Heng Chee How
Singapore
“And in the case of overseas training, then there will be specific link-ups into the systems of our overseas partners, for example, if there is a need to further send the injured NSman to the local hospitals for more specialised treatment, that, too, was all planned in as well in terms of the protocols.”
“In addition to conducting regular exchanges with their professional counterparts, SAF personnel in our overseas training detachments participate actively in local community life and contribute back to the local communities, thus contributing to the strengthening of bilateral ties.”
“Mr Chairman, I thank Mr Giam for his question. The NS allowance, the nature of it, it is in a form of honorarium and for that, CPF is not payable. However, I just wanted to emphasise two points. One, within the NS journey, they are actually eligible for NS HOME Awards, which are paid out in the course of the NSmen's journey.”
“Mr Chairman, as we look forward, MINDEF/SAF’s commitment to NS and to our NSmen remains steadfast. We will continue to enhance the NS experience, maximise the contributions of our NSmen, and strengthen recognition for their service.”
“Mr Speaker, we have shown care for our older workers as a Government, as tripartite partners, not only in words but in deeds. As a result, we have made very substantial progress for our older workers, often bucking global trends. The environment we must deal with will be increasingly challenging.”
“Ultimately, fighting age discrimination is not only a legal matter nor is it just a moral imperative. It is also an economic necessity that will help sustain long-term prosperity for all.”
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“The Government is certainly doing its part to energise skills building for the benefit of workers and companies in this Budget. In terms of enabling skills building through funding, the Government is introducing the next bound of SkillsFuture through this Budget. There will be more money given to individuals and companies to undertake training via SkillsFuture. There will be a second top-up of $500 to the SkillsFuture accounts of all Singaporeans aged 25 and above, while middle-age workers will get an additional $500. There will also be a new SkillsFuture Enterprise grant to defray up to 90% of companies' business transformation, training and job redesign costs. These incentives, together with substantial existing grants and subsidies from ESG, Workforce Singapore and other economic agencies, again go to show the Government's firm belief in enabling individual and corporate investment in building skills and capabilities for greater competitiveness and in enhancing the employment and employability of our workers. On the Labour Movement's part, as elaborated by my fellow Labour Member of Parliament colleagues earlier, we introduced last year the CTCs as platforms to bring companies and unions into partnership over skills building, and to inject Government resources and support for such initiatives through this channel and platform. This is a practical way to proactively and systematically upgrade companies' and workers' capabilities, and to help build momentum for the overall transformation of Singapore's economy. Good progress has been made in this area, and again, as reported earlier, 352 CTCs have already been formed since its inception in April last year.”
“These two incentives, we were told, will then be combined and restructured into a new Seniors Employment Credit Scheme. The Government will also enhance the Wage Credit Scheme to further help shoulder the cost of wage increases for workers. These moves make each existing employee less costly to their companies and, therefore, lower their overall risk of retrenchment, or will help companies hold off retrenchment for as long as possible. For older workers who are displaced, there will be a hiring incentive for employers who hire local jobseekers aged 40 and above through a reskilling programme. For each eligible worker, the Government will provide a 20% salary support to the employer for six months, capped at $6,000 a month. There is even another incentive for employers who are prepared to hire older workers on a part-time basis. This will help make older workers who are unable to work full-time more cost-effective for employers to consider hiring. By the sheer number of targeted subsidies and incentives aimed at sustaining and spurring continued hiring of older Singaporean workers in this Budget, the Government's care for and commitment to our older workers are crystal clear. And our older workers appreciate this. While keeping one's job or being able to get back into one quickly in the event of retrenchment is of immediate concern in the current economic climate, our older workers also know that their longer-term employment and employability really depend on whether they can keep up and adapt with the changing technology and business models and methods. Here, they look to the Government and the tripartite partners to do more to help them stay skilled and relevant to the changing times and requirements.”
“This Budget, Mr Speaker, has given older workers that reassurance. And I thank the Government for understanding the worker's needs and worries, and for addressing our older workers' concerns. I would like to highlight specifics in the Budget to make my point. Consider the announced CPF contribution rates improvements meant for 2021. The worry, as expressed by older workers is that, given the headwinds and the difficult economic environment that we are facing now, they worry whether the Government would now decide to postpone or cancel those improvements. And so, when they heard the Budget, they heard that the Government has instead stepped forward to help defray the cost pressure on employers that those improved CPF rates would bring. In other words, what the Government has promised to older workers in this improved CPF rates in 2021 will be done. This is the Government keeping its word to our older workers. But workers then worry that if they should lose their jobs in the meantime, or cannot find a new one if they are displaced, then improved CPF rates, or for that matter, raised retirement and employment ages, will be moot. Hereto, the Budget has measures aimed at lowering such risks for older workers. Under the Stabilisation and Support Package, the Government will introduce JSS. This JSS will help enterprises retain their local employees during this period of uncertainty. Employers will receive an 8% cash grant on the gross monthly wages of each local employee for the months of October 2019 to December 2019, subject to a monthly wage cap of $3,600 per employee. And this is on top of the Special Employment Credits and the Additional Special Employment Credits previously introduced to incentivise the hiring of older workers.”
“Since January this year, the Singapore economy has been buffeted by the negative disruptive effects of the COVID-19 virus outbreak internationally even as the downsides of the US-China trade war continue to slow global trade and growth. Against this background, Singapore's growth forecast has been revised downwards significantly, from between 0.5% and 2.5% that was estimated in November last year, to between -0.5% and 1.5% in February this year. So, within these months, it was revised downwards significantly. On the ground, these changes in projections reflect falling demand, supply chain and manpower disruptions, as well as cost, credit and cash flow pressures and worries for companies. And these worries for companies, in turn, translate into worker concerns over loss of overtime and other forms of income, wage freezes and even cuts, and increasing anxiety over the security of their jobs. Older workers, both executives and non-executives, feel vulnerable in this environment. They are afraid that in any industry or company shakeout, they may bear the brunt. They are also worried that if they are displaced from their jobs, it would be more difficult for them to find new work or to expect to maintain anything near their original pay levels. And if that happens, then it would erode the progress of prior efforts to strengthen the sustainability of our ageing population over the long run. Older workers, therefore, look to the Government and to this Budget for reassurance. They hope to see and they want to trust that this Government will continue to have their backs and would lean forward to safeguard their interests and ensure that they are fairly treated. The Labour Movement hears their concerns and have lobbied hard on their behalf with the Government.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, thank you for allowing me to join the debate on this year's Budget. At Budget Debate 2018, I called for tripartite discussions to determine the new longer-term retirement and re-employment ages. At last year's Budget Debate, I expressed the hope that the Tripartite Workgroup formed by MOM in May 2018 to negotiate higher retirement and re-employment ages and enhanced CPF contribution rates would soon come to a win-win outcome so that older workers would have added confidence about their employment and retirement savings. As Singapore's population is ageing, progress in these areas is necessary and important to help sustain the added years. Prime Minister Lee announced at last year's National Day Rally the consensus reached by the tripartite partners to raise retirement age progressively from 62 to 65 and the re-employment age ceiling from 67 to 70 over the course of a decade. Specific first moves were also announced, namely, to raise retirement age from 62 to 63 and the re-employment age ceiling from 67 to 68 in 2022. And one year before that, in 2021, first steps will be taken to raise the CPF contribution rates for workers aged 55 and older. The agreement that we reached shows the strength of our tripartism to tackle real and serious issues. It also showed the Government's commitment towards looking after the interests of our older workers. So, on behalf of older workers, I thank the Government and the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) for working hand in hand with NTUC to achieve these win-win outcomes. A year has passed and we are now in Budget Debate 2020. How fast things have changed.”
“Mr Speaker, there are, indeed, collection points. If I get my number right, there were at least six big collection points established at strategic locations outside the parade area. There were also trash bags provided within the funpack. Indeed, we encourage and would like to remind our spectators, as part of being environmentally conscious and trying to help, that all the items that they really do not need or do not want, to hand those in at these collection points.”
“The rest of the plastic that we managed to save from being put into the funpacks include, for example, the second water bottle that we did not put in, as well as we changed the plastic clappers and also took away the plastic flag stands. So, what we will do is for future shows, for example, the NDP that is coming next year and the year after and so on, we will continue these efforts. We will take in seriously the feedback and suggestions from the Member and others in this area to see how we can further reinforce, both in terms of the education message to call on all of us individually also, and beyond NDP shows, in their day-to-day lives to also do the responsible thing and to minimise the use of such plastics.”
“Mr Speaker, I thank the Member for the supplementary question. First of all, I think it is important for us to establish that we are actually on the same side, namely, that we agree with the Member, together with many outside this Chamber, who believe that we should all be more active in terms of understanding the importance of saving the environment and also each of us doing our part and, within established events, including the NDP, what more can be done. So, on that we are completely together. With respect to the plastic water bottle, in fact, for this year's NDP, for example, a specific effort was made to reduce that. The fact that the NDP shows do take a number of hours and it is held in the afternoon, so one can expect sunny weather most of the time, we do have to cater water for people to drink. What happened in past years was that there were actually two bottles of water in each funpack. For this year, taking into account the feedback, including the input and advice from the Member previously, what the Organising Committee for the NDP for this year has done is that it has reduced it to one bottle. That is only one of the measures we have taken. But with respect to generally talking about single-use plastics, I just wanted to also provide a piece of information, which is that for NDP 2019, over 1.7 million pieces of single-use plastic were saved. Seven hundred thousand pieces of plastic wrappings were avoided due to deliberate efforts made to ensure that the funpack items, where it was not necessary to individually wrap the items, then they are not. So, it is actually a combination of efforts like that.”
“Mr Speaker, National Day Parade (NDP) funpacks require a longer period to cater for production, delivery and packing. Therefore, it would not be advisable to tie in the public consultation on funpack items with the ticketing process, that is, application for tickets. Each year, the NDP organising committee strikes a balance in providing for the comfort of NDP spectators, including the young and the elderly, and in sourcing for sponsors who can provide environmentally friendly options for the funpack. NDP spectators who do not want the funpack or some of the items need not have to take them. This can be then handed over to the collection points which will be established and can help the organisers gauge the requirements for planning subsequent years’ NDP shows.”
“Mr Speaker, over the past five years, the Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) has received two requests from National Servicemen (NSmen) for assistance to bridge the gap between their private medical insurance coverage and MINDEF's medical coverage for service-related injuries. MINDEF provides full medical coverage for service-related injuries by paying for all necessary medical expenses incurred by the NSman at Government restructured hospitals, clinics and community hospitals, for as long as required. This includes the costs of medical supplies and equipment, as well as specialist care. Should the service-related injury be aggravated, or if there are new medical conditions arising from the injury, MINDEF will expand the scope of medical coverage to cover those conditions. MINDEF will also provide higher compensation amounts if there is an increase in the degree of permanent disability. In addition, financial assistance may be provided to injured NSmen through MINDEF's welfare schemes.”
“Our servicemen have told us that sharing photographs of their NS experiences in camp would also help them build a stronger sense of community. MINDEF and SAF have been exploring ways to allow servicemen to share their personal NS memories and experiences online, while safeguarding security of sensitive information. We are now working on a digital repository called "NS Memories" that will give NSmen access to official photographs of themselves and their buddies. Over time, the repository will catalogue the experiences throughout the NS journey. It will allow servicemen to share these photographs on their social media. We will conduct a trial with an active infantry unit for "NS Memories" this year. If proven successful, we will expand the initiative. Mr Chairman, the success of NS is measured by the peace safeguarded and maintained, day in, day out, year after year. Every day of peace that Singapore enjoys is testament to the effectiveness of our deterrence, diplomacy and defence. With a strong and resilient NS system that enjoys wide and deep public support, we can continue to be confident about Singapore’s future.”
“First, I want to express our thanks to the Advisory Council on Community Relations in Defence (ACCORD) members for their valuable contributions towards the mission of working with educational institutions, businesses and community groups to strengthen community and total support for our defence and NS. One of the highlights through the good work of ACCORD in 2018 was the inaugural Women’s Boot Camp. One hundred and three women out of 1,000 were selected for the camp. So, 1,000 applied for 100 places. So, in the end, 103 were accommodated for this two-day one-night camp. So, it was an overnight camp. That camp gave the women participants, whom I understand have ages that range from 13 to 64. So, it was a wide range. Therefore, in there, there are daughters, mothers, sisters, wives, girlfriends, friends of servicemen, and what they got was a glimpse of military life. They came out seeing NS as tough, but necessary. One of them is 50-year-old Ms Koh Wee Min. She is a mother of one of our NSFs. When asked about her experience, Ms Koh said that it gave her a taste of some aspects of military life through participation in iconic NS activities, such as clearing the Standard Obstacle Course. She said, "I can now support my son emotionally and psychologically. It will also allay some concerns I have about training safety as I could see that safety is paramount to their training. It is reassuring to know that servicemen will get progressive training before they tackle more challenging tasks." This year, we will run another camp so as to continue to engage our community and also this very important constituency, namely, the other half of our population, the women, so that, together, we can strengthen this support for NS and for the defence of our country.”
“We are also working with Institutes of Higher Learning to offer customised courses. NSFs may take these courses to obtain credit exemptions from relevant diploma or degree programmes after they complete their full-time NS. E-credits can also be used for these courses. For example, NSFs can use their e-credits to take a course on "Introduction to Cloud Architecture" that is offered by the Temasek Polytechnic (TP). Upon admission to TP’s part-time Specialist Diploma in Cloud Data Centre Technology and Management, participants who complete these online courses will be granted partial exemption from one module. This will go some way towards supporting our NSFs’ learning journey. Second, career discovery and exposure. This month, MINDEF/SAF will co-deliver a career orientation experience with SkillsFuture Singapore. This initiative is supported by our five Community Development Councils and the National Trades Union Congress Employment and Employability Institute (e2i). SkillsFuture Advice workshops will be customised at the quarterly Career and Education Fair held for NSFs. We conducted a pilot of this career orientation workshop at Jurong Camp. One of our combat engineers, 21-year-old Corporal Ritesh Kumar, said the workshop helped him understand the various pathways available after he completes his full-time NS. He felt that this gave him and his buddies more useful guidance about their next stage in life. We will take in our servicemen’s feedback and suggestions to refine and improve the SkillsFuture@NS effort in the years ahead. Next, strengthening support for NS. Mr Henry Kwek asked about our plans to engage the community on NS issues.”
“For instance, soldiers with hearing impairment or musculoskeletal disabilities, where found suitable, are assigned to support or administrative vocations, where they are deployed safely and are able to also contribute very meaningfully during their NS stints. We certainly also value the contributions from women to national defence. Since 2014, women have served in the SAF Volunteer Corps in areas that support the SAF’s operational and training requirements. Our pool of SAF volunteers comprises a good mix of males and females, with about half being women. Mr Arasu Duraisamy asked about our partnerships to support skills upgrading. NSFs from SAF and the Home Team dedicate two years to focus on full-time training. Today, certain soldiering, firefighting and rescue competencies are accredited under the Workforce Skills Qualification standard. To keep pace with the national focus on skills mastery, we seek to support the NSFs’ transition to higher education or into the workplace. A suite of initiatives called "SkillsFuture@NS" will be launched this year with public and private sector partners. What can our NSFs, therefore, look forward to under these partnerships? First, more resources for skills upgrading after full-time NS. Today, NSFs are granted $350 worth of e-credits for them to subscribe to about 200 online courses, that is, the course list, and these courses are offered by our local universities and polytechnics. These e-credits are valid up to one year after they complete full-time NS. We will extend the use of these credits to about 3,000 selected courses, up from the 200, and amongst these courses will be a good number of SkillsFuture Series courses that focus on emerging domains, such as data analytics and cybersecurity.”
“From 1 March today, we will remove this notification requirement. Servicemen just have to keep their contact details, including temporary contact information, updated on the NS Portal. Removing this requirement will not compromise operational readiness, because other exit control measures, such as the requirement to apply for an Exit Permit before traveling overseas for periods of six months or longer, will continue to apply. Control measures could be tightened if the need arises. Mr Pritam Singh and Mr Chong Kee Hiong asked how we intend to maximise our manpower resource with falling cohort sizes. How can we do more with fewer? Besides better technology, equipment, process and job redesign and training of the NSmen, many NSmen also have very relevant and important niche civilian expertise in fields that are relevant both to the civilian side as well as to the military, for example, in nursing or infocommunications. NSmen with such expertise can now contribute to defence with their civilian expertise earlier in their ORNS training cycle. Previously, they had to complete the full 10-year training cycle before conversion to a role that allows them to utilise their civilian expertise. Now, if they are found suitable, they can be deployed to roles, such as nursing officers and network communications officers, after completing two High-Key In-Camp Training stints and have served five ORNS years. Another example: pre-enlistees are screened at the SAF Medical Classification Centre prior to enlistment. They will then be assigned an appropriate PES grade, so that each person can serve the nation based on his capacity and capabilities, and this would include NSFs with disabilities.”
“It will be implemented in phases to the rest of the SAF as soon as possible. This effort will help enhance safety consciousness and reinforce the point that safety is "By All, For All". Miss Cheng Li Hui asked if we could recognise fallen servicemen, including erecting a memorial. SAF honours our servicemen and women who die in service. Every year, SAF observes a minute of silence at the SAF Day Parade to remember our fallen soldiers in the presence of our President or the Prime Minister as the Reviewing Officer. Individual units or formations also hold remembrance events to honour those among their ranks who perish during operations or training. We will never forget their sacrifice to keep Singapore free from those who want to do us harm. On this note, we also want to thank all our NSmen for their commitment and dedication. Allow me now to speak on how we will enhance the experience for our NSmen. Mr Zainal Sapari asked about the importance of NS to Singapore. Securing Singapore’s freedom is a sacred duty shouldered by our NSmen. It is only right that we continually think of ways to support them. Our NSmen have to balance personal and NS commitments, and we must strive to increase convenience for them by reducing administrative burdens wherever possible. This will help them focus on the training. We will also maximise the potential and tap into the abilities of our increasingly better-educated pool of servicemen, so that they can contribute even more meaningfully. Mr Baey Yam Keng had asked for updates on our efforts. Our operationally-ready NSmen (ORNS) are required to notify the MINDEF Notification Centre and Home Team Overseas Notification Centre of their overseas travel of less than six months' duration, which can currently be done via the NS Portal or by text.”
“Open reporting means that any servicemen can, at any time, report risky behaviour or near-misses and safety breaches. And the servicemen know that they can do so without any fear of penalty. They can call the 24-hour safety hotlines for the Army, Navy and the Air Force, and caller identities are kept anonymous. There are other measures by which they can also surface the feedback. So, the open reporting is about wanting to engender and to ensure openness in the culture, that you are encouraged, indeed, to bring this up. On enlistment day, recruits are briefed by commanders on how they can report safety breaches. Prior to training, soldiers can identify safety risks using risk assessment checklists and raise concerns to their superiors in a small group setting. This encourages them to look out for their own and their buddies’ safety. Since last year, SAF has been developing an application called "SafeGuardian", which will allow SAF servicemen to use their mobile phones to report workplace hazards and instantly share them with other servicemen. So, when servicemen are in camp, if they notice, for example, some sharp wire fittings that could potentially cause injury, then that serviceman can take a photo of that using the "SafeGuardian" app and inform the relevant SAF safety officers, so that immediate action can be taken to remove that hazard and to remove that risk. Their buddies nearby will also be informed via safety alerts to their mobile phones. "SafeGuardian" can also provide access to safety checklists on-the-go, compared to the moment where these forms are only available in physical terminals within the camps. So, this app will begin its trial in our Naval Bases starting from March this year.”
“These and other specific measures that we shared in this House, we will implement them as soon as possible, and some have already been implemented. This demonstrates our unwavering commitment to safety. We will not only address individual incidents but will seek to enhance training safety at every level of responsibility. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim asked about how the SAF is strengthening safety culture at all levels of the SAF. As the Minister for Defence has highlighted earlier, an Inspector-General's Office has been set up to inspect and audit the safety practices across SAF. This Office, led by the Chief of Staff – Joint Staff, reports to the Chief of Defence Force and the Permanent Secretary of Defence to enforce safety procedures and to reinforce safety consciousness and culture from the highest level so as to ensure that command emphasis on safety is consistently applied. On the ground, SAF has renewed the focus of commanders on safety. Commanders have comprehensively reviewed safety management plans and the overall training tempo. They know that they must lead by example in driving safety as a topmost priority. The Army will also ensure 100% inspection of all high-risk and field training. We want, through concrete action, to reassure Singaporeans that training safety is a top priority for MINDEF and SAF. 12.00 pm Ultimately, safety involves everything that I have mentioned, but it also involves more than sound systems and top-down measures. Safety must be part of our organisational culture, one that every soldier at every level has a role to own, to build and to foster. SAF encourages open reporting. Mr Charles Chong asked about this. What does it mean by open reporting?”
“Mr Chairman, Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen has just spoken about the need for NSmen to train well and to train safely. Indeed, the strength of NS is contingent upon the fighting spirit of our NSmen. Our servicemen must undergo tough and realistic military training for the SAF to be an effective fighting force capable of safeguarding Singapore’s sovereignty. At the same time, a strong SAF that can defend Singapore must be built without compromising the safety of those serving. Mr Charles Chong asked about balancing operational readiness and safety. We understand the anxiety of our soldiers and their families arising from the recent training-related incidents. MINDEF and SAF take the trust, confidence and expectations that Singaporeans have in our NS system seriously. The SAF’s safety protocols are audited and assessed by independent professionals from outside SAF. This is done consistently. Allow me to share two examples. The External Review Panel on SAF Safety is a standing panel commissioned to assess the SAF’s safety management systems and help ensure that the SAF’s standards and processes are sound and aligned with industry best practices. More recently, the External Review Panels for Heat Injury Management and the External Review Panel for Combat Vehicle Safety were convened in 2018. They assessed the safety procedures to prevent heat injuries and to ensure the operational safety of vehicles. Where shortcomings are discovered, SAF has and will sharpen safety measures to further reduce the risks and to prevent recurrences. Just as a further point, the Army will strengthen training supervision and enhance safety equipment to improve combat vehicle safety.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply has made progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2019/2020 and ask leave to sit again tomorrow.”
“Mr Chairman, may I seek your consent to move that progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again tomorrow?”
“Thirdly, to determine how training and retraining and job matching methods should be adapted to achieve significant improvement in the placement rates into part-time jobs for the targeted returning stream of mature working age Singaporeans, many of whom currently have to make the stark choice between working and caregiving. In doing so, Mr Speaker, we will stay alert to structural trends. We will then maximise our chances of staying a "one united people" that will, together, "achieve happiness, prosperity and progress". I support the Budget.”
“We have to investigate mindsets, close knowledge gaps and consider incentives in order to open the way and grow the capacity. We can learn much from advanced economies like the Netherlands and Japan in this regard, as they have been able to achieve high employment rates for both full-time and part-time work. In other words, they are able to more fully activate their mature working populations. So, it is not just a question of substituting full time for part time. Keep the full-time work rate high. But increasing needs, so how do we then introduce and enable this latent force, which is looking a lot for flexible and part-time work, to enter? Success will only be achieved when potential supply is matched to potential demand. This matching is not trivial, and the outcome does not happen on its own. Today, more than 40% of jobseekers above age 40, as helped by e2i, are successfully placed mostly into full-time jobs. Therefore, we must identify sectors and occupations with good relative prospects to achieve strong placement outcomes for flexi, part-time work as well. We must also see whether training and placement mechanisms for part-time work may be different from those for full-time work and, therefore, what may need redesigning. Mr Speaker, Sir, I call in this year's Budget for a tripartite effort to, firstly, examine and ascertain the requirements for sustainable senior care provision so as to enable the activation of the latent mature manpower pool. Secondly, to determine how fair and flexible work, especially part-time work, can be structured and pervasively incorporated into mainstream company staffing models, and to clarify the role and competencies of HR practitioners in this endeavor.”
“Comparisons of full-time employment rates for mature workers of ages between 55 and 64, comparing Singapore with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, it places us at about the 10th position with respect to our full-time employment rates for this group of 55 to 64. But when we look at the part-time comparisons, then we go down to the 23rd place, comparing with the OECD countries. These are 2017 figures. So, this tells us that most Singaporean companies may not have yet learnt how to ably utilise and integrate part-time and flexi-work options into their mainstream manpower model, or are also perhaps unwilling to do so. And this is so despite years of promoting flexi-work arrangements (FWA) by the tripartite partners at both the national and company levels. I note with interest that there is an article in today's Business Times entitled "Payoffs in productivity, engagement and creativity make flexi-work a worthwhile goal". In there, there is a paragraph that says, "A closer look at the data shows that although 93% of Singapore organisations offer flexible work, in only 21% is it offered broadly across the organisation. Flexible work needs to be implemented and not restricted in order for it to work". Therefore, a thorough review of how part-time work and flexible work options can become integral to the mainstream staffing models of Singapore companies, alongside the traditional full-time work model, is needed. We also have to determine how to set expectations of HR practitioners in Singapore, so that they can then pick up and have the competence to operationalise this and make this work for companies, and to work well for companies.”
“So, this review must look at that and must also consider whether the funding model for service provision can ensure that supply is sustainably built up at the pace that is required. Here, I would also want to borrow the point from Ms Denise Phua earlier when she spoke about VWOs to become even more financially viable and so on as they undertake the important work because many of the providers in the eldercare sector are, indeed, the VWOs and social enterprises and so on. So, the sustainability of the funding model is actually very critical as we scale it up. Secondly, assuming that the effort to provide the care and to relieve the caregivers succeeds, then where can they find work and what can they find? This is a critical question, because if supply of manpower is increased without a corresponding increase in the demand for manpower or increase in absorptive capacity, then it will not solve the problem, but will, in fact, raise the frustration and just increase the unemployment rate. Earlier, I pointed to the U Family survey that showed a high proportion of caregivers wanting part-time or flexi-work. This also means that if more companies have such options for their workers, many of those who had to quit to care for family would have been able to stay on in work, thus continuing to earn and provide better for their immediate and longer-term needs, and also supplying the manpower on a continual basis to the companies. But when we look at the Singapore labour market, it has long been based on primarily the full-time staffing model.”
“At the same time, companies across many industries are facing a tighter labour market and crying out for manpower to meet their needs, and many Members of the House spoke about that just now. So, there is a structural mismatch between the supply of and the demand for manpower, and it is not just a technical problem because there are profound social and financial consequences for the individual, family, economy and country if a large and growing pool of middle-aged Singaporeans is unable to earn for their immediate upkeep and retirement needs. This will then fuel inequality, and it will erode social cohesion. The question then is: how do we turn this socio-economic threat into a dividend that will benefit all? A 2017 survey by the National Trades Union Congress' (NTUC's) U Family Secretariat of 529 stay-at-home women aged between 25 and 54 found that two in three of them were keen on returning to the workforce, if only suitable part-time or flexible work arrangements (FWAs) could be found to allow them to balance between earning an income and undertaking caregiving. It is, therefore, clear that in order for this pool of latent workers to be activated, we need three key breakthroughs. Firstly, we must establish what the requirements are for accessible, affordable eldercare provision in the community so as to relieve these 33,000 or even more caregivers to be available to undertake work, or at least part-time work if not full-time work. Current capacity buildup and funding plans for such provision, be it for senior activity, senior day-care or live-in care, is mostly predicated on the expected health and social needs of senior care recipients. Considerations of how to relieve and liberate their caregivers to be able to choose to work are not central.”
“So, the basic transformation then was the scaling up of childcare provision. Parents could entrust their children to childcare in an affordable and accessible manner. That liberated the women from being stuck with no choice, to being able to choose to work. At the same time, the economy got the additional manpower it needed. The country grew its wealth and could better afford to invest for the future and to care more for those in need. And because Singapore took coordinated steps then to overcome that obstacle, the Singapore economy and our society are better off today, both in living standards and in having less inequality than if the women did not have the choice to work and to earn. Sir, Singapore now faces a similar challenge to reactivate our latent working population to fuel growth and to meet short-term and long-term individual and societal needs. According to MOM's Labour Force Survey 2018, there are close to 170,000 female residents aged between 40 and 59 in Singapore who were not working. Of these, around one in five, or about 33,000, of them cited caregiving to family members or relatives, excluding childcare, as the main reason for their not being at work. Now, 33,000 is the equivalent of one year's birth cohort. And if we add to that caregiving that is cited as a secondary reason for the rest of that 170,000, net of the 33,000 citing caregiving, excluding childcare, as another important reason for their not working, then we are really talking about very substantial numbers. This leakage of national potential will grow as the Singapore population ages further, and more caregiving needs emerge within families.”
“Therefore, we have to look very carefully at the fourth tap, and the fourth tap is: how do we make the best use of our local population in the working ages, both those currently working, as well as the latent pool waiting to be activated for work. Mr Speaker, Sir, prolonging the work years of those currently working was precisely the reason why I called for tripartite discussions to review the long-term retirement and re-employment ages in the Budget Debate last year. I am grateful that the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has convened a Tripartite Workgroup on Older Workers to review retirement and re-employment ages and to consider adjustments to the CPF contribution rates for older workers. The Workgroup has been carefully considering these important and difficult topics, and there is much work ahead. I am also grateful to the Finance Minister for extending the SEC and the Additional SEC so that mature workers’ cost-effectiveness continues to be reinforced. There is more, however, that we can do besides reviewing the retirement and re-employment ages in order to get the best of our mature working age population. Sir, when Singapore started industrialising in the late 1960s and 1970s and our economy needed manpower, that posed a challenge as to where that additional manpower would come from. At the same time, that challenge also offered an opportunity for households to increase their incomes and living standards and for Singaporean women to become more financially resilient. There was a hurdle, however. Many women at the time were full-time housewives, having to look after the children at home while their husbands worked to provide for the family. How are they to go to work? Who is going to look after the children?”
“" Well, GDP growth is the sum of the growth of productivity and the growth of manpower. Thus, if the manpower growth component becomes zero, then GDP growth, which is how national resources are ultimately generated for use to care for Singaporeans, can only come from productivity growth. So, you have productivity and manpower, and if you get zero on the manpower side, then it is like flying a plane with one jet engine shut down. Obviously, we would do better not to let manpower growth become zero. The question are: how do we do that? Where do we get the manpower from? One way of looking at it is that we have four manpower taps. The first one would be school leavers coming out of school and entering the workforce. What about these school leavers? To all intents and purposes, these were the babies born about 20 odd years ago. So, whatever those numbers are, it was already preset about two decades ago. The second source is, indeed, productivity, and that is done through better work organisation, better design, technology, equipment and skillsets. And this is what Industry Transformation is about. By becoming more productive, the same number of people can create more economic value through their work, and this is very important and it is the other jet engine to fuel our growth. The third source is foreign manpower. About one in three persons in Singapore’s workforce is a foreigner. It is obvious that we have to judiciously manage the size, mix and growth of this manpower source so that while we benefit from their important contributions, Singaporeans have a fair go at opportunities and prospects at all times. In other words, we cannot just open the floodgates to foreign manpower in order to solve our zero net local workforce growth challenge.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, thank you for allowing me to join this debate. I listened to the Finance Minister's speech and noticed that he pointed to the role of unions, the crucial place of workers, many times in his Budget Speech. Therefore, it is true that we must continue to put workers at the heart of all we do. I thank Minister Heng Swee Keat for this. My fellow Labour Members and I will speak up for the different segments of our working population. The common point that we want to make is that every worker matters to the overall good of the economy, society and country. I will focus, as I have done over the years, on the mature working population. I would frame the context of my speech by making two points. First, we are running into predicted headwinds as far as economic growth is concerned because of population and workforce trends. If we do nothing, our ability to generate national wealth to invest in the future and fund the welfare for the present will face problems, and inequality in our society will grow. It is, therefore, crucial that we focus attention in this debate on how we can continue to grow this national economic pie. Second, that by taking the right coordinated steps, we can turn threat into opportunity, continue our ability to grow economically and cohere better socially. This is the practice of social and economic defence. For a few years now, we have been reminded that the local workforce in Singapore will plateau from around 2020, which is just next year. In other words, based on current employment and retirement rates, the incoming local workers will just be about enough to offset and replace the retiring workers, and there will be zero net growth in the local workforce. So, one may ask, "What if that happens?”
“Why "it depends"? This is because knowing is different from deciding, and deciding is different from doing. Knowing and deciding will not save us or give us the edge over the competition. It is in the prompt doing of the necessary that survival and success are to be found. This message, I repeat, really, is for both management and our workers because it takes two hands to clap. We must thus rally societal pressure against those who persist with ageist behaviour because they are both an affront to fairness and an impediment to progress. At the same time, we must redouble our tripartite efforts to nurture, recognise and reward more companies with the right attitudes and practices towards older workers. We must also do our utmost to promote the adoption of the Tripartite Standard on Age-Friendly Workplace Practices, the Human Capital Partnership and other like-minded initiatives to value the initiative, determination and achievement of companies and our older workers. By naming the good and taming the rest, we can then say truthfully and with confidence and a good conscience that "based on justice and equality", we will maximise our chances "to achieve happiness, prosperity and progress for our nation". Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the Motion.”
“Second, step up Work Redesign for Ageless Workplaces. The MOM's WorkPro programme is a very good programme. Thus far, some 650 companies have made use of it to redesign their workplaces and processes for greater age-universality, and some 10,000 older workers working for these companies have already benefited. Ten thousand is an encouraging number but, nonetheless, it still represents a small fraction of the total number of companies, or 650; and the proportion of older workers in Singapore, or 750,000. Unless we believe that the vast majority of companies are already very "ageless", which we cannot be, not so in their thinking and the way they operate based on our experience on the ground, then, obviously, what must be done is that we must find ways to ramp up the outreach and the take-up, so that the impact can reach and help many more older workers in time. Third, review the way forward for retirement and re-employment. I have spoken on this at this year's Budget Debate about the need for the tripartite partners to come together to discuss the next steps for extending the worklife runway, given that we have reached the earlier stated goal of raising the statutory re-employment age ceiling from 65 to 67, so I shall not repeat myself here. After we are clear about where to focus and what to do, I would add a final ingredient, which is, how do we nudge both management and older workers towards the desired mindsets and behaviour? There is a story that goes like this: there were five birds sitting on a branch. There was a hunter nearby and he took aim and fired a shot at them. "Boom". All five birds heard the gunshot and knew that they should fly away for their own safety. The question is: how many birds were left on the branch? The answer is: "it depends".”
“By tackling the challenge as early as possible, we minimise the number of older workers who will be displaced through irrelevance. In this way, we enable older workers to continue earning incomes. This will not only help them meet ongoing living expenses but also strengthen their retirement adequacy. As we like to say in the Labour Movement, "A job is the best welfare". Now that we have a better idea where to focus, the next question is: what needs to be done? In essence, I think we should do three Es. The first one is Extend the working life expectancy runway – so, retirement age, re-employment age ceiling, and such items will have to be revisited from time to time; two, improve the workplace Environment – the physical part, the processes, job designs, attitudes, make them more age-universal, age-neutral, ageless; third, Enable and energise our older workers through strengthening their capability and confidence. As we do so, we strike an increasingly better and more sustainable balance between older workers who have a real chance and choice to remain in work longer while simultaneously ensuring that their work creates real value for their employers. What specifically can we do to put into effect these three Es? I urge action in three areas: first, make sure that the implementation of the ITMs include the uplifting of older workers' skills. Government agencies in charge of coordinating and spurring the progress of these plans must have accountability towards this outcome. The tripartite partners must support the agencies to track progress and flag obstacles in the journey. The desired outcome will not happen by chance. Only constant vigilance, mutual accountability and a relentless attention to detail can get us there.”
“They are also experiencing the disruption, and the pace can only pick up with time. We must, therefore, initiate action to plan for the older workers in them, so that while there is still time, those who can be trained, updated and upgraded are given at least an equal opportunity to do so, compared to younger workers. For those who face displacement because the technology might be wiping out particular occupation groups in the foreseeable future, or for those who see better longer-term prospects in other occupations or industries – such occupations will become larger as a result of an ageing population, for example – then they should be prioritised for help to convert. Otherwise, if we do not do these plans, we do not target and we do not help and explain and nudge and make it happen, then the risk to both older workers and the system will snowball. And when the current technology or the business model that they are in is discontinued, you can see that there will be very quick and concentrated dislodging of workers from these occupational types or industry, and that may then overwhelm the help mechanisms at that very point. So, it is a question of digesting it away while we can in a very constructive way. Companies will also find that they cannot employ enough workers with relevant skills if they do not upgrade those that they have currently, regardless of their ages. But please do not neglect the older segment. It is easier, safer and smarter to plan and act earlier and progressively to digest away the problem while there is still time. Done correctly, the older workers could, in fact, enhance their relevance and value and strengthen their working terms and prospects.”
“So, that is one in three in the resident workforce above the age of 50. The three occupational categories in the resident workforce which have the largest number of workers aged 50 and above are: first, the category of cleaners, labourers and related workers, that is, 120,000 resident workers above the age of 50; service and sales workers, 110,000; plant and machine operators and assemblers, 99,000 workers. So, that is looking at it from occupational types. If we cut it in a different way, we cut it by industry, and then look at which are the four industries with the largest number of workers aged 50 and above, then we will come to these conclusions: the first one, wholesale and retail trade, 140,000 workers above the age of 50, resident workforce; transportation and storage, 93,000 workers; manufacturing, 85,000 workers; accommodation and food services, 66,000 workers. Whichever way of looking at it, either the three occupation groups or the four industry types, they will add up to about half of the older workers in our resident workforce. How do we then use these data to help our older workers who are particularly numerous in these industries and occupations? I think a good starting point would be to assess which of these industries and occupation types are already facing the impact of changing technology and business models. Earlier, I mentioned the advent of autonomous vehicles, e-retailing, manufacturing 4.0 and so on. The question is, do we see a correspondence between these new technologies and business platforms and the occupations of the industries that I have just listed as having more older workers? It is very clear that the industries that these workers are in are, like all the others, not exempt from experiencing disruption.”
“In manufacturing, additive manufacturing technologies will have a big impact on the traditional assembly line. Autonomous vehicle technology will mean that people can be conveyed in vehicles from point to point without the need for drivers. Robotics and machine learning will mean that that arena previously open only to humans, for example, arenas like advisory services, can now be remodeled. The spread of e-commerce and online shopping is certainly reshaping the retail scene and will have a deep and wide impact on the relevance of large physical store networks and distribution, and so on and so forth. While it is easy to recite these disruptive changes, it is much harder to figure out what to do with them and how to deal with the impact. And for this very reason, we must do our best to gauge their impact on the use of labour and to plan ahead. In industries and occupations with a higher proportion of older workers, such planning, in my view, is even more critical. We need to develop specific, viable development as well as transition plans for these. We cannot just depend on individual initiative and general provisions and exhortations to deal with this challenge. I, therefore, suggest three ways to help focus Government and tripartite efforts in this quest. The first one is: where do we focus on? I looked up the data from MOM's Labour Force in Singapore Report 2017, and I came to the following understanding. First, the proportion of workers aged 50 and above in our resident workforce had increased from 25.7% in 2007 to 34.4% in 2017. So, the ageing trend is clear, it is persistent. Two, out of a resident workforce of 2.175 million, around 750,000 are workers at or above the age of 50. So, as I have mentioned just now, as of 2017, it came to 34%.”
“The most obvious measure has been the extension of the Retirement Age, followed by the introduction of the Re-employment Age and the further raising of the Re-employment Age ceiling. As a result of all these efforts, workers in Singapore have legal backing not to have their services terminated by their companies on account of age alone before reaching the Re-employment Age ceiling, and that ceiling has been raised to 67 last July. Beyond that, there have been a range of measures aimed at strengthening the competitiveness and attractiveness of employing older workers. The Special Employment Credit and the Additional Special Employment Credit are two examples of wage subsidies given to employers to defray part of the cost of employing older workers. The additional training subsidies, intentionally given to support training undertaken by older workers, is aimed at spurring skills updating and upgrading on the part of our older workers. The WorkPro Job Redesign Grant incentivises companies to render their work equipment and processes more age-friendly and even ageless. All these measures have helped improve the employment rate for older workers over the years which, for the cohort aged 55 to 59, has increased from 8% to 9.4% between the years 2007 and 2017 and, in the age band from 60 to 64 in those same 10 years from 2007 to 2017, from 3.5% doubling to 7.3% and then, for the even older groups aged 65 to 69 between 2007 and 2017, from 1.7% to 4.1%. So, these are very good concrete results. But we have no time to rest. Companies and entire industries are facing disruption caused by rapidly advancing technologies and changing business models. I think we hear a lot of examples in the speeches of Members today.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the President for her Address to this House. In the part of her speech about forging a cohesive, caring and inclusive society, she said, and I quote, “Singaporeans want to live in a fair and just society, one based on meritocracy, but at the same time strives to leave no one behind. Thus, we are each prepared to do our best, but also to walk alongside fellow citizens who need help to keep up. In Singapore, people must always be able to get ahead through effort and excellence. We must open up more progression pathways and celebrate a broader range of successes." She went on to say, "We must tackle inequality vigorously. We need to provide the right additional support to those needing it – in housing, education, skills training and employment – so that meritocracy works well. Only then can everyone do well through hard work, talent and skills, regardless of their backgrounds. We need to pay special attention to the growing population of the elderly. We will continue to help older workers stay employed, earn fair wages and save more, so that they can age with dignity and purpose." Sir, this resonated deeply with me. For many years now, I have been speaking up for the fair treatment and strengthening of employment and employability opportunities for older workers. I am very happy that the President’s speech emphasised this. And, given that the speech bears the imprint of our 4G leadership, I believe that older Singaporean workers can now have the confidence, comfort and expectation that this commitment will continue to be kept. The Government and the tripartite partners have worked closely over the years to enable workers to prolong their working years.”
“Time is ticking away and the consequences of our actions or lack of actions will become clearer by the day and month. So, let us press on resolutely. Let us not drop the ball. We must succeed so that our mature workers and citizens' future in Singapore will remain one of hope and promise. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Budget. 1.33 pm”
“I further call for a special focus on confidence building for mature workers in digital awareness and competencies in working with robotics and in using data smartly to finesse the supply of and demand for goods and services. This is the new language in the world of work. We should proactively and aggressively promote their learning and use, just as we had in promoting basic literacy and numeracy through BEST and WISE courses, and IT confidence through the National IT Literacy Programme (NITLP) in years past. The newly introduced SkillsFuture for the Digital Workplace is a good example of what needs to be done in this regard, and I hope and call for more to be done. Facility and adeptness are not innate attributes or in-born. They come with exposure and usage. Finally, I urge the Government to specifically work out recruitment plans and conversion programmes to induct mature workers into the growing areas of healthcare, eldercare and ageing in place. These are growing areas of job opportunities and they also allow our mature workers actually to play to their strengths. The NTUC and Labour Movement stand ready to actively partner and support the Government and the business community in all these areas to build this critical dynamic employability in our older working persons. And we will do that with our network of unions, social enterprises and U-Associate partners. The better we are at pursuing these objectives, the more we will avert that triple-whammy I described and, in fact, turn adversity into advantage and a concern into strength. A better future is possible, but it never comes from just hoping for the best. That future must be invested in, slogged for and cherished together.”
“If Singapore, therefore, neglects the segment of its workforce that is growing the fastest – and here, for the local workforce, that is the mature segment – then it is downright counter-productive for these reasons that I have discussed earlier. From the perspective of the company, it would be both sacrificing its own potential capability as well as practically inviting higher corporate tax burdens on itself sooner. For all the above reasons and given that the recommendation of the Tripartite Committee on the Extension of the Retirement Age to 67 has been fully implemented, there is, therefore, cause, in my view, for another Tripartite Committee to be convened to consider the road ahead, beyond 67. I, therefore, call for the forming of such a Tripartite Committee and would like to propose that its terms of reference could include the following. Firstly, to assess the effective retirement age, which is not the same as the statutory retirement age, since 1993, and recommend measures to further raise the employment rate of older workers. This includes how the implementation of the Industry Transformation Maps must include the upgrading of mature workers and the speeding up of progress toward more age-universal workplaces. Secondly, in light of the pervasive adoption of the performance-based employment model over the years, to consider whether there is still a need for a statutory retirement age or for a ceiling to be applied to the re-employment age band. Thirdly, if the statutory age and re-employment age band are still assessed to be necessary, clarify the conditions under which the re-employment ceiling of 67 could be further raised and to what long-term targeted age.”
“Workers who can learn and adapt repeatedly in their working lifespans will last longer and earn better, whilst those who cannot or will not do so will face increasing difficulties in employment and re-employment, regardless of whatever law you pass or wage subsidies that the Government may put in. In this rapidly changing world of work, skills requirements change quickly with the flux of competitive business models, technology and innovation. Old areas of the economy fade away even as new opportunities emerge. Some growing job areas would be brought about by this very ageing of the population, such as in personal support services, healthcare and eldercare. That is why working persons must keep up with the changing requirements or else find themselves of the "wrong plug design" and become powerless. In this context, workers need to and want to learn what are the skills at risk and what are the skills they need to pick up, and where they can do so efficiently and cost-effectively. This is where the expeditious implementation of the industry transformation Maps for key industries will be critical. Businesses and Industry Associations must take the lead, with the support of the Government and the Labour Movement, and to do this without delay. Here, I want to remind everyone not to unconsciously fall into the mind trap of thinking that industry transformation involves only the younger working population or only the local population. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. A company’s workforce is typically both young and mature, both local and foreign. If a company or industry focuses transformation only on one part of its workforce and neglects or dismisses the other parts, it is, actually, short-changing itself.”
“While this scenario may confront a worker of any age, the average older working person may face more and higher hurdles in the adaptation and switching process, on top of ageist attitudes among some employers, and may be displaced out of the workforce long before reaching the re-employment age. With such pervasive technology, rapid digitalisation and changing business models, how can companies stay competitive while tapping on mature workers who bring value, insights and experience to the table? Could we try harder in making the workplace more conducive for mature workers to contribute? How about training them to be more digitally aware and technologically competent, placing them in growth sectors? When we travel to another country with a different plug and socket design for their appliances, we all know that it would be very troublesome if our appliance does not have the right plug design. Even if the appliance itself is functioning well, you cannot use it because you cannot connect to the power source. That is why we find the multi-adaptor plug so useful on trips. We also know that if we go to a country whose language we do not know, we will encounter many difficulties even to get very basic things done or to have ourselves understood. Conversely, if we understand and speak the language, we will be as a duck takes to water. This is the reality. I say this as an analogy for the employment and employability of working people of all ages because, increasingly, it will be like becoming a multi-adaptor plug and being able to understand and use the language of a place.”
“Firstly, despite the improvement in the general health condition of our population over the years, across-the-board statutory re-employment age increase would more likely encounter different constraints for different industries and occupation types as we go into higher age brackets. That said, investments in the use of assistive technology and age-universal process and job design and redesign must continue relentlessly, so that we are able to compensate for the physical declines of the workforce to the greatest extent possible. And in this, schemes like WorkPro should continue and be refined to produce more substantive and pervasive outcomes wherever such opportunities exist so that we maximise this benefit. Secondly, and increasingly important, the threat to employability due to job obsolescence, skills obsolescence and skills mismatch. Hitherto, technology was used mainly to improve efficiency of work processes. Today, technology goes beyond that to drive Business Model revamps. What this means is that a person’s job may change or disappear much faster than before, not only because his company is not doing well, but because entire occupations, organisational layers and how value is created, delivered and captured in an industry may fundamentally change. Some estimates say up to 25% of jobs in the current economy may be altered or displaced by technology in the coming 20 years. A person displaced for this reason will have a hard time finding a similar job because the job category itself may be fading.”
“The combination of these three factors will mean that the shrinking working population and companies will shoulder an increasingly heavier tax burden to support the reducing tax contribution from the senior population as they leave employment and as they incur higher living expenses linked to ageing. In short, the earlier the older segment of our population ceases to be able to contribute economically, the earlier and more painful we can expect the tax increases that the working population and companies would have to bear in support. Conversely, the longer our mature workers can remain employed and earning, the more they can help contribute towards Government revenues and also support their own needs and thus helping to delay and reduce the need for the general taxpayers and younger citizens and companies to have to chip in earlier than necessary. It is also for this reason that the Tripartite Partners have agreed over the years to extend, first, the statutory Retirement Age, and then to introduce Re-employment and, most recently, to raise the Re-employment Age ceiling from 65 to 67 effective July 2017. The raising of re-employment age to 67 actually was contained in the recommendations of the Tripartite Committee on the Extension of the Retirement Age back in July 1997. It is very important but not something easy to do and it took us 20 years to move to 67. Going forward, the question is what do we do and whether this broad tactic of prolonging employment across the board by law is going to be as doable as in the past 20 years or would it face additional challenges. I would like to share that there are at least two specific considerations that we have to bear in mind, going forward.”
“Sir, Singapore quietly entered a new era in 2018. For the first time in our history, the proportion of our citizen population below 15 years old equaled that of our citizen population above 65 years old. In years to come, there will be more citizens above 65 than there are those below 15. By one estimate, by the year 2030, the below-15 segment might constitute, say, 11% of the population whereas the above-65 portion could be 27%. One might ask, so what? Well, that means that Singapore may be headed for a triple whammy, if we are not careful. First, there will be the peaking of the citizen workforce around 2020 and thereafter plateau and then decline. That does not include attrition from the workforce due to skills obsolescence and mismatch. This shrinking of the citizen workforce will narrow the personal income tax base, adding strain to Government revenues. Second, the shrinking citizen workforce and loss of relevant experience through retirement of older workers will impact the ability of companies to operate optimally, unless, of course, they are able to raise productivity or, perhaps, if they could increase the proportion of foreign manpower in their workforce, or profitably and sustainably retain the services of mature workers longer. The constraint on company growth will, in turn, lead to lower-than-potential corporate tax contributions to Government revenues. So, that is the second whammy. The third one, the growing senior segment of the population, will lead to more social spending and support in healthcare and welfare, especially if structural unemployment or downward pressure on the income among seniors increases.”
“It would also include enhancements to job-matching and job-switching machinery for both traditional and emerging ways to earn a living, as well as the corresponding safety nets to help the displaced find their feet again quickly. Sir, my fellow Labour Members of Parliament will elaborate on these priorities in their Budget speeches that follow. Labour Member of Parliament, Mr Desmond Choo, will speak of the value that youth will bring to our nation and share how the NTUC is reaching out to them even before they join the workforce. Touching on the issue concerning the "Double Middle" group, that is, middle-income and middle-age, and wherein there is a growing number of PMETs, my fellow Member of Parliament, Mr Patrick Tay, will share how we must value every such worker and how to keep them relevant. Labour Nominated Member of Parliament, Ms Thanaletchimi, will call on all to value the family behind every worker, particularly for women, who often have to juggle between work and family commitments. With the rise of the gig economy, Labour Member of Parliament, Mr Ang Hin Kee, will remind us not to underestimate the value that freelancers and the self-employed bring to our economy. While fellow Labour Members of Parliament have touched on various worker groups, my Labour Member of Parliament colleague, Mr Zainal Sapari, will put the emphasis on the low-wage workers, whose contributions we must continue to value. As we all spend our time at the workplace, Labour Member of Parliament, Mr Melvin Yong, will speak on the value of the life of every worker and how we can render every workplace safer and healthier. Sir, let me now elaborate on the "High Age" area and argue why it is critical that we not allow ourselves to be blind-sided by this aspect.”
“To that point, there are three key priority areas where the Labour Movement could help Singapore and Singaporeans do better. First, in the area of "High Age", and this is shorthand for the unavoidable ageing of our local workforce and its implications. I will speak more on this later. Second, low wage. Over the past several years, dedicated efforts by the Tripartite Partners have brought about hard-earned tangible improvement in the terms of work for lower wage workers. The road ahead remains long and arduous, as structural improvements require sustained transformation of mindsets, skills, technology and procurement practices on the part of employers, service buyers, workers and regulators. Third, the "Double Middle". Just because a growing proportion of the workforce comprises PMET jobs does not mean that every PMET employee is secure in his job. With changing technology alone, for example, artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), Manufacturing 4.0, Robotics and others, many longstanding routine PMET jobs will be redesigned or may be rendered redundant and be replaced by new roles and requirements. Add to that the continuing pressure to de-layer and flatten organisations and to outsource jobs and functions to more cost-competitive countries, we can see the need to help not only today's unemployed find jobs, but also to help those who may be more at risk of becoming "tomorrow's unemployed" manage their risks. This will entail proactive Tripartite partnerships to spur transformation at the industry, company and job levels and to improve the conditions for prompt and seamless skills upgrading and conversion to take advantage of new income opportunities.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, thank you very much for allowing me to join the debate. I wish to state right here that I fully support this year's Budget. Sir, when Singapore became independent, some of its key domestic socioeconomic challenges were: low levels of education for the general population, a young and growing working-age population that faced frustration over uncertain prospects, low wages, high unemployment of around 10%, amid unstable industrial relations. And the workforce then was predominantly rank-and-file. Fifty-three years on, our challenges are now different. Our education system prepares students for PMET jobs. PMET employees comprise more than half of our workforce. A gig economy element is also growing. We now have a rapidly ageing population and local workforce partly due to the Baby Boom generation effect, while our unemployment rate of 2% to 3% is much lower than that of 1965 in Singapore, or when we compare with most other countries currently, and our industrial relations are stable. The rising impact of disruption caused by changing business models, technology and global competition has significantly increased our risk of job obsolescence or, as some people call it ,"jobsolescence", as well as job loss. General wage levels have risen but there is a need to continue efforts to transform low-wage industries for better earnings and prospects. For Singapore as a whole and for the Labour Movement, these changes and realities will dictate our priorities as we continue to pursue our mission to care for our population and to care and value all working persons. For the Labour Movement, we continue to want to work closely with the Government and employers to develop that better future for Singaporeans.”
“The paths we choose and the actions we take, individually and jointly, will decide our chances of success. We must not drop the ball. I support the Budget.”