Adequacy of Child-minding Services to Support Mothers Working on Shifts
Ministry of Social and Family DevelopmentSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns Ms Yeo Wan Ling’s inquiry into the adequacy of child-minding services for shift-working mothers following the removal of mandatory Saturday childcare operations and whether new formal resources are being developed. Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli B M M explained that the requirement was removed from January 2025 because less than 1% of surveyed families lacked alternative weekend care. He noted that parents can utilize paid or community-based babysitting services and emphasized that employers should provide family-friendly environments. The Minister highlighted the Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests, effective December 2024, as a tool for parents to manage caregiving needs. These measures aim to support workers in balancing their professional and family commitments sustainably through formal request processes for flexible work.
Transcript
23 Ms Yeo Wan Ling asked the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) whether the Ministry is conducting any study to assess if child minding services are sufficient to support working mothers on shifts, given that ECDA childcare centres are no longer required to operate on Saturdays and Sundays; and (b) whether the Ministry is developing other formal childcare resources to support such needs.
Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The removal of the requirement for childcare centres to operate on Saturdays from January 2025 was a carefully considered decision after extensive engagements with early childhood educators, preschool operators and parents. Of surveyed families using preschool services, more than 99% did not require Saturday childcare services or could make alternative care arrangements and less than 1% had both parents who worked on Saturdays and did not have alternative care arrangements.
We recognise the challenges that parents face in balancing their caregiving and work commitments. For parents who require caregiving support on weekends, there are alternative caregiving arrangements available, including paid and community-based options, such as babysitting services. Employers also have a part to play, by providing a family-friendly work environment that supports working parents in balancing their caregiving and work commitments. For example, the Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests, which took effect on 1 December 2024 and sets out the process for employees to request one-off or more sustained arrangements to meet their caregiving needs, was introduced to support all workers, including parents, to better manage their work and caregiving responsibilities in a sustainable manner.