. This information will be very helpful because, today, many people are drawing anecdotes and examples they hear and, therefore, we need to rely on official sets of information to guide us. We hope that the data will help us to monitor the workforce trends, study the needs and issues faced by freelancers, and thereafter effectively put in place appropriate measures to safeguard the interests of freelancers. Madam, Budget 2017 is a budget for the future, and brings Singapore and our businesses and workers towards the next phase of growth.”
“Unlike that of a freelancer who can decide to pick up projects or do it anytime, this particular group find that they are strictly controlled by the service buyers. However, the onus lies entirely on the workers to ensure that they receive timely payment, manage their own medical and insurance, and contribute to their own CPF savings. Unlike employed workers, freelancers do not earn a fixed salary and are also, therefore, not entitled to various statutory protections, such as annual leave, medical leave and so on. Common challenges faced by freelancers include payment, late or sometimes none at all; the need to have intellectual property protection; income instability and running the risk of not saving enough for medical and retirement needs. Mdm Speaker, freelancers are working people who also deserve to enjoy protection. As we gear up for the future economy, our employment practices and laws need to be robust, inclusive and cover all groups of working people and to ensure that no one is left behind. We can perhaps take a leaf from how the taxi industry has evolved. Taxi drivers who are self-employed are not covered under any Employment Act, although recently we have just announced that there is a group of them who can opt to take on the employee model with the new taxi operator HDT. Together with LTA, the taxi operator works with the National Taxi Association to start up a mediation centre back in 2014. This allows the self-employed, such as taxi drivers, to come together to have disputes and issues resolved through mediation rather than through civil suits and other platforms. This is a good move by this taxi operator with the other stakeholders.”
“The next challenge is to reach out to and extend assistance to many other SMEs to help them transform their businesses, innovate and scale up so that their staff at their workplace can also benefit. I will now move on to speak about how we can better support a new and emerging group of working people. There are over 180,000 freelancers and the self-employed and, this figure, by many accounts, is expected to climb. Very often, individuals opt for freelance work to pursue their own passion and interests, or simply that is how some of the industries today operate. With the rise of the gig economy, it is timely that we address challenges faced by those who choose freelance work, either on a full-time, part-time or project basis. This is especially relevant with some of them making it as a career choice. Some graduates I met even consider starting it as their first career, instead of going on the traditional employee/employer model. We have also heard of how traditional sectors, such as transport and services, are also impacted with the convenience of online apps and the sharing economy. The way services are delivered is now transformed, with the likes of private hire services, cleaning, grocery shopping or food delivery services gaining traction. For some of these workers, they may hold the title of freelancer or self-employed in name. However, they have little control and/or bargaining power over their work. Some even have to put on uniforms of the buyers that they serve while on duty and carry the brand on their bikes or bicycles for the services that they render. Very often than not, the payment structure and work arrangement are heavily controlled by the service buyers.”
“In this particular instance, the Association of Early Childhood and Training Services worked in collaboration with the NTUC's e2I, Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) and Workforce Singapore. Some SMEs may be members of informal groups. Can we also allow these groups to be eligible to receive the support if they have an innovative idea that can move and transform their sector? In 2015, for example, the Earn and Learn Scheme was rolled out to attract more graduates to join SMEs. The coverage of industries was fairly small with limited places. I hope more sectors can be included and more vacancies generated for SMEs to attract more fresh graduates. Recently, I received feedback about the Earn and Learn Scheme for the logistics sector and the results for the polytechnic students have been more than encouraging. So, with more millennials entering the workforce, some SME employers also express the need to be better prepared to guide and communicate with them. These young workers' perception of work and aspirations vary very differently from their older colleagues. I hope SkillsFuture Singapore can provide training support to help line managers to do a better job at helping the workers assimilate into the workplace. Equally important is to help existing staff learn to effectively communicate and work alongside these young workers. We heard from many SMEs that they want to do more for training and have asked for some more support. They hope to see more being done for targeted in-house training programmes with bite-size modules. This will cater to their shortage of time and sometimes inability to release their staff for training at a particular centre. Many SMEs which were early adopters of different Government schemes have benefited.”
“Mdm Speaker, this year's Budget is set to prepare us for the future and build an innovative and connected economy. To this end, there is support for both businesses and workers. I will touch on SMEs and their workers, as well as freelance workers and how Budget 2017 will impact them. Organised by the unit for SMEs at NTUC, I met with SME owners from different sectors at forums and learning journeys. Some shared with me their challenges how to migrate into the digital space and needing a one-stop solution, among other concerns. Thus, it is timely that there will be the SMEs Go Digital Programme and Technology Hub which can help SMEs tap on digital solutions, build capabilities and boost productivity. Connecting the Technology Hub to the existing network of SME Centres, including USME at NTUC, will also help more businesses to receive advisory, access grant and get step-by-step aid on technology adoption and solutions. Trade associations and chambers have also been identified as multipliers to lead industry-level initiatives and can support SMEs scale up and be more competitive. For example, recently, the Early Childhood and Education sector announced a centralised meal catering project. Meals for childcare centres are now prepared in a central kitchen and delivered to participating centres. The centres benefit from time and cost savings, properly prepared nutritious meals and, I am quite sure, healthy and less sugar and no fried food, and the jobs of cooks can also be redesigned. This Lean Enterprise Development Scheme project is one good example of how industry can take the lead.”
“Finally, a less than desirable situation will see even bigger operators raise fees to deal with higher compliance costs. I can understand that operators need additional resources and time towards putting in place administrative tracking to fulfil the compliance requirements. I hope that under the strategies identified by the Committee on the Future Economy (CFE), assistance will be available to help centre operators do more with the same resources. This should help to bring about significant improvements in the overall efficiency for both the operators as well as the sector. Madam, I support this Bill.”
“Hence, I urge the Ministry and the trade association to take a firm stance against operators who do so. We, in the union, stand ready to work with the Ministry and trade association to work out proper guidelines when operators conduct checks and inquiries. At the same time, I hope the licensing framework also takes into account where there is evidence of unfair treatment meted out by the operators against their staff. Will the Ministry consider having measures to encourage whistle-blowers from among the centres to come forward and share their insights if they know of any ill practices? Furthermore, sudden and unexpected closure of centres have also resulted in loss of income for the teachers and staff. I know of operators who have been cited by the authorities to pay staff who are owed wages but they have been uncooperative. I hope the regulatory agency will be given more muscle to compel the operators to comply, rather than having the staff to resort to filing civil claims. In this context, the Ministry can coordinate with the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) or the union to find out more details. Secondly, on unintended consequences, smaller operators with limited resources may also find it tough as they gear up to comply with the new regulatory requirements. Many of them are genuine in wanting to provide and deliver professional quality care to their children. We should not end up with only big players who are the only ones who can meet the requirements. I hope the Ministry and trade association can work together to assist smaller operators transform their operations, not just to meet the higher compliance requirements but also to ensure that their staff upgrade, their operations are streamlined and they take advantage of available technology.”
“Mdm Speaker, I stand in support of the Bill. Currently, there are over 1,300 childcare centres in Singapore, with close to 500 of them offering infant care services at the same premises. Together with about 500 kindergartens, they provide preschool services so that our children can receive quality care and education in their foundation years. Amongst them, there are small and medium enterprises as well as bigger ones with more than 10 branches each. Regardless of the scale, it is important that all operators deliver high levels of professional care and services. Under this Bill, operators with ill practices will either shape up or exit the market. The tightening of the regulatory framework to raise centre quality by safeguarding the well-being of the children and, to a certain extent, the staff, is to be applauded. Madam, I would like to also declare my interest as the Executive Secretary of the Education Services Union. At the union, we, too, received complaints against the management of childcare centres by early childhood educators. These concern issues with regard to salaries and even abdication of responsibilities by the management. These incidents serve as reminders on the need for a rigorous system to ensure that lapses in management can be detected early or prevented. I feel that we do need to avoid some unintended consequences and strengthen work in other areas. Firstly, with tighter compliance, some early childhood educators are concerned that operators may unfairly pass on all responsibilities to them in cases where non-compliance or gaps are detected. It is disconcerting to the educators if it is perceived that operators command the rights and can transfer all or a majority of the responsibilities to their staff.”
“A question for the Minister. Recently, LTA doubled the licensing fees for taxi operators from 0.01% to 0.02%. Earlier, the Minister mentioned that there is no plan to currently impose licensing fees on private hire operators. It basically has some irony to that because taxi operators have a lot more rules to comply with and there is doubling of their fees. Whereas now we got to supervise and monitor this group, but there is no fee charged to them and, therefore, other groups have to incur the fees that have to be paid. Perhaps the Ministry should consider and review this process of not charging the fee on the private hire operators.”
“02% of the total revenue collected by the private hire car operators. The purpose is to align the fees that LTA currently collects from taxi operators for the purposes of transport planning, enforcement, monitoring and related needs. Similarly, I believe that LTA will need to hire more staff, deploy enforcement officers and lay the necessary groundwork needed to incorporate PHC into its work. These costs, Madam, I feel, should also be recovered from the PHC operators as well. Madam, I support the Bill. 6.00 pm”
“For now, the onus is not only on the drivers to be properly certified, but also on the service providers who will need to up their game, put in place a robust and rigorous system to ensure that their drivers and vehicles are in compliance. In this amendment, I hope to seek two clarifications from the Ministry. First, will LTA be setting up a feedback channel to update and inform commuters, when a particular PHC booking service provider has been suspended? It will be useful for commuters and tourists to get timely information on the different commuting options and their availability. Secondly, what if a PHC booking service provider "re-offends" repeatedly and receives a suspension order a few times? Will LTA also consider "revoking" their eligibility to operate and not allow them to offer their services to PHC drivers and commuters? Let me come back to my earlier point about anti-competition. I hope the Ministry can also ensure that PHC drivers are not bounded by anti-competition practices. We should have a free market situation whereby a driver can switch company or choose to use whichever platforms he deems suitable or useful to him. When he leases a car to use for reward and hire purposes, it should not confine him to only using a specific PHC booking service platform. Such an environment will be essential, for example, when a particular booking platform has been suspended and the driver can choose to use other platforms to ensure that his business or livelihood is not affected. In the amendment, I also support empowering LTA to come up with rules and regulations to prescribe the duties and responsibilities of PHC booking service operators. I would like to, however, suggest one new inclusion, that is, to impose a licensing fee of perhaps 0.”
“Mdm Speaker, let me first declare my interest as an Executive Adviser of the National Taxi Association. I concur with what the Minister has shared; the proposed amendments serve to further enhance the safety for private hire car (PHC) users and, to a certain extent, level the playing field for taxis. Suspension rules have been in place for commuter safety for a long time. This is not an onerous requirement as compared to what other public service vehicles like taxi operators are subjected to. So, I was a bit perturbed when, earlier, hon Member Mr Dennis Tan shared that suspension sounds onerous. But my point is, is not revocation even more onerous? In 2013, taxi operator Smart had to exit from a lucrative taxi market. Why? Because the company did not have its operator licence renewed by LTA. This was due to the fact that the operator had consistently failed to meet quality standards, such as call booking catering rate, accident rate and first inspection passing rate and so on. Consequently, its fleet of about 270 taxi drivers was unable to ply the roads. Fortunately, the drivers were able to join other taxi operators as there were no anti-competition rules binding them, a point that I will come back to discuss at a later stage. The suspension order of up to a month serves as a deterrent to errant drivers and the PHC booking service providers. Steps in the right direction include increasing the safety and reliability of these new commuting options, such as requiring all drivers to be vocationally licensed, go through proper background checks and medical checks as well, be subjected to regulations on insurance adequacy checks and ensuring that their vehicles are approved and licensed to operate as public service vehicles.”
“Thank you, Minister, for the update. There are also privately-leased cars in the market today that are being used for private hire purposes. For new fleets that are coming on board, how would the Ministry ensure that they will also install similar features, whether it be airbags or other features that enhance safety. And in the implementation process, how do you balance the cost issue versus the safety issue, so that the cost will not be passed on to the commuters or the drivers who lease the vehicle in a manner that makes it impractical for them to do so?”
“I thank the Minister for his elaborate answer. I have one clarification which is, in many of the other services industry, you have services such as home care services whereby physiotherapists go to people's home to provide care. Will ECDA be exploring the option of having a list of potential nannies or care-givers who can be deployed to homes in the event that the parents have exhausted their leave or are unable to take leave to be at home with their child? Because many a times, because of work reason or other reasons, they have already exhausted what available resource they have, and having such external resource may be the only other means for them to care for the children when they contracted HFMD.”
“I would just like to clarify, earlier the Minister mentioned that his Ministry is increasing the capacity of training in the polytechnics for early childhood educators. I wonder if the Ministry has a dedicated policy to also expand the capacity in privately-run operations, whether it is the SEED Institute, KLC International Institute and the other institutes that train early childhood educators. Will we be also expanding their capacity, so that the pipeline of teachers coming into the industry will be ensured?”
“Can I seek a clarification from the Minister? For the cases where the businesses ceased operations and majority of them ceased operations, will the owners or the directors be allowed to start new businesses or take up directorships in other businesses while they continue to not pay the salaries that were owed to the workers that were approved by the Labour Court?”
“On top of that, if we also have appropriate facilities, then our travelling speed may become slower, but accidents will become less, and everyone's journey will be more pleasant and convenient.”
“Some of my residents use their PMDs to go to the community centre (CC) to exercise or attend classes. However, it is not convenient for them to bring these devices into their classroom and they cannot leave their PMDs outside with peace of mind. I will have some transparent storage cabinets installed at Cheng San Community Centre and increase bicycle parking spaces. This will make it more convenient for my residents. In order to have more such facilities, we need facilitation from MOT. If MOT can help shopping malls and other places to convert some parking spaces into parking storage facilities for bicycles, PABs and PMDs, it will make things more convenient for their users. The fourth and the last suggestion is to increase safety awareness. We are all very familiar with the Highway Code. The Code is akin to a road usage guideline, listing down the proper behaviour of a road user to prevent accidents from happening. As PMD users increase, we not only need to educate drivers of the importance of safe driving, we must also pay attention to PMD users. Although currently, the latter do not need to pass any driving test, it will be beneficial for them if they could attend online learning and test. Similarly, the Government can also consider amending the teaching materials and include important information with regard to PMDs into the Highway Code, thus improving drivers' safety awareness of PMD users. This can increase our overall sense of safety. Ultimately, I hope to see that every pedestrian, every PMD user and every driver is willing to share our limited space by being considerate and courteous to others, as well as abiding by the rules.”
“The Bill has listed down unlawful behaviours of PMD users, such as using a PAB as an e-scooter and illegal modifications, which could jeopardise the safety of others. The design and speed limits of some roads in industrial zones and highways may not be suitable for co-use by bicycles or PABs. Can we tighten rules with regard to the usage of these roads? Perhaps we can put up more noticeable signs or ban bicycles or PABs from using these roads? I have seen a mother taking her child to school on a PMD. Although it is convenient, we should not allow it because of safety reasons. If possible, we should have rules, such as only one passenger is allowed and that both should also wear appropriate protective gear, like a helmet. Third, we should have appropriate facilities for PMDs. To encourage more people to use public transport and PMDs, we must improve our road design, display appropriate signs or create designated lanes for PMDs. Earlier, some Members mentioned that, when it comes to road design, we can have traffic calming measures, such as narrowing the road and creating roundabouts, to limit car speed and improve road safety. Starting from last month, foldable bikes and other PMDs can be taken into MRT trains and buses. This is very good news. Perhaps, for the next stage, we can consider setting up designated MRT cars for people to board and alight the train. This way, they will not affect other passengers. I have seen some coffeeshops providing charging facilities for customers to charge their devices. I am also glad to see new MRT stations having more bicycle and PAB parking facilities. LTA is also gradually expanding the parking facilities at existing MRT stations. Now, there are more people who go out on bicycles or PMDs to work, school or shopping malls.”
“Mdm Speaker, in Mandarin, please. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Mdm Speaker, I support this Bill. The Government encourages more people to use bicycles and other PMDs in order to build a car-lite society and offer Singaporeans more mobility choices. If this is to be successful, we need legislation to list down what are the appropriate behaviours of PMD users and the rules by which retailers must abide by when selling or modifying PMDs . Next, we need to create a good environment for walking and have suitable facilities. For example, the designated bicycle lanes in Ang Mo Kio, the redesigned wider lanes along Bencoolen Road, and additional bicycle parking facilities, will make things easier and safer for pedestrians and PMD users. More importantly, pedestrians, PMD users and drivers need to have the right mindset in terms of sharing the road with one another. This cannot be done by legislation alone. I have four suggestions for the Ministry of Transport's (MOT's) consideration. First, the operators need to be more responsible. The importers should not only import up-to-standard PMDs, but also introduce PMDs with more safety features. The retailers should also proactively teach their customers how to use PMDs properly. They can consider collaborating with certain groups to teach buyers how to use their PMDs safely. How about repair service providers? They can consider recording or taking photos of the repair work details. MOT can also recommend repair companies that uphold a high safety standard to people who require repair services. Second, the scope of enforcement should also be more comprehensive.”
“Recently, I attended a job fair organised by e2i at one of the community centres. I noticed that employers who had placed jobs were familiar employers. They have been active before. They have adopted the suite of programmes the Minister recommended. I would like to ask the Minister to give an assessment about the other late majority, other employers who have placed jobs in the Jobs Bank but have not come out very actively to participate in job Page: 41 fairs. How do we, therefore, nudge them to be more proactive in placing locals and adopting the suite of programmes that he mentioned earlier?”
“A follow-up question for the Senior Minister of State. Let me declare my interest as the advisor for the National Taxi Association. Taking a step back, is it better that we have three categories of drivers, keeping the traditional limo drivers as a separate licence group, the taxi drivers as the first original group and then create a licence group for the private hire Page: 13 drivers from Uber and Grab? Right now, to simplify matters, we have added the traditional limo group into the Uber and Grab group and, therefore, you would require even the traditional group that had been driving without this requirement and new creation, to comply with all the rules. I thought the Ministry could take one step back and see that there are three categories of licences, so that the rules for Uber and Grab drivers become specific to their requirements and vocation, rather than have them mixed up.”
“Madam, I read with great interest the Walking and Cycling Plans for new developments that developers have to put in place. For existing developers, are there items or schemes that the Ministry of Transport (MOT) may consider encouraging them to also do likewise, so that they can provide especially storage facilities? I have visited and met some personal mobility device users who tend to carry their devices, whether e-scooters or hoverboards, to training classrooms or gyms. They have to move around with those equipment because there is no other proper place to store them.”
“Just the back bench. Mr Chairman, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment. [(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $428,699,800 for Head U ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)] [(proc text) The sum of $59,366,600 for Head U ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]”