Patrick Tay Teck Guan
Singapore
“Will CPF Board also notify SDS holders with clear anti-scam advisories, whether via SMS or any other means, especially with emerging modus operandi by scammers? This is so that the message reaches them properly and reduces confusion. Mr Speaker, Sir, with these questions, I support the Bill.”
“We are not asking to oppose change but for clarity, contemporaneous communication, equitability and assurance so that impacted workers will not be left behind. In short, a fair and just transition. I hope today's debate helps move us in that right direction. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Bill.”
“I thank the Minister for sharing the response to the Parliamentary Question by the fellow Member of the House. I was wondering, and I think I have brought this up before on previous occasions, whether we can consider stricter penalties against those who do not comply, with this requirement.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I have two questions for the Minister for Health. Firstly, the rise in energy and related costs will impact our public healthcare clusters.”
“I thank the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the response. I have just one supplementary question for the Ministry of Manpower that in the light of these wage levels of our PMEs, in the course of reviewing some of our existing employment labour laws as well as regulations to factor this in, so that such PMEs are adequately represented,…”
“Stable psychiatric patients often remain at IMH simply because there are no community facilities to receive them. My third question is whether there are plans to develop more custodial care and step-down facilities – sheltered homes, supported living – so that IMH’s beds are reserved for those who need its full clinical expertise?”
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“Will CPF Board also notify SDS holders with clear anti-scam advisories, whether via SMS or any other means, especially with emerging modus operandi by scammers? This is so that the message reaches them properly and reduces confusion. Mr Speaker, Sir, with these questions, I support the Bill.”
“But a worker-first approach means we must still ask: who may be left behind, especially the older workers and those with lower financial literacy? We cannot build a "me first" economy where only the savvy benefit. Looking ahead, are there plans to refresh broad-based ownership models, like SDS, so that as Singapore invests heavily in artificial intelligence (AI) and new technologies, workers can benefit – not just through wages, but also by sharing in the upside? I welcome the earlier Budget announcement on enabling long-term investment, and potentially stronger returns for CPF members. On the transfer exercise, I have three practical points to raise. First, on selling. After the shares are moved into CDP accounts, some holders may end up with odd lots. Will this make it harder for them to sell without topping up? What guidance will CPF Board provide to help SDS holders transact smoothly and avoid unnecessary costs? I believe there will be sales charges if they want to sell their shares now, or in the future when it is ported over to their CDP account. Will these sale charges be higher than what they enjoy today when held via CPF Board? Second, on safeguards. Scams will follow wherever money is involved. Many SDS holders are older, indeed, the youngest are in their 50s, and about half are 65 and above. A worker-first approach must also be a senior-safe approach. What measures are in place to protect them from scammers who may exploit this entire transfer exercise? Does CPF Board expect an uptick in related scams and how will it pre-empt them? Third, on communications. I note CPF Board has sent notification letters, set up a dedicated hotline and conducted door-to-door visits for vulnerable SDS holders.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise to support the Bill. The transfer of Singtel SDS from CPF Board to SDS holders' CDP closes a chapter of a scheme that helped ordinary working Singaporeans build up assets, not just get by. I declare my interest as an SDS holder. I welcome the move to waive CPF withdrawal conditions for sale proceeds, so SDS holders, especially those who may need the money for daily needs or healthcare, have more flexibility. About 615,000 SDS holders will be affected by this transfer. The median SDS holder paid about $2,000 for the shares; they are worth about $6,800 as at April and have received about $5,000 in cumulative dividends. These are not abstract numbers. This is real money that can help a worker's family and make retirement a bit more secure. That is why we must make this transition safe, simple and supportive. SDS was a simple but powerful idea: give Singaporeans a stake in our economy through share ownership. In other words, it helped workers turn wages into wealth, step by step, over time. [Mr Speaker in the Chair] In the 1990s, Singapore was in a period of rapid growth and optimism. Today, the pressures are different: job insecurity, higher costs and longer retirements. For many workers, the worry is straightforward, can I still make ends meet today and have enough for tomorrow? As SDS comes to an end, we should renew a worker-first promise: growth must translate into security, and no Singaporean should be left behind simply because they are less financially confident. SDS worked because CPF Board served as a trustee, putting guardrails in place for first-generation retail investors, many of whom were workers with little experience in the markets. Today, more Singaporeans invest.”
“We are not asking to oppose change but for clarity, contemporaneous communication, equitability and assurance so that impacted workers will not be left behind. In short, a fair and just transition. I hope today's debate helps move us in that right direction. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Bill.”
“In that spirit, can the Minister consider whether IMDA’s assessment framework should formally incorporate workforce impact alongside market competition impact? This is particularly important as in the course of consolidation, employees may be moved to a different employing entity involving changes to their roles and job scope when the new parent group's competitive model is built on doing more with fewer people. Singapore’s labour management relations are stable and our tripartite framework has served us well. My ask is that we extend that spirit more deliberately into sector consolidation processes so that where livelihoods are affected, issues, like collective agreement continuity and union representation, are addressed early, and the workers' voice remains present. In this spirit, I have three questions which I hope the Senior Minister of State can address. First, how does the Government intend for IMDA to consider workforce impact as part of merger assessments, and can tripartite partners have a formal role in significant transactions? Second, will the Government develop clear guidelines, in consultation with MOM and NTUC, on collective agreement continuity, union recognition and representation where consolidations or structural separations result in workers moving to a new employing entity especially if only the property is transferred to a new entity under section 69A(3)(a)(ii), and the workers have to move as well? Third, would the Government consider putting in place a formal tripartite platform for the infocomm and media sector, so that the workforce issues arising from restructuring and consolidation can be addressed early and systematically? The Labour Movement stands ready to work with the Government and industry as a constructive partner.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise to speak on the IMDA (Amendment) Bill. I declare my interest as Assistant Secretary-General of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC). The Labour Movement welcomes this Bill. Stricter merger approval requirements, clearer direction powers for IMDA against anti-competitive conduct and a more coherent framework as our telecoms, broadcasting and newspaper sectors converge are timely and important. I support the intent of the Bill. And I would like to raise three areas where we can strengthen the worker dimension so that the sector remains competitive, while our workers and PMEs have confidence through change. Under this Bill, IMDA must give prior approval before any party acquires a 30% or larger stake in a regulated media company. That prior-approval gate is also the right point to look beyond market structure and ask what the transaction could mean for the workers and workforce impacted and affected. Major consolidation in the infocomm and media sector often comes with restructuring, role rationalisation and changes to how work is organised. In this sector, many of these job roles are undertaken by professionals, managers and executives (PMEs). They include engineers, operators, content and production professionals and thus the impact on livelihoods can be significant. MOM’s Labour Market Report for 2025 identified information and communications as one of the sectors where resident employment declined in 2025, even as Singapore’s economy grew more than 5%. This is why worker confidence and timely support matter in any major sector restructuring. It is important that the powers in this Bill are exercised in ways that are pro-competition and pro-worker, so that a "market win" does not become a "social loss".”
“Second, if jobs are lost, we cannot leave people to fend for themselves. The eligibility criteria for Jobseeker Support assistance can be broadened, so that more PMEs can benefit and have greater security. We must put up the umbrella before the rain comes – prepare for the storm before it arrives. Third, walk this road together. The AI transition cannot be decided by employers alone. As the saying goes, three cobblers together are better than a Zhuge Liang. The tripartite partners, unions and employers must work together, only then can we go far, steady and fast. Share the cake fairly and walk forward together. That is the AI future that belongs to every Singaporean – one that puts people at its heart. (In English): To conclude, there has been much said about AI as a double-edged sword. This metaphor has been used ad nauseam, but this is not untrue. AI's impact on the broad middle means that it is a "once-in-a-generation technology" but could also be a once-in-a-generation divider that concentrates gains to those who control AI while displacing the very same workers who helped to design, implement and build it. Equitable growth, enhanced protections and engaged workforce. These are three principles that must guide us in the way forward if we hope to anchor AI as an enabler in our AI transition in fairness, resilience and opportunities for all, because every worker matters. Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I support the Motion.”
“At Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), where our Healthcare Services Employees' Union (HSEU) worked with management through the CTC to roll out a Smart Scheduler that could handle multiple shift patterns and cut rostering time from more than 90 minutes to under 15, so that nurse managers could spend more time on other core work instead. Senior Enrolled Nurse Lilian Teng, 69 years old, who has worked at TTSH for the past 19 years, put it simply: with technology making work less physically demanding, she can continue working effectively for as long as she remains healthy. That is what an engaged workforce looks like. But company-level efforts alone will not be enough. With the formation of the Tripartite Jobs Council, the Government, employers and unions can now coordinate sectoral transformation with workers at the centre, ensuring that AI training, job redesign and transition support are shaped by those on the ground, not just decided from the top. Critically, the Tripartite Jobs Council can level up the CTC ecosystem to extend its reach beyond large employers to SMEs that may not have the resources to navigate their transformation alone. CTCs engage workers at the company level. The Tripartite Jobs Council will do it at the national level. Together, they ensure that AI transition is not something done to our workers, but with them. In Chinese, Sir. (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Mr Deputy Speaker, AI is here – and it has arrived fast and with force. But we must ask: when AI generates wealth, whose pockets does it go into? I raise three points. First, share the cake fairly. AI creates wealth, but that wealth cannot flow only to employers. Workers help bake the cake and they deserve a slice of it too.”
“Second, that HR professionals be supported with training and self-assessment tools to use AI responsibly and identify biasness. Officers involved in data governance and cybersecurity can also update their skills and knowledge in this evolving area as more companies adopt AI that is integrated with enterprise data. And third, that workers be given transparency. They should know where AI is being used in decisions that affect them, what guardrails are in place and how existing avenues of redress apply. And fourth, that we explore going upstream, working with AI vendors and developers to ensure that the underlying software meets some baseline principles of fairness and transparency before it reaches our workplaces. The International Labour Organization has started this journey and Singapore, with our tripartite DNA, can be a frontrunner in this space. Third and final "E", engaged workforce. Workers master AI and figure out how to embed AI into their workflows, not the other way round. Ultimately, an organisation cannot be run by no workers and AI alone. Simply imposing AI from the top will not produce results and can even create resistance and sunk cost. Workers are end-users and experts in their own workflows. They know where AI adds value and where it falls short. If you want AI to work, you have to ask the people who do the work. We already have a proven mechanism for doing exactly this – our NTUC's CTCs. CTCs bring management, unions and workers together at the company level to co-design transformation plans, pairing technology adoption with job redesign, skills upgrading and better wages. Let me share one example which the Prime Minister shared during the May Day rally.”
“This matters greatly to workers. Will recruitment AI automatically rank candidates with disabilities lower? If HR relies on an AI tool to shortlist who stays and who goes during restructuring, what recourse does a worker have if the outcome feels unfair? Who is accountable in this case – the HR team, the employer who procured the AI tool or the developer who built it? These are not hypothetical concerns. A joint Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD)-GovTech study found that large learning models can reliably guess personal characteristics, like gender of candidate from other data points like hobbies and volunteering, even when resumes are anonymised. We are fortunate to have passed the Workplace Fairness Act. Its principles – that employment decisions must be fair and merit-based and that every worker deserves fair access to good jobs – should apply regardless of whether those decisions are made by a human or by an algorithm. But while these principles are technology-agnostic, our current anti-discrimination levers have yet to explicitly address how they interact with AI-mediated decisions. As AI adoption accelerates, employers need clarity on what responsible use looks like, and workers need assurance that existing protections travel with them into an AI-enabled workplace. We should close this gap, not with regulations that stifles innovation but with clear, practical tripartite guidelines to ensure the just and fair transition. Singapore's strength is our tripartite approach and we should leverage it. To that end, I ask that the Government consider the following. First, that employers who adopt employment-related AI be guided to conduct risk assessments proportionate to the level of impact and ensure meaningful human oversight.”
“Bringing in global expertise and developing our own global talent pipeline are two sides of the same coin. Both deepen the capabilities of our local workforce. Second "E", enhanced protections. Inevitably, some workers will be impacted in the transition to AI. We cannot leave them to sink or survive on their own. They will need career guidance, financial support and grace to bounce back stronger. I thank the Government for launching the Jobseeker Support Scheme for the involuntarily unemployed workers to benefit from transitional support for up to six months while they train or search for their next job. The income threshold for Jobseeker Support Scheme is currently set at $5,000 excluding CPF, which would only cover less than 20% of resident PMEs. I hope that the Government will consider raising this threshold to the gross median resident PME income, currently at $8,400 as of 2025, or consider some other suitable schemes of equivalence to address the needs of impacted PMEs. By the same token, the Government can also consider allowing those with HDB housing loans a temporary deferment for up to six months, especially if they are unable to meet the mortgage payments to ease immediate cashflow needs. Singapore has taken a considered, framework-based approach to AI governance. We are not behind. We are being deliberate. Through IMDA's Model AI Governance Framework, the Cyber Security Agency’s addendum to secure agentic AI systems and voluntary testing toolkits, we have encouraged innovation and responsible adoption. But as AI moves from assisting decisions to making them, including in hiring, promotion and restructuring, we must keep pace. Other advanced economies have already taken the lead to explicitly classify employment-related AI as "high risk".”
“Earlier this year, the Economic Development Board (EDB) announced that the expected number of jobs to be created fell to 15,700, the lowest in at least 20 years, despite having attracted more investments than the year before. This indicates that while we may not see jobless growth, we may well see growth with less jobs. Jobseekers could be competing for fewer vacancies, underemployment could rise and wages could stagnate. Young graduates may find more challenges securing full-time employment compared to before. Globally, we have already seen a wave of companies, especially those in the tech sector, announce wide-ranging job cuts citing AI as a cause. Equitable growth means that gains from AI-enabled growth will be shared with workers, in the form of better wages, welfare and work prospects. As a start, we need to raise our standards for what constitutes fair and responsible retrenchment, such as by requiring early retrenchment notifications, supporting unions to negotiate for retrenchment benefits according to industry norms and designing AI grant incentives with conditions requiring employers to demonstrate efforts to meaningfully re-deploy workers whose roles and tasks are taken over by AI. As Singapore aims to attract the world's top AI talent to our shores, we must also ensure this builds up and strengthens our Singaporean Core. I ask that the Government encourage reciprocity through programmes, like the Capability Transfer Programme, so that knowledge and expertise flow to our local PMEs. At the same time, the Government can also invest in homegrown AI talent by sending them on training stints to top AI companies overseas through programmes like the Overseas Market Immersion Programme.”
“Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Motion. I would like to thank my NTUC sisters and brothers in this House for coming to support this Motion. Knowledge workers like PMEs are highly exposed to AI, unlike earlier waves of automation that mostly impacted the rank and file. Many of our middle-income PMEs belong to a sandwiched or under-served group. They are expected to perform like the top but are less protected than the bottom and they face increased competition from foreign PMEs. Mid-career PMEs are sandwiched between younger and older dependents, and cannot afford to lose their jobs. Yet they can take a longer time to find new jobs when displaced due to their higher income and age, often at the expense of a pay cut. We perceive PMEs as privileged and adaptable, who have resources and can take individual responsibility to upskill and also to cope with setbacks. This assumption no longer holds true. AI is set to both augment and disrupt job tasks across all PME sectors at all levels. We must recognise AI as a transformative technology that has the potential to create new opportunities and shared prosperity but also the potential to widen inequality by concentrating wealth and power at the top, especially if guardrails are disregarded for the broad middle in the race to adopt AI. To this end, I submit that Singapore's approach to AI must be human-centred while AI-enabled growth must be worker-centred. This means that we commit to what I call the "3 Es”. The "3 Es" are equitable growth, enhanced protections and engaged workforce. First "E", equitable growth. When we talk about AI-driven jobless growth, this does not necessarily mean mass unemployment. However, it may mean that the gains from AI may not trickle down to the broad middle.”
“SWDA can develop a robust and centralised tracking system to track longitudinal outcomes of its various courses, programmes and credit schemes as well as workers' career health to ensure returns commensurate with cost. To conclude, the creation of SWDA holds powerful potential for a higher speed, higher quality and higher returns skills and workforce development ecosystem, given the successful integration of jobs and skills infrastructure and management strategy. I encourage SWDA to boldly reimagine what learning and working can look like for the next generation and plant seeds early, just as the Government did with WSG and SSG over a decade ago. I also invite SWDA to leverage the Tripartite Jobs Council as it operates within the wider workforce ecosystem to transform skills and jobs, because this will be SWDA's key ground like into the heart of workplaces and worker groups. Can Singapore become a leader in innovative and inclusive learning practices, such as peer learning through communities of practice, residency programmes and incubators for non-traditional career aspirations or non-traditional learners, like caregivers, seniors and persons with disabilities? Can Singapore accomplish a triple-win by fostering a workforce with higher productivity, higher resilience and higher flexibility to meet the needs of workers, learners and employers? If we continue to be proactive rather than reactive, I believe we can. We must remember that today, we no longer just learn, work and retire. We learn, work, learn, work, learn, work, and maybe, retire. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support this Bill.”
“Granted, returns may be hard to quantify, as they go beyond employment outcomes, wage progression and training participation rates among vulnerable worker segments. Investing in a culture of lifelong learning and employment support has ripple effects on the resilience and diversity of our workforce. At the same time, a disconnect between training supply and labour demand results in underutilised talent and skills or qualifications mismatch, which drive employers to hire externally. In other words, we end up paying twice, once to train Singaporeans and again, to import foreign skills, while weakening the Singaporean Core. In Singapore, we do not have a shortage of funding or initiatives. We have a coordination problem. Our workforce and skills development ecosystem has matured beyond the experimental, piloting phase. Moving forward, I submit that funding must be more closely tied to or even conditional upon outcomes, that is, whether quantitative, like time-to-placement, or qualitative, like more meaningful and autonomous tasks within work scope. Can SWDA also share its plans to successfully integrate jobs and skills infrastructure and management strategy to increase return on investment? Time, skills and qualifications mismatches were raised as a point of concern in NTUC's recently released two-year study with the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) on underemployment. This refers to when workers can work more hours or take on higher-skilled roles but are unable to or choose not to. We therefore recommend an expanded definition of underemployment and closer tracking of these trends.”
“Apart from audit compliance and learner satisfaction, high-quality job-related learning must mean industry application or validation, such as employer co-design, work-integrated learning, like attachments or paid-per-task opportunities, portfolio building and access to mentorship or networking. These increase potential employment outcomes for learners while allowing employers to assess candidates with lower risk. For non-job-related learning for exploratory or personal interest reasons, high quality can be defined as learners motivated for further learning and future pursuits, as opposed to poor experiences becoming barriers to developing a mindset of lifelong learning. I also encourage SWDA to review the quality of student internships as internship-stacking and credit-bearing internships become more commonplace, especially for non-university graduates whose starting salaries lag their university peers. This includes safeguards to ensure fair allowances, reasonable work hours and safe and meaningful tasks. Investing in high quality student internships will benefit the same employers when graduates enter the workforce. Third and final "high" – high returns. Unlike other countries, where unions need to lobby for fairer access to training opportunities and employment support, Singapore has invested billions into our workforce and skills development ecosystem, and earlier than most. We also have a highly educated workforce with over 60% of resident workers holding tertiary qualifications, and over 40% holding degrees. On paper, this should translate into a highly productive and skilled workforce. It is worthwhile asking: do the returns justify our investments?”
“Will SWDA consider launching an extended and higher-value iteration of the GRaduate Industry Traineeships (GRIT) programme, with opportunities ranging from one to two years and with monthly traineeship allowances on par with starting salaries? As only over 3,000 involuntarily unemployed workers received at least one payout, out of the 10,000 SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support Scheme (JSS) applications received and despite 60,000 workers expected to be eligible for the scheme every year, will SWDA consider reviewing the scheme's salary cap, criteria for involuntary unemployment and service delivery experience? For example, job matching and career guidance services can be integrated with the JS scheme to fulfil the vision of being a "one-stop shop" for involuntarily unemployed workers. Following the European Union, South Korea and Vietnam's introduction of AI legislation and explicit classification of employment-related AI as "high risk", will SWDA require responsible practices, such as anti-discrimination risk assessments, human oversight and right-to-know transparency, when deploying AI-enabled human resources technology under the Workforce Development Grant (Job Redesign+) programme? Second, high quality. Measures have been recently rolled out to raise the quality of training providers seeking course approvals and funding, including requiring more practice hours and suspension for those with low ratings. These are steps in the right direction. However, we must also be mindful that what is considered useful is different to every learner.”
“SWDA will need to accelerate operational speed by reducing administrative burden, sharing data analytics and consolidating support packages into a "one-stop shop" experience for anyone, anytime and anywhere. The success of this vision will depend on faster rather than slower clearance chains with joint oversight. SWDA must also make clear to employers that delays in early job redesign and training investment will compound real costs through widening skills gap, tardy transformation and weakened competition positions, while early adopters who step up will reap strong gains and benefits. This can be made possible by closer integration of training design with company training and transformation committees to ensure a smoother training-to-work journey for in-service workers. Furthermore, proactively undertaking job redesign can also ensure more immediate fit for freshly trained new hires, especially mid-career trainees whose freshly acquired skills, and track-record experience in critical thinking and business problem solving present good value to prospective employers. High speed also in absorbing shocks, is also key during times of geopolitical and economic volatility, which are set to persist. The Government has done this well, for example, through the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce and Homefront Crisis Ministerial Committee. However, I urge that more can be done to support impacted workers. Business restructuring and AI-driven disruption have slowed hiring and growth of entry-level jobs. Graduates across our autonomous universities (AUs), including our private education institutions in the past year, secured fewer full-time positions across the board.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I rise in support of the Bill. Integrating WSG and SSG strengthens the effectiveness of Singapore's workforce and skills development ecosystem, and attests to the Government's ability and agility in responding to change in our labour landscape. Firstly, I would like to thank the Minister for his opening speech earlier for reassuring us that workers, staff and employees in both WSG and SSG will not be adversely affected by this merger. Last year marked 10 years since the national SkillsFuture movement was launched to promote lifelong learning as a national priority. In this House, I called for a timely review of services delivered across WSG, SSG and other arms like the IHLs and NTUC's e2i, to reduce duplication of resources and provide even more seamless end-to-end support for workers, jobseekers and employers. I am glad that this call has been heard. The creation of SWDA responds to trends like increased geopolitical and economic volatility, new technologies and diverse career aspirations. Rationalising the ambits of WSG and SSG provides a strategic window to critically assess what has worked and what has not. Identifying where the gaps are, who are the underserved and what are the bold steps we need to take to ensure our workers stay afloat, abreast and ahead. To this end, I offer three priorities for the next bound of Singapore's skills and workforce development ecosystem, what I call the three "highs", not "Hi" but "high" – high speed, high quality and high returns. First, high speed. This refers to speed-to-market for training curriculum when new skills become in-demand and career transition programmes when industries face sunset. In a fast-changing and highly competitive global labour landscape, the earliest bird catches the best worm.”
“I thank the Minister for sharing the response to the Parliamentary Question by the fellow Member of the House. I was wondering, and I think I have brought this up before on previous occasions, whether we can consider stricter penalties against those who do not comply, with this requirement. Because as the Minister shared earlier, there are more than 20% of companies that do not comply with the MRN requirement. So, whether MOM will consider tougher, more stringent measures, as a form of deterrence to would-be offenders.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, I have two questions for the Minister for Health. Firstly, the rise in energy and related costs will impact our public healthcare clusters. How would the Ministry of Health (MOH) be mitigating this, so that some of these costs are not passed on to consumers, therefore inflating and exacerbating healthcare prices and costs? The second question is whether in in light of the current situation, is there any impact on whether it is our stockpile or supply of critical medicines, or maybe certain specialty areas?”
“I thank the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the response. I have just one supplementary question for the Ministry of Manpower that in the light of these wage levels of our PMEs, in the course of reviewing some of our existing employment labour laws as well as regulations to factor this in, so that such PMEs are adequately represented, protected and covered.”
“Stable psychiatric patients often remain at IMH simply because there are no community facilities to receive them. My third question is whether there are plans to develop more custodial care and step-down facilities – sheltered homes, supported living – so that IMH’s beds are reserved for those who need its full clinical expertise? Mental Health”
“Chairman, I declare my interest as Chairman of the Mental Health Board at the NHG Health. I rise to make the case that Singapore should position the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) as the true Centre of Excellence in psychiatric treatment and care, and to ask the Minister three questions towards that goal. IMH is our only dedicated psychiatric hospital, housing our most experienced psychiatrists and specialised teams. Yet it remains stretched across the full spectrum of acuity. If we are serious about building a Centre of Excellence, we must free IMH to focus on what it does best – leading research, training the next generation of mental health professionals and managing our most complex cases. My first question concerns manpower. Is IMH better resourced than our acute hospitals to handle complex psychiatric patients? And a Centre of Excellence should not merely treat; it should set clinical standards across our entire healthcare system and across all three public healthcare clusters. How is IMH’s specialist expertise being leveraged across the three clusters to uplift psychiatric treatment and care in all our acute hospitals and in the community, so that IMH is not bogged down by excessive referrals beyond what they can handle effectively and efficiently. My second question concerns care pathways. Will the Minister share data on polyclinic acceptance rates for patients discharged from IMH and acute hospitals with psychiatric diagnoses? A Centre of Excellence cannot function if its beds are occupied by patients ready for step-down care. Are there plans to expand polyclinic capacity for psychiatric cases, so that IMH can focus its resources on those who truly need specialist care?”
“Firstly, on Mandatory Retrenchment Notifications, and secondly, on the ONE Pass. Firstly, for the Mandatory Retrenchment Notification. Even as early as last month, I had another company that informed of a retrenchment exercise a day before. I think we were scrambling trying to help the workers, so I urge MOM to relook at the Mandatory Retrenchment Notification to MOM specifically, prior to the retrenchment exercise, so that we can act on it. And for those who breach Mandatory Retrenchment Notification requirements, not just a slap on the wrist, but more enhanced penalties and not just merely administrative penalties. Second clarification is on the new ONE Pass (AI and Tech) track. How does it differ from the current Tech.Pass, and who are we really hoping to attract?”
“In the interim, perhaps companies should consider having at least one IHRP-certified HR professional before they can be allowed to hire any foreign manpower. In the same vein, I suggest that employers be allowed to use their Enterprise SkillsFuture credits, similar to what workers have, for sending their HR staff for IHRP training and certification. Calibrating Singaporean Core and Competitiveness”
“I wish to ask MOM for the status of the Strengthening the Singaporean Core efforts in Singapore as well as an update on Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS). How effective it has been since its start especially now with the doing away of the Fair Consideration Framework triple-weak watchlist? Some recruiters have candidly shared with me that they only post on MyCareersFuture portal if they must fulfil the Government's requirements to put up the job for 14 days before they can hire foreign PMEs. If that is the case, it will be hard for the Government to have a good sensing of all the available job openings in Singapore. Would MOM consider mobilising and/or requiring all companies to post their available openings on the portal for ease of tracking, analytics and sensemaking of industry hiring needs? By the same token, there are those whom I have heard comply with the 14-day posting requirement merely as window dressing. Likewise, a closer scrutiny of employment agencies is much needed at this juncture as sometimes such breaches and window dressing are carried out by them. I urge MOM to pay a close watch on this. On the second point on human capital practitioners, especially their practices and processes are really key to foster a fair and inclusive workplace including one with a strong Singaporean core. I am aware that the IHRP is doing good work to certify human capital practitioners with the IHRP certification. I declare my interest as co-chair of the workgroup looking at human capital development. Can MOM progressively then mandate the certification of HR practitioners, now that we have this IHRP certification in place?”
“I am particularly concerned about non-time-based involuntary underemployment in Singapore and urge for closer monitoring of this trend. NTUC has embarked on a study with the Singapore University of Technology and Design, and will share more soon. We realise this is often fuelled by mismatch in jobs, skills and expectations of employers, including job seekers both young and not so young. There may be occasions where underemployment may occur as a result of this mismatch. We should monitor this closely and provide proper career counselling, coaching and mentoring at all stages of a person's career from his/her first job, during his/her first job, when looking for the next job or beyond retirement and re-employment. In the same vein, I suggest both individual and employer SkillsFuture credits be approved for use towards professional career coaching, guidance, mentoring and counselling services for workers and individuals beyond those currently provided by our IHLs, WSG and e2i. Closing Youth Employment Gap”
“A national level institution would establish the standard rules behind each party's commitments, promote worker firm matching and encourage the movement of journeymen to other firms once they have completed their formal training. Importantly, by taking the lead in establishing a nationally recognised internship and apprenticeship programme that enables voluntary progressive acquisition of certifications, the Government can also codify a learning culture that opens up the substantial benefits of such experiences to a much wider range of candidates. Non-academic pursuits, such as the culinary arts, music and sports; artisanal practices, such as horology, furniture making and other skilled crafts; and professions that rely on experience and OJT rather than book smarts alone. In other words, will the Government be an advocate for Singaporeans that have ambitions to contribute to traditionally underserved sectors of the economy that nevertheless are passed to meaningful middle-class secure jobs? This national OJT system can be strengthened by two further elements. First, to encourage buy in from the corporate side. I further propose that workers be allowed to apply their SkillsFuture Credit toward paid internship programmes. Second, in line with standard practice, such apprenticeships and internships can typically be short term, six months to a year —”
“Yet, without a pipeline to train new hires, especially on the job, it will be a conundrum, a shortage of experienced mid-level workers which remain in high demand. This is precisely where the Government can step in by subsidising the gap that the labour market would otherwise leave unfulfilled. I propose that we institutionalise a national OJT system for apprenticeships, internships and mentorships. Presently, securing GRIT positions is largely decentralised, relying primarily on proactive posting by the hiring entity or a small number of private jobs clearing houses. Polytechnics and some university programmes do sponsor internships, but only for students that have first completed their coursework components. Most programmes accepting apprenticeships focus on technical or professional disciplines, such as finance, technology, medicine or law. These facts mean that the benefits of OJT will tend to accrue to only limited segments of the labour force and indeed, the majority of current listings are for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) or finance graduates, many of whom already possess the means to seek, identify and apply to such opportunities. There is substantive evidence that internships and apprenticeships do not only contribute to enhance knowledge transfer and more efficient production but can also play a role in reducing the extent of labour market polarisation, which is becoming a growing concern in Singapore. However, such systems tend to be more successful when operating within the rubric of a larger institutional framework.”
“Today, countries as diverse as Australia, France, Germany, India, Switzerland and Turkey, have national-level apprenticeship systems. Singapore has OJT systems too but there are certain shortcomings. The Workforce Skills Qualification (WSQ) framework under the rubric of SkillsFuture includes an assessment only pathway. But by emphasising paper qualifications, the assessment only pathway continues to be hamstrung by an insistence on assessment over demonstration, on the acquisition of certification over experience. Those I have spoken to shared that it has become more of an impediment rather than a genuine stepping stone toward career advancement in the skills trades. Workforce Singapore (WSG) runs existing Career Conversion Programmes (CCPs), but these are mostly linked to industry transformation maps. In practice, the industries covered are linked, limited to professional and technical roles rather than broad based. WSG also runs a career trial for employers where firms can try the employee out for some time with Government support. This helps spread the risk for employers in terms of hiring. But it is less clear how trainees, especially those who are seeking to retrain and reskill, gain structured systematic exposure to new skills. Most recently, WSG launched the GRaduate in Industry Traineeship (GRIT) programme for graduates of ITE, polytechnics and universities. This is a major step and one that I wholeheartedly support. But a quick search reveals less than 100 open positions. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, in his National Day Rally, announcing the initiative, spoke about scaling up the programme if the economy worsens. While the economy is doing well, I believe that GRIT's time has come. Agentic AI threatens to replace the need for entry-level positions.”
“Given the potential for an AI divide where the affluent and less well-off have differential access to premium AI tools, a further suggestion is to offer lower-income Singaporeans subsidised access to premium AI tools on a longer-term basis. This would help ensure that AI adoption remains inclusive and does not widen existing inequalities. On-the-job Training in the Age of AI Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): One of my closest friends, whom I have known since I was 13, is a banker. This in and of itself is unremarkable, since the financial sector accounts for one in every 16 workers in our labour force. What is remarkable, however, is how he got there. My mate, trained in architecture, obtaining his bachelor's and master's degrees in the subject, but after graduation, he applied for and scored his first job in investment banking. Why did the bank bother interviewing him to begin with? According to him, they were impressed by his sharpness and moxie. There was a reason that they would teach him everything that he would need to know on the job anyhow. Today, he an immensely successful financier leading the Asia Pacific business of a top-shelf asset management firm. The story illustrates a reality that all of us are familiar with. In spite of the best efforts of educators, like myself, most of the skills needed for our jobs are not learnt in the classroom but in life settings on-the-job training (OJT). Indeed, OJT, which could involve formally organised structures, such as apprenticeships or internships, or more informal processes, such as guidance and mentorship, often imparts specialised skills that are typically far more valuable for the actual day-to-day performance of one's job than the validation conferred by a certification itself.”
“I strongly urge MOM to consider expanding the Jobseeker Support scheme cap from the current $5,000 to $7,600, which is the median salary of professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs), and I am speaking of PMETs and not even PMEs, which is much higher, so that the scheme remains meaningful, adequate and reflective of present‑day labour market realities? Second, on Mandatory Retrenchment Notification. Today, notification often comes after retrenchment decisions have been finalised. By then, options are limited and intervention is reactive. I propose that the notice be done prior to retrenchment, so that early support can be activated, such as career coaching, job matching, redeployment and where possible, alternatives to retrenchment itself. Early notification enables early intervention and early intervention saves jobs. Access to Premium AI Tools Assoc Prof Terence Ho (Nominated Member): Mr Chairman, I would like to suggest that the Ministry consider extending free or subsidised access to AI premium tools to a larger group of Singaporeans, such as all mature workers, on a time-limited basis. Many of these premium tools cost no more than US$20 a month, or under $30 a month. Six months of fully or partly subsidised access, could make a significant difference in helping people become familiar with and experiment with AI. In particular, the fear of missing out could prompt people to try the tools for the first time, which they may put off despite the availability of free versions. Many of these tools are intuitive and can be adopted even without special training.”
“More than two years ago, MOM announced that these guidelines were being developed in consultation with tripartite partners, with the intention to provide clearer guidance to employers and better protection for employees. At that point, we were told that the guidelines were expected to be released by the end of 2024. We are now in 2026. Yet, many employees, especially professionals, managers and executives (PMEs), continue to face broad and restrictive restraint of trade clauses that can limit their mobility, bargaining power and career progression, even where there is no legitimate business interest to protect. Could the Minister update this House on the current status of this and indicate when employers and workers can expect clear and practical guidance to be issued? And in the interim, what advice does MOM have for employees who may be subject to overly restrictive or unreasonable restraint of trade clauses today? Unemployment Support and Mandatory Retrenchment Notification Over the decades, in my work with the Labour Movement, I have worked alongside thousands of workers who lost their jobs, sometimes with notice, sometimes overnight, often with little clarity on what comes next. Retrenchment is not just an economic event. It is a human event, affecting livelihoods, families and dignity. I would like to ask the Ministry for an update on two key safeguards that directly impact displaced workers: the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support Scheme and the Mandatory Retrenchment Notification framework. First, on the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support Scheme. Since the start of the scheme, can MOM provide an update on the scheme? Today, we see more PMEs affected by involuntary unemployment than before and further exacerbated by the advent of GenAI.”
“The last round of Employment Act review was passed in 2018 and effective April 2019. I am aware that the review is ongoing and I declare my interest as part of the tripartite workgroup on the review. I am therefore asking for MOM now to provide an update to the House on when they plan to roll out the amendments and in what broad areas, pursuant to some of my lobbying efforts in this House the past few years. By the same token, the Industrial Relations Act was last amended more than a decade ago, in 2015. To avoid conflicts of interest and undermining management effectiveness, executives with senior management functions were excluded from collective bargaining. In the years that followed, unions which have sought to extend their scope of representation to include executives and have met with some difficulties because the exclusions set out in section 17(3) are too broadly worded, thereby giving employers the opportunity to claim that even low- and mid-level executive employees fall within them, whereas the intent behind the law was only to exclude those who are at senior management levels and carry out functions which genuinely give rise to a conflict of interest if they are represented by a union. Can I request MOM to look into providing greater clarity through a firmer and clearer articulation on this point, either through amending the guidelines or amending the Industrial Relations Act for statutory clarity? 2.00 pm Guidelines on Restraint of Trade I would like to ask the Ministry also for an update on the proposed tripartite guidelines on the restraint of trade clauses.”
“Second chances are not about being soft on crime. They are about being firm in our belief that people can change. And when we allow that change to take root, we do not just transform one life. We strengthen families, restore hope and build a more compassionate and resilient Singapore. Rehabilitation and Reintegration”
“I want to speak today not just about policy, but about people. Because behind every label of "ex-offender" is someone's son, someone's spouse, someone's parent. Many have made serious mistakes and they have paid dearly for them. But when they step out of prison, they often face a second sentence – rejection, stigma and doors that never open, no matter how hard they try to change. Sir, if we believe that people can be rehabilitated, then our society must also believe in giving them a real chance to start again. This is why we must continue to invest in the 3Rs, or what I call rehabilitation, raising employability and reintegration back into families and the community, not just to reduce reoffending, but to restore dignity, purpose and hope. When someone is able to work honestly, support their family and belong again, the entire community becomes safer and stronger. I want to acknowledge the efforts of Yellow Ribbon Singapore and the Singapore Prison Service, and the many employers, voluntary welfare organisations (VWOs) and volunteers who lean forward to help. In our dialogues with employers and ex-offenders, we heard both hope and deep anxiety – hope that employers are willing to give second chances, but fear from those inside that their past will forever define their future. And this brings me to my question. Can MHA share how far we have come in supporting ex-offenders in their reintegration journey, especially in helping them secure meaningful work and rebuild stable lives? And will the Ministry consider reviewing laws such as the Registration of Criminals Act, including whether some records can be spent earlier where appropriate so that those who have truly turned over a new leaf are not locked out of opportunity for life?”
“We are looking at hybrid threats – misinformation, cyberattacks and threats to our social cohesion. SAFRA's vision is for every national serviceman to be committed to Total Defence. But in a hybrid world, the commitment of the national serviceman alone is not enough. We need the commitment of the entire public. Public support is the "fuel" for our defence engine. It is what makes the "whole-of-society" mentality possible. If the public does not understand the why behind our defence spending or the sacrifice of our servicemen, our national resilience weakens. Chairman, currently, SAFRA serves the NS community. But I believe SAFRA's expertise in community building is a really untapped resource for broader national engagement. Can we leverage SAFRA's network and facilities to engage the wider Singapore public on defence matters? Are there plans to use SAFRA as a platform where non-servicemen – could be spouses, children and new citizens – so that they can better appreciate the contributions of our NSmen and learn how they too can play a part in Total Defence? By opening SAFRA's "doors", both physical and metaphorical wider, we do not just celebrate our soldiers; we strengthen our society. Strengthening Defence in the Community”
“Since 1972, the Singapore Armed Forces Reservists Association (SAFRA) has been more than just a provider of gyms and swimming pools. It has been the home away from camp for our national servicemen. Today, with seven clubs spanning from Jurong to Punggol, SAFRA stands as a tangible thank you from the nation to those who serve. On a personal note, I have seen how these spaces have evolved. Since my younger days, SAFRA Tampines was where I headed to for a game of squash or badminton and my regular swims. Today, I see national servicemen bringing their toddlers to the enrichment centres and their elderly parents to the restaurants. SAFRA has successfully mirrored the life stages of our servicemen, moving from a space for the boys to a space for the family. The last time I popped into SAFRA was at SAFRA Tampines again, but with my son, for bowling; and recently, in December, for a joint community event between my Pioneer Coordinating Arts and Culture Club and SAFRA Jurong. To remain relevant in 2026 and beyond, SAFRA must continue to bridge the gap between "serving time" and "belonging." My first clarification relates to the NS community's changing needs. While the new Choa Chu Kang clubhouse is a masterpiece of modern integration, our NSFs and pre-enlistees have different digital and social habits compared to my generation. What upcoming initiatives or infrastructure improvements can the NS community look forward to? Specifically, how will SAFRA ensure that its offerings remain bespoke for different segments, from the pre-enlistee looking for fitness prep, to the NSF seeking respite, to the former national serviceman who still wishes to maintain that link to the SAF fraternity? 3.00 pm Sir, the security landscape has shifted. We are no longer just looking at borders.”
“Second, could MFA elaborate on what new or emerging domains it is actively developing with our neighbours? In particular, how is MFA advancing cooperation in areas, such as the digital economy, renewable energy, sustainability and supply chain resilience, and how are these being translated into concrete, practical projects? 12.00 pm Third, how is MFA strengthening engagement at the sub-national level? What role do partnerships with Malaysian states and Indonesian provinces play in Singapore's broader regional strategy, and how does MFA ensure these ground-up collaborations deliver tangible outcomes? I would be grateful if the Ministry could address how these efforts collectively strengthen Singapore's security, economic resilience and strategic space. Situation in Gaza”
“ASEAN has long been described as a core strategic asset for Singapore. Could MFA elaborate on how it is strengthening ASEAN's role as a stable regional framework, one that amplifies the collective voice of its members and anchors Southeast Asia in an open, inclusive and rules-based order? As we prepare for Singapore's ASEAN chairmanship in 2027, how is MFA prioritising efforts to strengthen ASEAN unity and effectiveness so that ASEAN countries can continue to matter to both its members and to external partners? In particular, how is the Ministry advancing economic integration, supply chain resilience and ASEAN centrality in a more fragmented global system? On regional peace and stability, how is MFA working with our neighbours to reinforce ASEAN-led mechanisms, manage differences through dialogue and uphold international law, especially in areas of growing strategic tension? Finally, how is MFA positioning ASEAN for the future? What concrete steps are being taken to advance cooperation in the digital economy, green transition and human capital development so that ASEAN remains competitive and resilient? I would be grateful if the Ministry could address how these efforts together safeguard Singapore's long-term interests and regional stability. Relations with ASEAN Member States On relations with Malaysia, Indonesia and ASEAN neighbours, Chairman, I would like to ask MFA how Singapore is stepping up engagement with our immediate neighbours, particularly Malaysia and Indonesia, in a more uncertain and competitive global environment. First, beyond our well-established bilateral frameworks, how is MFA refreshing and prioritising engagement to ensure these relationships remain strategically relevant and responsive to new challenges?”
“On the Member's question, there are tripartite negotiations on this point. We have formed a Tripartite Workgroup on the review of the Employment Act which I am a member, we are looking at this carefully to balance the interests of the respective tripartite partners. But what I shared earlier is our NTUC's standpoint, which both Secretary-General and myself have shared earlier.”
“The Uplifting Employment Credit (UEC) for ex-offenders and the Enabling Employment Credit (EEC) for persons with disabilities, which provide employers with wage offsets to enhance employment support for disconnected individuals and widen our labour pool, are commendable initiatives. I hope that the Government continues to embed inclusive hiring into mainstream workforce policy to unlock under-utilised potential and ensure all workers can contribute fully and justly, as well as to boost the employment and employability of ex-offenders and persons with disabilities. I note that the UEC scheme ended on December 2025, and I ask that an extension be considered. I contend that Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in workplaces should not be a compliance obligation but treated as workforce infrastructure. This means equipping managers and HR with the skills to productively operate a team with different needs, entrenching flexible work arrangements as a norm and avoiding cliff effects in policy support. As persons with disabilities and ex-offenders are more likely to be concentrated in lower wage and lower-skilled jobs and sectors that have higher rates of unemployment and/or underemployment, a more concerted effort can also be made to prevent reproducing inequalities for these two groups. Sir, in conclusion, in this era of AI, ageing and global uncertainty, Singaporeans are not asking for guarantees. They are asking for fairness. They are asking for opportunity. They are asking that effort be rewarded. This is why this Budget must work for the "5 U's": the unemployed, the underemployed, the under-represented, the untrained and the underserved. In a time of transition, we will only succeed if "U" and "Me" move forward in Unity. Mr Speaker, Sir, I support the Budget. [Applause.]”
“During SkillsFuture's 10th anniversary last year, I suggested to consolidate efforts and streamline offerings across different arms of the CET ecosystem including NTUC's e2i, WSG, SSG, training providers and the various Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs), to control quality and prevent overlap. I am glad that the Government considered the recommendation and are going to create now a one-stop-shop new agency for skills training, career guidance and job matching services by merging WSG and SSG. A next step is to enhance Career Conversion Programmes (CCP) to cover even more sectors and increase offerings. As the transition to an AI-driven economy approaches, NTUC has launched its AI-ready Singapore initiative to strengthen workers' long-term employability through learning and applying AI skills to daily work. NTUC will roll out AI training pathways and subsidise up to 50% of subscription costs of eligible AI tools for members, for an initial period of two years. Notwithstanding, a tripartite standard on ethical and non-discriminatory use of AI in recruitment, performance, promotion and termination can boost the AI-readiness of Singapore's workforce. The Government can also encourage employers to partner unions to start upskilling and/or redeploying impacted staff early on. Together, we will move AI-literacy to AI-fluency for every worker, every department, every company and every industry, so that no worker is left behind. My fifth and final "U" worker group is the underserved, referring to persons with disabilities and ex-offenders.”
“To be clear, foreign PMEs remain essential to complement Singapore's workforce. They fill critical skill and labour gaps, bring global expertise and networks and help keep companies growing rather than relocating. Many are friends and neighbours in our communities. The key is to create policy that encourages foreign PMEs to complement rather than displace the local workforce, encourage skill transfer and local-foreign integration and position local PMEs for senior and leadership positions as well as high-paying and high-value jobs. I therefore welcome the Government's decision to raise the qualifying salaries for and S Pass holders to maintain the quality of EP and S Pass holders as wages rise. But Government also needs to watch for parity of Singaporeans who do the same work and are paid similarly, and work alongside some these of S Pass and EP holders. I will also continue to call on the Government to monitor, previously coined as the "triple weak" companies and sectors and encourage them to improve their workforce profiles by removing preferential tax or not awarding public sector contracts for recalcitrant companies. The Government can also consider awarding bonus points under the Complementarity Assessment Framework (COMPASS), based on the proportion of Singaporeans in management positions. My fourth "U" worker group is the "untrained". Unlike other countries, where unions often must lobby for uneven training and upskilling opportunities, Singapore continuously doles out funding and promotes continuing education and training (CET) as a national priority. Today, we enjoy a wide range of courses and schemes like SkillsFuture Credits to improve accessibility. However, there remains a minority of workers who have not accessed these resources we can work to reach.”
“The Government can also consider reviewing the Industrial Relations Act, which stipulates that PMEs cannot be represented by unions if they are in senior management and executives with duties involving hiring, firing or confidential information that present a conflict of interest. I suggest there be greater clarity about exclusions, other than what is provided in the Tripartite Guidelines, as there are employers and human resource (HR) professionals who are still riding on this exclusion, to disallow unions to extend their scope of representation, especially for purposes of collective bargaining. Currently rank-and-file unions can represent eligible executives on a limited individual basis for specific industrial matters including retrenchment benefits, dismissal, breach of individual contract, victimisation and re-employment disputes. I ask that the Government broaden this scope to also include grievance handling. For over a decade, I have advocated for a compendium of measures to level the playing field and strengthen the Singaporean Core for our local PMEs, including legislation against errant employers who discriminate against Singaporeans, a foreign-PME dependency ratio, stricter Employment Pass (EP) application conditions and many others. Yet, local PMEs, especially those who work in multinational corporations (MNCs), tell me that they still sometimes feel under-represented in numbers and rank at their workplaces. We can say time and again that it is not a zero-sum game, but when MNCs retrench equally knowledgeable, skilled and experienced local PMEs to retain cheaper foreign manpower, or when local PMEs are disproportionately underrepresented in senior and leadership positions and paid less, it can feel like this.”
“The Government can also set aside more resources to groom early-career professionals by sending them for overseas work postings. This is opportune as the Market Readiness Assistance grant and a host of other schemes are enhanced to support local companies to internationalise. The Economic Development Board (EDB) recently announced a 20-year-low number of jobs expected to be created, despite attracting more investments. This is a global problem in the age of automation and AI but in Singapore, we cannot accept an economic model where growth advances while workers are left behind. Structured career pathways and raised wages should continue to be encouraged in traditionally undervalued fields with unmet demand like the skilled trades, education and care services. My third "U" worker group is the under-represented, referring to local PMEs who make up about almost half of the workforce and disproportionately impacted by economic restructuring and technological disruptions, but who may lack representation and protection benefits. Lower-income PMEs, sometimes disguised, for example, are not covered under Part IV of the Employment Act which provides for rest days, hours of work and overtime pay. I therefore call on the Government to increase the Employment Act Part IV income thresholds, something that I raised in this House before, for non-workmen to at least $3,000, which will better reflect today's workforce demographics and help curb overworking norms. To ensure protections in the Employment Act keep pace with wage growth and workforce changes, the Government can commit to reviewing the Employment Act every five years or when salaries reach a particular threshold, with a mid-term review of income thresholds to ensure legislation does not lag economic shifts.”
“Even "internship-stacking" may not be deemed as sufficient as employers increasingly preferred to hire applicants with at least minimum one to two years of full-time work experience. Early career professionals impacted by retrenchments are also met with stiff competition as "job-hugging" or resignation rates hit a historic 20-year low. Labour market transitions can eliminate existing opportunities but also yield new ones, such as new sectors and more flexible or meaningful forms of work. For example, Singapore is constantly ranked as one of the most AI-exposed countries in the world, but also one of the most AI-ready. Young people will need to know how to reach these new opportunities and our institutions must be equipped to support them. The Government launched the GRIT Programme last year to absorb recruitment and training risk for employers while helping fresh graduates gain industry experience and relevant skills. This is a good start. To avoid skills-jobs mismatches or youths getting stuck in gig, contract or part-time work after long and unfruitful job searches, a more concerted effort must be made to invest in human capital and skills, broaden the range of good jobs with good prospects and growing local companies and startups, many of which are aligned with recommendations outlined by the Economic Strategic Review. The Government can consider launching an extended and higher-value iteration of GRIT in high-growth and high-demand sectors with opportunities ranging from one to two years and with monthly traineeship allowances on-par with starting salaries. Host organisations must convert trainees into permanent full-time employees unless a valid reason and supporting evidence are submitted.”
“I therefore submit that the Government broaden its definition of underemployment and collaborate closely with our tripartite partners to monitor this issue and maximise the productivity and earning potential of every worker, especially after NTUC and SUTD's underemployment study findings are released in the coming months. Fixed Term Contract (FTC) workers are one group acutely vulnerable to job insecurity. The Government can encourage employers to emplace FTC workers into permanent roles after two cycles of contract renewals, and regard successive contracts renewed within two months of the previous contract as continuous service, instead of the current one-month window stipulated in the Tripartite Advisory on the Employment of Term Contract Employees. Another group vulnerable to involuntary underemployment that has been concerning of late is young workers and fresh graduates. According to the most recent Graduate Employment Surveys from autonomous universities, private education institutions and polytechnics, fewer graduates secured permanent full-time positions within six months of graduation across the board, even as starting salaries continued to rise. While this is in part due to the younger generation's propensity to explore diverse and flexible career paths, many also face external challenges like the shrinking of entry-level roles accelerated by AI and increasing saturation of diploma and degree-holders. Earlier this month, NTUC hosted a dialogue with students at the Singapore Management University on the subject. I was there as well. Students spoke frankly about sending out dozens, even hundreds, of job applications without even a single reply.”
“By easing financial pressures, JSS helps workers avoid rushing into poor job matches that lead to underemployment. Sir, this brings me to my second "U" worker group, the under-employed, which can be broadly defined as those who are under-utilised in the workforce in terms of availability, qualifications, skills, or experience. Time-related underemployment, such as when an individual who has the capacity to work a full-time position works part-time, is measured by MOM and widely studied. However, non-time-related underemployment, such as when a highly qualified, skilled or experienced expert holds a junior-level position, is more difficult to determine. This is why NTUC has collaborated with the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) to study this issue since 2023. There is also voluntary and involuntary underemployment. Voluntary underemployment, where workers opt to work fewer hours or in a less demanding role to pursue better work-life balance, personal interests, or a less stressful career, can represent diverse aspirations and values. It is the involuntary underemployed group that warrants our attention. These are workers who stay in contract or gig work because they cannot secure a full-time position. They are also over-qualified workers who seek to move up the career but are stuck in junior level positions and pay. Over time, underemployed workers can become trapped in a vicious cycle of low-paid and insecure work, limiting opportunities for upward mobility. Women and caregivers, in particular, are at a higher risk of underemployment and consequently, unequal pay, as they take more time out of the workforce and seek flexible work arrangements to balance caregiving commitments.”