Josephine Teo
Singapore
“The Government's risk-calibrated approach to data security in artificial intelligence (AI) systems was explained in a written reply, given on 9 January 2024, to related questions asked by Dr Tan Wu Meng and Mr Gerald Giam.”
“Access to frontier models is helpful for specific use cases, such as advanced research and cybersecurity. However, these form a small proportion of artificial intelligence (AI) demand. For most industry, Government and research uses, capable models are already available.”
“The Government tracks the development of technical standards for identifying artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content, including watermarking and digital provenance approaches, as part of broader efforts to manage AI-related risks.”
“Upon receiving a valid report of intimate image abuse, the Commissioner of Online Safety is empowered by law to direct Online Service Providers (OSPs) to disable access by Singapore users to the specified harmful online material. This direction may be extended to cover identical copies found on the platform.”
“The Government is committed to keeping children safe online. We have announced plans to extend age assurance requirements to designated social media services, including requiring platforms to keep users under 13 off their services.”
“Under the Online Safety (Relief and Accountability) Act 2025, the Commissioner of Online Safety is empowered to issue directions to platforms to remove specified harmful content, including intimate image abuse.”
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“Mr Speaker, Mr Singh mentioned one case. I myself have not come across another but I believe that there may have been a few. I do not have the number that I can share with him right now.”
“Mr Speaker, I think Mr Singh's second and third questions are basically asking for the same information. What is the number of cases where we have approached the individuals for refunds of the SIRS payouts? I mentioned in my reply that it was about 0.5% of the successful applicants. The number of successful applicants is something in the order of 200,000. There are still some that are pending processing, but 0.5% would come to about 1,000. I think that is the number that applies it to both his second and his third questions. To the first question, how many cases have been referred to the Police? I do not have the number offhand, perhaps if the Member were to file a Parliamentary Question, we could address it appropriately. However, I should add that the investigations are still on-going and it would be inappropriate for me to comment too much on it right now.”
“But there was a very small number, for whatever reasons, they may have been mistaken in their own understanding of their circumstances, it is sometimes possible that a person did not quite know what he was earning and he made a declaration based on a mistaken understanding. So, we will reach out to them and try to sort these things out.”
“Mr Speaker, the Member has described some cases as false positives. I take that to mean that they were actually the intended recipients of SIRS but they are not going to get it. Actually, what we are discussing in this Parliamentary Question that has been filed is that they are not the intended recipients of SIRS but because of the way in which they had declared their incomes, they appeared to be eligible and the payout was given to them. So, steps are being taken now to ask these individuals to refund the amount. It is perhaps useful to describe the whole situation here. SIRS had a very large group of recipients that were auto-included. We had used past data to ascertain their eligibility based on the criteria that was set out. And without asking these individuals to submit further information, the payout was processed, it was disbursed to them. This was one group. But we also know that basing our disbursement on past information would potentially exclude a group of intended recipients whose data, whose information, have been updated but which we were not in possession of. That is why a category was opened up for applications. In this period where the Government was actually processing and disbursing a very large number of grant and support schemes to households, to businesses, each of these had very tight timelines to follow. As a result, in order to meet the timelines, there were many occasions where we decided that we should take the individuals' declarations in good faith and process the payments. However, as stewards of public funds, we do have the duty to audit. In this situation, one good outcome is that the audit showed that most of the successful applicants had actually valid reasons to have applied and they met the eligibility criteria.”
“Was it essentially due false reporting on the part of residents? If that is the case, then was it because that they were misled in the kind of criteria they needed to submit for the applications? And then, relatedly, my second question is whether there are actions to ameliorate this kind of false positives. So, for instance, if someone faced clawback, would they be able to then pay back the amount in instalments, for example?”
“Sir, MOM and NTUC take public feedback seriously, including those from whistle-blowers. We are aware that there were scams inviting individuals who were not the intended recipients of the Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme or SIRS to apply for payouts. These cases have been surfaced to the Police for investigation. Government grants such as SIRS aim to provide assistance to Singaporeans who need help. For prudent stewardship of public monies and as with all other Government schemes, SIRS is subject to financial audit. This will be done by an external auditor appointed by NTUC, the scheme administrator. In addition, MOM also conducts our own audit before and after the final payout tranche was disbursed. The audit of applications is still on-going. For timely assistance to self-employed individuals, eligibility was assessed based on applicants’ declarations of their employment income and number of properties owned. Those whose declarations met the eligibility criteria received payouts. Subsequent audit affirmed the eligibility of most successful applicants. But we also uncovered some cases of erroneous declarations, constituting about 0.5% of all successful SIRS applications. To be fair and consistent to all applicants, those with erroneous declarations have been approached to refund their SIRS payouts. Some have already done so, and we will reach out to the rest individually to give them time to do so. Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): I thank the Minister for the clarification. I have two quick follow-up supplementary questions. The first has to do with the fact that given the SIRS criteria were so stringent, at least, based on the number of rejected SIRS applications among my residents, why is it that we did turn out to have this number of false positive?”
“Mr Speaker, may I have your permission to take Question Nos 9 and 10 together?”
“Under the Code on Accessibility in the Built Environment, owners of specific building types that are frequented by the general public are required to provide at least one lactation room. These include offices and business parks. All new buildings as well as existing buildings undergoing addition and alteration works that need building plan approvals from the Building Construction Authority (BCA) have to comply with the Code. To meet the needs of workers, including nursing mothers, for flexible work arrangements (FWAs), MOM will continue to support the implementation of FWAs, including work-from-home (WFH). In 2019, about 85% of employers offered some form of FWA. During COVID-19, WFH was further normalised with many more employers implementing them. Tripartite partners will also be progressively implementing the recommendations of the Citizens' Panel on Work-Life Harmony that were submitted last year, such as developing an FWA implementation guide and sector-specific Communities of Practice on FWAs. These will support companies to implement and sustain FWAs in the new normal and beyond.”
“In 2019, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) established itself as the main centre for employers and employees to seek recourse and also resources for workplace harassment. TAFEP works with other community and tripartite partners and encourages them to refer cases of workplace harassment to TAFEP. Depending on the cases, TAFEP works with the victim and employer to adjust work arrangements and provide closure to the victim. In more severe cases that might be considered offences under the Protection from Harassment Act (POHA) or the Penal Code, TAFEP advises the victim to lodge a police report, and provides the necessary support such as guidance on civil remedies, as well as social and emotional support at organisations such as the Family Service Centres, Health Promotion Board and SOS Singapore. As it is important for companies to give proper redress to staff grievances and address unacceptable practices quickly, TAFEP also works with employers to put in place proper grievance handling procedures. Between January 2019 and October 2020, TAFEP handled around 80 cases of workplace harassment. About one in five were related to sexual harassment, while others were related to verbal abuse, bullying and physical abuse at the workplace. TAFEP has stepped up its publicity outreach on workplace harassment and avenues for recourse for affected individuals through digital and social media platforms. TAFEP will continue to work in partnership with the relevant agencies and organisations including NTUC and SNEF to build a safe and conducive work environment for all employees.”
“An employer will not incur the monthly levy for a new foreign domestic worker (FDW) who is unable to enter Singapore due to travel restrictions. An employer of an FDW who is on home leave and unable to re-enter Singapore because of travel restrictions may request for a levy waiver from MOM. For an FDW who wishes to be repatriated, employers should secure the repatriation flight prior to the cancellation of the work permit. Flights to the common FDW source countries are currently available although flights to some destinations are less frequent. Once the work permit is cancelled, the employer's levy obligation ceases. If there are last minute flight cancellations or changes by the airline, the employers may approach the Ministry of Manpower for an extension of the FDW's Special Pass. Levies are not payable for FDWs on Special Passes.”
“The identification of companies to be put on the FCF Watchlist therefore depends on the actual employee profile, rather than assumed preferences of any particular group. More importantly, regardless of who makes the hiring decisions, all employers in Singapore must comply with not just the letter but the spirit of our laws and regulations on fair hiring, and adopt good HR practices.”
“Firms are placed on the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) Watchlist if they have a higher share of foreign Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians (PMETs) as compared to their industry peers, or a high concentration of a single foreign nationality source. This proportion varies by sector. For example, sectors that serve a more international market tend to have a higher share of foreign PMETs in their workforce. The FCF watchlist is also a dynamic one, and snapshots of the firms’ employee profiles are not generally used for comparisons. While having a higher share of foreign PMETs does not necessarily mean that these firms have flouted any rules, placing them on the FCF Watchlist enables us to scrutinise all of their EP applications closely and to help them to improve their local hiring. The Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) engages firms on the FCF Watchlist to help them improve their Human Resource (HR) practices. In most instances, employers have been responsive. They have adjusted their hiring processes to reach out to more local candidates and put in place programmes, such as knowledge transfer and training plans, to develop their local talent pipeline. This approach has served us well. Since 2016, firms on the FCF Watchlist have hired more than 4,800 Singaporean PMETs in total, and many of them make sufficient improvements in their workforce profile to exit the FCF Watchlist within a year. For the minority who are uncooperative, their work pass privileges are suspended. Today, about 90% of the 48,000 HR professionals in Singapore are locals. In any case, hiring decisions are not made by HR heads alone. Senior management and line managers are also involved.”
“There are 4,703 active licensed crane operators in Singapore, of whom 90% are local. The number of local operators trained by BCA Academy has increased in recent years, from 103 in 2018, to 135 in 2019 and 204 in 2020. Besides wages that commensurate the skill and work demands, job seekers also look for opportunities to progress in the careers. In this regard, employers can highlight the potential for crane operators to upgrade to sophisticated and higher capacity cranes. BCA has also an Industry Transformation Map for the construction sector, to upgrade jobs, including crane operations. Besides BCA Academy, P-One, a BCA Approved Training and Testing Centre, offers crane training courses recognized by MOM for issuance of crane licenses (crawler, mobile and tower cranes). Interested locals can enjoy WSG subsidies and use their SkillsFuture credits to attend these courses.”
“The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) agrees that it is important that migrant workers receive adequate food. There is a range of practices for migrant workers taking their lunch at worksites; they could cook and bring their meal, purchase cooked meals at the worksite canteen, or be given a catered packed lunch by their employers. MOM actively puts out its feelers on the ground to look after the welfare of migrant workers. These include (i) deploying Forward Assurance and Support Teams (FAST) to dormitories regularly to engage the migrant workers about their overall welfare; (ii) working with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that engage with migrant workers; and (iii) providing a mobile application "FWMOMCare" for migrant workers to report issues, such as salary disputes and healthcare concerns, to MOM. MOM has not picked up many complaints about food adequacy. The occasional feedback received about food, such as the food not meeting the workers’ cultural or dietary needs, are quickly resolved when MOM brings the matter to the attention of the employer. MOM will continue to get feedback from migrant workers and stakeholders. Migrant workers who face issues with access to adequate and proper food or other well-being concerns should report their cases to MOM. MOM will address the issues raised with employers. In serious cases, MOM will take appropriate enforcement action.”
“To stem workplace fatalities, it is important that all parties, including sub-contractors, remain vigilant and pay close attention to safety at work. Ministry of Manpower data shows that smaller construction firms, or firms with 50 or fewer employees, many of which are sub-contractors, do have a higher fatal injury rate than larger firms. Nonetheless, the overall construction fatal injury rate has declined steadily from 5.4 per 100,000 workers in 2015, to 2.9 in 2019. In 2020, the fatal injury rate declined further to 2.1, although this was in part due to Covid-19 work stoppages. To ensure safety messages are filtered down to smaller construction firms, including the sub-contractors, the WSH Council, together with industry associations such as the Singapore Contractors Association Limited (SCAL) and Specialist Trade Alliance of Singapore (STAS), have organised regular mass engagement sessions including forums, dialogues and site visits as well as one-on-one outreach efforts to promulgate the importance of safe work practices. Frequent Safety Time Outs are conducted with support from SCAL and developers to ensure that WSH practices remain robust. The WSH 2028 Tripartite Strategies Committee had recommended a holistic set of measures to help companies improve their workplace safety practices. One of the recommendations was to publish more details of construction firms’ safety track record, including that of sub-contractors. MOM will be doing so early this year. This will allow developers to make more informed contracting decisions, and motivate main contractors and sub-contractors to step up their workplace safety practices.”
“Awareness and understanding of mental health concerns at workplaces has been growing although there are no recent studies on the current level of provision of the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to their staff. The most recent study conducted by the National Council of Social Service was in 2017, which found that less than 5% of the employers surveyed offered the EAP to their staff. Nevertheless, the Tripartite Partners unanimously agree that it is important to include the provision of EAP in the Tripartite Advisory on Mental Well-being at Workplaces, which was released in November 2020. The aim is for more employers to adopt this progressive practice to provide employees an avenue to speak to a professional on their work and non-work related challenges. EAP adoption requires collective efforts by key stakeholders. This is why we work with partners such as the Health Promotion Board, Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Council, the Institute of Human Resource Professionals, unions and industry associations to educate employers on EAP services. For instance, WSH Council raises awareness on the need to take care of mental well-being at workplaces and promotes the Tripartite Advisory and EAP through talks conducted under its Total WSH Programme. We welcome the efforts of NTUC and its affiliated unions to also engage employers and promote its adoption.”
“Qualifying annuity providers are subject to regular audit to ensure the terms of the products used for exemption have not been altered. Nonetheless, for members who have concerns about the certainty of payouts, they may wish to avoid such commercial products.”
“CPF members can apply to the CPF Board to be exempted from setting aside their CPF Retirement Sum from age 55 if they are receiving lifelong monthly payouts from qualifying private annuities bought using cash. The Board approves such exemptions if they result in the members being no worse off in terms of their retirement adequacy. As at November 2020, 129 CPF members are fully exempted from setting aside their retirement sum on such grounds. The criteria for a qualifying private annuity are as follows: (a) First, the annuity must be issued by MAS-registered providers and satisfy the stringent requirements under the Insurance Act. (b) Second, for full exemption, the payouts must be for life and at least equal to the member’s cohort Full Retirement Sum (FRS) payouts under the CPF LIFE Standard Plan. For this purpose, only the guaranteed component of the private annuity payouts is considered. (c) Third, if the private annuity is subsequently terminated, surrendered or revoked, the surrender value of the annuity must be refunded to the CPF Retirement Account, up to the member’s cohort FRS with accrued interest. The refunded monies will then be streamed out to the member either through the Retirement Sum Scheme or CPF LIFE. Under CPF LIFE, members enjoy the current floor interest rate of 4% per annum which is reviewed annually. With extra interest, members can earn up to 6% interest per annum. Private annuity providers are unlikely to be able to match such returns, and thus will not be able to offer as high a payout for the same premium. This explains why the number of members who have applied for exemptions, and the number whose applications were approved, are very low.”
“About 95% of all hospitalisation bills incurred by Work Permit and S Pass holders fall below $15,000, the current minimum medical insurance coverage required of their employers. This has been so for the past three years. As outlined in MOM’s Addendum to the President’s Address, we are developing an insurance programme to help employers manage unexpected large medical expenses of their migrant workers. Although this may mean higher premiums, it will also give employers greater peace of mind. We aim to keep the cost impact manageable for employers and will provide an update in due course.”
“There are no regulations preventing the employment of a stateless person in Singapore. Stateless persons who are Permanent Residents (PRs) can freely seek employment in Singapore similar to other PRs. Other stateless persons who are not PRs would be issued with a Special Pass by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) to authorize their stay in Singapore. With the Special Pass, the stateless person or their employer can apply to MOM if they wish to seek employment. MOM would then issue the stateless person with a Letter of Consent (LOC) to work in Singapore. The validity of the LOC is tied to the validity of the Special Pass, and there is no need for the stateless person to reapply when they change employers.”
“The vast majority of incoming FDWs are required to undergo pre-departure testing within 72 hours before they depart for Singapore, and serve a 14-day SHN at a dedicated facility upon arrival. We will continue to regularly review our border measures, so as to manage the risk of importation and mitigate transmission to the local community.”
“As of 28 October 2020, 139 foreign domestic workers (FDWs) have tested positive for COVID-19. Of these, 109 were imported cases who tested positive while serving Stay-Home Notice (SHN) at dedicated facilities on arrival, with testing at the end of the SHN period. The remaining 30 were locally transmitted cases, with the last of such cases being reported on 19 July 2020. These 30 locally transmitted FDW cases are part of the 2268 total local community cases as of 28 October 2020, and the infection rate of 0.01% among the FDW population is lower than the overall community rate of 0.04%. Twenty-four out of the 30 locally transmitted FDW cases were linked to a previous case in the employer’s household. In other words, the infection likely spread from the employer’s household member to the FDW. Of the remaining six cases, none had spread to anyone in the employer’s household; one is linked to the Mustafa cluster while the rest do not have any established links. The Ministry has issued advisories and distributed educational materials to employers and FDWs to remind them to take appropriate measures to minimise FDWs’ exposure to COVID-19. We encourage employers and FDWs to work out arrangements for FDWs to take their rest day on a weekday when public spaces are less crowded. FDWs have been asked to download and activate the TraceTogether app, or to collect the TraceTogether token, to facilitate contact tracing if required. They are encouraged to make use of e-remittance services so they do not have to physically visit remittance agents. All incoming FDWs are subject to the same entry requirements as inbound travellers with the same travel history. These include serving SHN at a suitable accommodation and testing negative at the end of the SHN period before being released.”
“The non-fatal workplace injury rate in 3Q 2020 was 85 per 100,000 workers, or 2806 injuries. This was lower than the rate of 106 in 3Q 2019, or 3697 injuries, but higher than the rate of 55, or 1919 injuries in 2Q 2020. The increase from 2Q 2020 was due to reduced work activities in the 2nd Quarter due to circuit breaker measures. For fatal injuries, the 3Q 2020 rate was 0.18 per 100,000 workers, or six fatalities, a slight increase when compared to the 3Q 2019 rate of 0.17, or six fatalities, and the 2Q 2020 rate of 0.14, or five fatalities. We are concerned with the number of injuries and fatalities. Despite COVID-19, we must continue to press on to strive to eliminate all hazards from the workplace. We are also mindful of the risk that contractors and workers rush to catch up on work and compromise workplace safety. Employers and workers must remain vigilant against the risk of COVID-19, and against the risk of workplace accidents, so that our injury rate for 2020 will be comparable or below that for 2019. MOM has therefore stepped up engagement and enforcement efforts since the end of circuit breaker. The Workplace Safety and Health Council (WSHC) has engaged over 8,000 companies from industry associations on Safe Restart, through e-forums, webinars and circulars, and outreached to more than 70,000 WSH Bulletin subscribers with Safe Restart reminders, WSH tips and other digital training materials.”
“The Self-Employed Person (SEP) Income Relief Scheme (SIRS) helps Singaporean SEPs with less means and family support tide over this period of economic uncertainty. As of end October, close to $1.8 billion has been disbursed to about 200,000 SEPs. Business owners and shareholder-directors of private limited companies may draw a salary from their companies and do not declare trade income. Instead of SIRS, the Government has extended the Jobs Support Scheme to cover wages of employees who are also shareholder-directors if their assessable income in the Year of Assessment 2019 does not exceed $100,000, which is broadly comparable to the income criteria for SIRS. About 50,000 shareholder-directors have benefited from this enhancement. This is in addition to JSS support for other local employees in the company. To help Singaporeans cope with the impact of COVID-19, we have also provided broad-based help to families, such as the Solidarity Payment and the Care and Support – Cash schemes. Those who require further financial support may seek help through the MSF Social Service Offices. MSF has also exercised more flexibility when considering ComCare applications during this period, to ensure affected Singaporeans and their families can get help.”
“WSG has tapped on its partnerships with TACs and professional bodies such as the Singapore Business Federation, the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants, Singapore Lift & Escalator Contractors & Manufacturers Association, the Association of Small & Medium Enterprises, and Singapore International Facility Management Association, to do so. These TACs and professional bodies activated their network of member companies, encouraging them to participate in WSG's Virtual Career Fairs. WSG also worked with TACs to ramp up career conversion programmes for roles that continue to be in demand, such as the Technology in Finance Immersion Programme that reskills mid-career jobseekers for roles in Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing and other emerging areas. Additionally, WSG recently launched the volunteer Career Advisors initiative and appointed the pioneer batch of over 30 advisors for the ICT and Retail sectors who were nominated in consultation with the relevant TACs and professional bodies. The nominees, mostly industry veterans in their fields, have stepped forward to volunteer their time, professional experience and industry networks to provide peer support to their fellow workers in their career journey and job search.”
“Workforce Singapore (WSG) provides employment facilitation services and programmes to help local workers secure jobs, and supports the transformation of the local workforce and industry. WSG has overall responsibility for designing the framework for service delivery. It works with strategic partners such as the Employment and Employability Institute (NTUC's e2i), Career Matching Providers (Ingeus and MAXIMUS), as well as Trade Associations and Chambers (TACs) and professional bodies to deliver these services. The TACs and professional bodies bring certain strengths to the employment facilitation ecosystem, such as their wide network of industry professionals and in-depth knowledge of the jobs and skills in the sectors they oversee. For example, WSG works with the Singapore Computer Society (SCS) and the Institute of Banking and Finance (IBF) to provide sector-specific career matching services for the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Financial Services sectors respectively. WSG provides funding support for SCS's Career Compass to run programmes such as career mentoring sessions and career preparatory workshops. In 2018, IBF set up IBF Careers Connect, with support from WSG and other agencies, to provide personalised career advisory and job matching services to locals exploring careers in the financial industry. Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, WSG has intensified efforts to curate job, traineeship and training opportunities for Singaporeans.”
“Today, there is no country source restriction on S Pass or Employment Pass workers. This allows restaurants with cuisines unique to certain countries to bring in key workers like specialist chefs. We encourage food service companies to find more sustainable solutions to their manpower needs and to transform their businesses to be more manpower-lean. They could also foster skills transfers by training up locals. Job redesign is another avenue that businesses should explore to attract more local workers. Businesses may tap on the Lean Enterprise Development (LED) Scheme for transitional manpower support where merited to support their transformation. The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) works with other agencies such as Enterprise Singapore and Singapore Tourism Board to consider such requests for manpower flexibilities by businesses in food services, on a case-by-case basis.”
“In other words, to share information, to exchange an understanding of where the company is right now, in coming to an agreement to what the wage adjustments should be. I think whilst I understand where the Member is coming from, if the NWC were to go beyond this, I suspect that we would say that it has become too prescriptive and not providing sufficient flexibility for different circumstances across firms and across sectors. So, it is a delicate balance and I know that it is not easy for them to strike. Given that all the tripartite partners were involved in this discussion, they came out with a set of Guidelines that I think were reasonable and something that on the part of the union, they also felt that they could operate on this basis. The Member's second question with regard to Workfare special payment, I appreciate her concern for our lower wage workers. It has been our intention wherever necessary to provide additional top-ups to help these workers tide over this period of difficulty. This year, there was a Workfare Special Payment made, both tranches have already been paid out. In the considerations for next year's Budget, I am very certain that the Ministries of Finance and Manpower will work very closely together to see how best to support our lower-wage workers.”
“Some companies have implemented the Annual Variable Component and on top of that, they also have the Monthly Variable Component. So, those are the components that should be used first. So, that is the first principle. The second principle is that if an employer has not adopted a Flexible Wage System, then any adjustments that they make to wages should then constitute a new variable component in the employer's pay structure. The third principle is for the management to take earlier and deeper wage cuts. I think this applies across the board and is well understood. the fourth principle is that employers who already pay Annual Wage Supplement, should endeavour to continue to do so. That part is quite specific. The NWC was not vague about it at all. The fifth principle is that in deciding on the reasonable level of wage cuts, employer should take into account a couple of factors. For example, the sector and the company's performance and outlook. It should take into account the level of Government support that it has already received or it is about to receive. It should take into account the cumulative effect of prior wage cuts and other cost-saving measures that have been implemented. It should take into account the impact on the employees' finances and also the employees continue to contribute full or longer working hours. In other words, this particular criterion already has quite a lot of dimensions. The sixth principle that the NWC articulated is that these wage adjustments should be negotiated and agreed upon if there is a union in the company, and if there is no union, the employer should do so directly with the employees.”
“Mr Speaker, I appreciate the Member's concerns that the NWC Guidelines could be too broad. At the same time, I think the NWC in its deliberations has also got to consider the flipside, which is that its Guidelines could be too prescriptive and too one-size-fits-all. So, I think between the two, both of which are equally difficult, they have to strike a balance. To share with the Member, the NWC very carefully deliberated whether they should even go into, for example, sector-specific Guidelines. Meaning to prescribe a certain range of adjustments that could be applicable on a sectoral basis. And after intense deliberation, the NWC came to the conclusion that even sectoral Guidelines would be too one-size-fits-all. That is because within the same sectors, we have companies that have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic to different degrees. And so, the Guidelines on a sectoral basis could be too generous for some companies and too tight for some others. I give you the example of the logistics sector. If the companies are, for example, serving the aviation and the aerospace or hospitality related industries, then, these logistics companies would be impacted to a larger degree. But if they are serving the e-commerce or some aspects of manufacturing, they could still be doing very well, for example, in healthcare and pharmaceutical. The NWC ultimately decided that the most reasonable way of going about its Guidelines was to set out a certain set of principles. The principles that they clearly articulated were six: firstly, whichever company in whichever sector, should utilise the range of flexibility under the Flexible Wage System. The presence of the Flexible Wage System differs from company to company.”
“Mr Speaker, the National Wages Council or NWC issued its Supplementary Guidelines on 16 October 2020, encouraging employers and employees to work closely together to minimise retrenchments. The NWC expects wage adjustments in the next 12 months to vary across sectors and firms. Not every employer will need to cut wages to save jobs. Some have seen no reduction in demand and thus have no reason to make wage cuts. Others have already adjusted wage levels or non-wage costs, in line with the Guidelines issued in March. The NWC also expects that employers will deliberate carefully whether to proceed with a wage cut. A key principle is for management to take the lead in taking wage cuts and to accept steeper cuts than what they ask of their workers. Employers will also be mindful that unwarranted wage cuts will make them less attractive to their workers and they will risk losing talent. The NWC has also clearly marked out a roadmap for the eventual wage restoration. Employers are to quickly restore wage cuts accepted in good faith by employees when business conditions allow them to do so. In addition, the Supplementary Guidelines recommend that for workers earning below $1,400, employers should, if necessary to avoid retrenchment, freeze wages rather than cut wages.”
“Prior to December 2018, Long Term Visit Pass (LTVP) and LTVP+ holders need their employers to apply for Letters of Consent (LOCs) for them to work in Singapore. Since December 2018, LTVP/LTVP+ holders who are spouses or unmarried children (under 21 years old) of Singaporeans or Singapore Permanent Residents and who wish to work are granted Pre-Approved LOCs (PLOCs). PLOC holders can work for any employer who is only required to notify MOM at the start of employment. The breakdown of unique applicants per year is as follows:”
“To help our local jobseekers access the available opportunities under the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package, Workforce Singapore (WSG) has brought career matching services closer to the heartlands. WSG launched the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Centres in phases since early July. By end-August, one centre had been set up in each of the 24 HDB towns. As of end-September, Career Ambassadors at these centres have advised around 6,000 jobseekers. As jobseekers are reached through multiple channels and assisted through a variety of means, it is therefore more useful to consider their collective impact. Between January and September this year, we have provided career matching services to about 51,700 jobseekers through various touchpoints such as the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Centres, as well as WSG’s and NTUC's e2i's five permanent career centres. Since the launch of the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package in April 2020, we have placed 33,100 jobseekers into job, traineeship, attachment and training opportunities. This is in spite of a two-month lockdown and the deep economic recession. The breakdown of jobseekers placed into these opportunities by highest education qualifications and age is not available, but we have provided the breakdown by occupational profiles in Table 1 below. Majority of the jobseekers placed into jobs are in non-PMET roles. We will continue to curate more opportunities, while seeking to increase placements of jobseekers.”
“The HDB and banks are providing mortgage relief to flat owners who faced difficulties paying monthly instalments in cash or using CPF. We will continue to review BRS keeping in mind the long term retirement needs of Singaporeans.”
“The Basic Retirement Sum (BRS) provides members with monthly payouts that cover basic expenses throughout their retirement years. CPF members aged 55 and above can withdraw up to $5,000 from their CPF savings, or more if they have set aside their Full Retirement Sum or BRS, with property pledge. For members turning age 65 from 2023, they can also withdraw up to 20% of their Retirement Account savings1 upon reaching age 65. Members who have less than their BRS are not required to top up their CPF accounts in cash. BRS takes reference from the actual expenditure of lower-middle quintile retiree households and is adjusted for long-term inflation and some improvements in standard of living. It reflects the long term needs of the member rather than short term fluctuations. We understand many Singaporeans face financial difficulties in this current environment. Our priority is to help Singaporeans stay employed to continue receiving CPF contributions. This is in line with the guidelines issued by the National Wages Council, which strongly encourage employers to retain employees through cost-saving measures, retraining and redeployment to new jobs within the company. The Government has also provided targeted assistance to save jobs and livelihoods such as through the Jobs Support Scheme, which provided salary support to help companies to retain employees. We have also ramped up job redesign reskilling and redeployment programmes as part of the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package. Apart from the above support, the COVID-19 Support Grant and Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme have also helped Singaporeans with short-term cash flow support. Lower income workers and households get more support through the Workfare Special Payment and grocery vouchers.”
“In August 2020, the Ministry of Manpower began trials to allow eligible migrant workers residing in dormitories to visit Recreation Centres (RCs) for social activities, leisure and personal errands. There are eight RCs which were purpose built to serve migrant workers, and they provide key services and amenities such as food courts, minimarts, remittance, barber and telco services. The visits to RCs have been done in a measured way to ensure that the residents and the broader community are kept safe and healthy. Visits have to be booked, and timeslots are allocated to ensure that there is no overcrowding of the RCs. Dormitory residents may be eligible to visit RCs once a week, if there are no COVID-19 infections in their dormitory, and they have either recovered from COVID-19, or have tested negative within 14 days prior to their RC visit. As of late October, we included about 150,000 dormitory residents in a trial (about 50% of total residents in dormitory). To date, 20% or 30,000 dormitory residents have visited the RCs. From 31 October, access to RCs has been expanded and all dormitory residents cleared for work are eligible to visit RCs on their rest days. We will study how best to support the migrant workers' recreational needs through this pandemic, taking into account the risk of transmission due to large social gatherings and prolonged interactions in uncontrolled settings.”
“Employers who employ at least 10 employees are required to notify the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) if five or more of their employees are retrenched within any six-month period. The Taskforce for Responsible Retrenchment and Employment Facilitation, comprising representatives from the MOM, Workforce Singapore (WSG), National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and NTUC's Employment and Employability Institute (NTUC's e2i), proactively reaches out to affected local workers to offer them employment assistance. This includes providing information kits on career resources and briefings on available employment facilitation. WSG and NTUC's e2i career coaches also offer career advisory and one-on-one coaching to help affected workers transit to new opportunities. The Member asked about additional support for mature workers who may not be internet-savvy or English-literate. Collaterals are provided in various languages at the career centres such as WSG's Careers Connect and the 24 SGUnited Jobs and Skills Centres. Career ambassadors and career coaches conversant in vernacular languages or dialects are also on hand to share available information and resources to assist jobseekers. The Taskforce, with the support of the Ministry, is committed to helping every retrenched jobseeker access available jobs, traineeships, attachments and training opportunities under the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package.”
“A late payment interest of 1.5% per month is currently charged on employers to deter them from paying CPF contributions late for their employees. The interest rate is broadly in line with other late payment penalties imposed on employers for foreign worker levy and GST. The late payment interest collected is used to cover the interest that the employees should have earned if the CPF contributions were paid on time. It is also used to partially offset the costs incurred by the CPF Board when recovering these late contributions. If we expressed the amount of late payment interest collected as a percentage of CPF contributions, the ratio has hovered at around 0.05 to 0.06% for the past 10 years including the first half of 2020. The amount of late payment interest collected each year is published in CPF Board's annual reports. We understand that some employers may face difficulties making CPF contributions on time during an economic downturn. The CPF Board will extend assistance to these employers on a case by case basis.”
“The primary purpose of CPF is to help members save for retirement. Members can earn risk-free interest of up to 6% per annum on their CPF balances. Members who are prepared to take some risks to earn potentially higher returns may do so through the CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS). The CPFIS provides members with the flexibility to diversify their investments to enhance their retirement nest egg. At the same time, as members' retirement monies are involved, safeguards have been put in place. First, while members can choose from a list of diverse investment options, higher-risk products such as hedge funds are excluded. This list of CPFIS products is reviewed on an ongoing basis to ensure that it remains relevant to members' needs. Second, investment-related fees, which erode returns, are kept low for CPFIS funds. In fact, since the start of this month, CPFIS sales charges have been removed and the cap on CPFIS wrap fees has been reduced to 0.4% per annum. Nevertheless, these safeguards do not guarantee that investments will do well. The COVID-19 pandemic is a reminder of the risks that come with investing. The resulting global market volatilities are reflected in the average quarterly performance of CPFIS-included unit trusts and investment-linked insurance products, which saw a drop of 12.96% in Q1 2020 before rebounding by 11.58% in Q2 2020. Investors, including those participating in CPFIS, may be better or worse off, depending on their timing and selection of investments during this period. Ultimately, the CPFIS is for members who have the knowledge and time to invest and are prepared to take the risks. The CPFIS Self-Awareness Questionnaire introduced in 2018 will continue to help prospective CPFIS participants gauge their readiness to invest their CPF monies.”
“The RRT and SHN/QO process has allowed us to identify these cases early and isolate their contacts quickly, helping to bring down the number of positive cases, which has also correspondingly brought down the number of contacts that need to be placed on SHN/QO. The number on SHN/QO, which includes the contacts of COVID positive cases identified over the past two weeks, has fallen to about 4,000. This is about 1.38% of the workforce living in the dormitories, while the remaining 98.62% are available to continue working safely. The Ministries, employers, dormitory operators and migrant workers share the same objective – to resume work at the worksites as smoothly as possible while maintaining the health and safety of the migrant workers and of our community. We would like to thank our employers, dormitory operators and migrant workers for their cooperation and remaining vigilant. By working together, we have been able to bring down the number of cases. The incidence rate of COVID positive cases from RRT has fallen from 0.27% in August, to 0.09% in September, and to 0.03% in the first week of October.”
“To detect new COVID-19 cases and contain the infections quickly and decisively, we have a multi-layered strategy, of which Rostered Routine Testing (RRT) once every 14 days is a critical part to detect COVID-19 early. These workers come primarily from the construction, marine and process sectors. 98% of workers have been scheduled for RRT, and employers are required to ensure that their workers continue to undergo RRT every 14 days, in order to safeguard their health and that of the wider community. We have also been working with employers, dormitory operators and migrant workers to put in place Safe Living, Safe Working and Safe Rest Day measures to prevent new infections. These measures have been effective in bringing down the number of cases and has kept transmission across dormitories to a minimum. As workers spend time either at their worksites or in their dormitories, these dormitory, worksite and transport measures are necessary to reduce the risk of transmission. We are very watchful for transmission across dormitories or worksites. So far, we have not detected any cross transmission since migrant workers resumed work from August. Since dormitories were cleared on 11 August 2020, about 53,000 migrant workers have been issued Stay Home Notices/Quarantine Orders (SHN/QOs). SHN/QOs are issued to contacts of persons who have been tested positive for COVID-19. The duration of SHN/QO is typically two weeks. As expected, in the first round of RRT in August, a number of COVID positive cases were detected resulting in their contacts being placed on SHN/QO.”
“CPF interest rates are pegged to returns on investments of comparable risk and duration in the market. Hence, changes in the yields on market instruments such as Singapore Government Bonds and fixed deposits will automatically have an impact on CPF interest rates through the interest rate pegs. Based on this interest rate peg formula, the current computed interest rate would be about 0.6% for the Ordinary Account (OA). However, CPF members currently enjoy a significantly higher rate of 2.5%, as this is the legislated minimum. The legislated minimum of 2.5% also applies to the Special, MediSave, and Retirement Accounts (SMRA). On top of this, the Government has maintained a floor interest rate of 4% for the SMRA since 2008. This is considerably higher than the current computed interest rates of about 2.4% for the Special and MediSave Account (SA and MA), and 3.0% for the Retirement Account (RA). In September, the Government announced that the 4% floor would be extended till December 2021. In addition, to help further grow CPF savings, extra interest continues to be paid on the first $60,000 of a member’s combined balances (capped at $20,000 for the OA). The interest rates on the OA, SA and MA are reviewed quarterly while the interest rate on the RA is reviewed annually, taking into account market conditions.”
“From 2017 to 2019, about 5,000 foreign work pass holders each year lodged salary claims with the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM). Where such claims are disputed by employers, TADM will refer them to MOM for investigation. In 2019, MOM identified eight cases where the foreign workers had behaved irresponsibly during the salary claim process, such as making false salary claims or providing false information regarding their salary claims. Employers and workers alike have an obligation to act responsibly towards each other. Given the seriousness of the offence and to ensure strong deterrence, MOM had to cancel the work passes of the workers and impose a permanent ban on them from working in Singapore. In addition, from 2017 to 2019, MOM took legal actions against eight foreign workers who were found to have made false work injury claims. They were either prosecuted or issued warnings for making false claims and giving false information to the Ministry. All of them were also permanently barred from working in Singapore. We encourage employers and workers to maintain regular communications and good relations with each other and resolve misunderstandings before they escalate into disputes. MOM follows up on every claim whether they are filed by workers or employers. False allegations by either party are viewed seriously. We will continue to monitor the situation and take appropriate action.”
“Employers are required to purchase and maintain a medical insurance of at least $15,000 per year for the inpatient and day surgery expenses of their Work Permit and S Pass holders. Over the past three years, about 95% of bills incurred by Work Permit and S Pass holders were below $15,000. MOM also encourages employers to consider higher coverage for their workers if they assess it to be desirable. As outlined in MOM's Addendum to the President's Address, we intend to, among other things, develop an insurance programme to help employers manage unexpected large medical expenses of their migrant workers. We are mindful of the cost impact of additional insurance on employers. Hence, we seek to strike a balance between reasonable coverage, and the cost of the associated premiums. This is a more sustainable approach, rather than depending on tax-financed subsidies.”
“The programme will strengthen the implementation of Safe Living Measures (SLM) in dormitories and reduce the risk of infection transmission. Such measures include the wearing of masks, safe distancing practices, staggered timings for the use of communal facilities and prevention of inter-mixing among dormitory residents. Under the programme, regular audits will be conducted to ensure compliance. Another key initiative is to distribute more than 450,000 contact-tracing devices to all migrant and local workers living or working in dormitories, as well as those in the Construction, Marine Shipyard and Process sectors. We expect to complete the distribution by early November. The contact-tracing devices, are designed for the dormitory and worksite environment. These devices will improve contact tracing and the quarantine process when new COVID-19 cases are detected. The number on Stay Home Notice/ Quarantine Order, which includes the contacts of COVID positive cases identified over the past two weeks, has fallen to below 1,500. This is about 0.52% of the workforce living in the dormitories, while the remaining 99.48% are available to continue working safely. The fight against re-emergence of COVID-19 in the dormitories is a shared responsibility of migrant workers, employers, dormitory operators and the Government. Rigorous adherence to RRT, SLM and IPC measures will create a safe living environment in the dormitories for our migrant workers as we gradually move into Phase 3.”
“During dormitory clearance operations between May and August, we tested all workers using the most accurate tests we have – Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests. During the incubation period of the virus, the PCR test results may not be positive because the viral load was not high enough. A small number of migrant workers would have fallen into this category. That is why after the dormitory clearance operation, diligent adherence to Rostered Routine Testing (RRT) is now part of our strategy to ensure that the virus is detected early before any significant transmission. Every migrant worker is required to be tested every 14 days. We have added a risk stratification strategy that identifies high risk dormitories. We are also developing the capability to do 7-day RRT in these high risk dormitories; and this is what we are trialling now with the alternating 7-day Antigen Rapid Test/ 7-day PCR test. Once an infection is identified, we move quickly to quarantine and test all close contacts. Strict implementation of RRT can bring down the spread of the disease. Just after dormitory clearance in September, we were identifying 26 positive case a day on average; in the latest two weeks, the average daily positive case is less than one. RRT is one critical part of our multi-layered strategy to prevent, detect and contain COVID-19 infections. Let me mention two other key layers of our strategy. MOM and MOH have launched the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) programme with the aim of getting dormitory operators and migrant workers to take greater ownership of their personal hygiene and living environment. The IPC programme assigns clear responsibilities and provides education and training to dormitory operators and dormitory residents so that they can each play their parts.”
“As a share of our resident workforce, citizens remain the vast majority at 84%. Should a complaint be filed with MOM that an employer has not made adequate efforts, we will engage the employer to review their workforce profiles before and after retrenchment. We consider the citizen, permanent resident and non-local shares of its workforce, and the reasons for any changes. We will also seek to understand the criteria used for selection, whether these are objective and rational. For the individuals concerned, we consider if the criteria were applied properly. Where there are unfair practices towards Singaporeans, the Government will take the necessary actions against the employers, such as withholding financial support or suspending the employers’ work pass privileges. Under the Employment Act, employees who are wrongfully dismissed due to discrimination can also be compensated or reinstated. More importantly, we are providing stronger support to employers for their local employees. Through the Jobs Support Scheme, Jobs Growth Initiative and other programmes, employers of local employees get generous wage and training support. For their citizen employees, there is the Special Employment Credit and Workfare. We make every effort to help affected Singaporeans get back to work. This is usually what they wish for most. It is also central to how we sustain support to Singaporeans and their families on an ongoing basis.”
“Retrenchments are never easy. I know this, having been involved in supporting retrenched workers for well over a decade, since I was in NTUC. It brings great stress to the workers, including to their families. This is why the retrenchment option should be taken only as a last resort. Employers too, may struggle on the question of who to stay and who to let go. Ultimately, they have to go back to why this drastic step needs to be taken, for the business and the people it supports to have the best chance of survival, or to restructure for continued longer-term viability. If after the retrenchment, the business still falters, the workers who didn’t get retrenched will also be hurt. The principle must therefore be to anchor decisions to help the business stay viable while taking special care of the workers, those that have to be let go as well as those that stay. This is often a very delicate balance. To make that assessment, the employer needs to sort out the business direction. In times of uncertainty, that in itself, is not an easy question to answer. Then, the employer needs to look at the abilities of the staff, their skills, and how those are relevant to the business, or to pivot to new activities. These must be the primary considerations. Having made that assessment, if the employer has to choose from equally capable staff of different nationalities, our advice to the employer is to upkeep the Singaporean core. This is contained in the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Excess Manpower and Responsible Retrenchment. By and large, businesses understand and support this approach. Employment data shows that the population of work pass holders have shrunk proportionally more than the resident workforce.”
“The National Wages Council (NWC) issued its Supplementary Guidelines on 16 October 2020, encouraging employers and employees to work closely together to minimise retrenchments. This is preferred over a blunt approach of reducing employers' CPF contributions across the board. Such an approach cannot take into account the varying circumstances of individual companies and employees, both in effecting the cut, as well as implementing the restoration. In addition, as CPF contributions are made only for local workers, a cut in employers’ CPF contributions places the cost reduction burden solely on a firm’s local workers, when it should apply to all its workers.”
“This is on Aerospace Engineering. In Aviation Management, not bad, too. About 60% have got useful skills that allow them to intern in roles that tap on their understanding of business management, for example. So, they have been able to get meaningful internship opportunities even if it is not directly involved in Aviation Management. So, that gives us a sense as to how the collective efforts of the agencies involved, together with the students' own willingness to step out of their comfort zone, they have been able to secure meaningful internships which, we believe, will enable them to be better positioned for the job market. And if jobs continue to be in short supply for such students then, certainly, we will look at how the SGUnited Traineeship Programmes can be continued. This is in relation to how these students can be taken care of. Mr Desmond Choo had a second part of his question and, that is, subsequent to these opportunities, supposing these students would like to return to their areas of study or return to an area of work that is more related to their discipline, will there be opportunities to do so? I think our record has been that whenever the industry has a need and there are people who would like to join the industry, then we will make available career conversion programmes and, if there is a demand for such students to return to the sector and some top-up is required, then I would like to assure Mr Choo that every effort will be made to avail such programmes to them.”