Ministry of Manpower

The Minister for Manpower (Mr Lim Swee Say): MOM seeks to help Singaporeans take on good jobs, build fulfilling careers, enjoy sustained increases in real incomes and have a more secure retirement. In doing so, we support the goal of building a nation of opportunity and a society that cares for its people.

Singapore is at a turning point. We have a more educated generation with diverse aspirations and needs. We have an ageing population with Baby Boomers retiring in increasing numbers over the next decade. We face a volatile global economy, keener competition and faster technological change.

To sustain a nation of opportunities, we need to transit from a manpower-led to a manpower-lean economy. Even as we reap the benefits of growth, we must be inclusive in our approach so as to build a society that cares.

MOM will work closely with the other Government agencies and our tripartite partners to strengthen the Singaporean Core in the workforce and ensure Singaporeans of all ages have fair opportunities for leadership development and growth.

To strengthen the Singaporean Core in the workforce, we need to speed up our economic restructuring efforts and create more higher quality jobs to which Singaporeans aspire. Companies need to embrace productivity and innovation and reduce reliance on low-skilled foreign manpower. MOM will help companies become more manpower-lean and strengthen their Singaporean Core in all major sectors of the economy. We will support employers to redesign jobs, processes and workplaces to fully tap on the experience and contributions of all workers, especially our mature workers.

To maximise their full potential, we will enable Singaporeans of all ages to pursue good jobs and build fulfilling careers. As the economy restructures, we will help Singaporeans, especially those in mid-careers, to adapt and remain employable. We will enhance our employment support to prepare our workers and minimise potential job-skill mismatch.

We will work to ensure that Singaporean workers are fairly considered by employers when hiring and have fair opportunities for leadership development and growth at all levels.

Quality growth should lead to better jobs and higher incomes for all. We will seek to achieve this through the three Ps – Protection, Progression and Pride.

Protection. We have enhanced the Employment Act to protect more workers and extended the Industrial Relations Act to cover more Professionals, Managers and Executives (PMEs). We will raise the re-employment age from 65 to 67 by 2017. We will also expand our suite of dispute management services for workers and employers. We will step up efforts with our tripartite partners to enhance Workplace Safety and Health. We will strive for a culture of prevention to safeguard the well-being of our workers in safer workplaces. We will also enhance protection of injured workers to facilitate their return to work.

Progression. The tripartite partners are developing Sectoral Manpower Plans to help create diverse career pathways for Singaporeans to fulfil their aspirations, while meeting the manpower needs of industry. We will pay special attention and care to the older and lower-wage workers, by helping them achieve higher wages through better skills and improved productivity.

Pride. We want all workers to take pride in their work and all employers to value their workers. We will work with tripartite partners to promote progressive HR practices, invest in human capital and create workplaces where workers in all jobs are respected and valued.

We want Singaporeans to have greater peace of mind in retirement. We will continue to enhance the flexibility and adequacy of the CPF system while ensuring its long-term sustainability. We have accepted several recommendations from the CPF Advisory Panel which aimed to improve the CPF system. The Panel comprised experts and community leaders and took into consideration feedback from citizens. We will work towards the smooth implementation of these recommendations.

For elderly Singaporeans who have lesser means in their retirement years, we will implement the Silver Support Scheme to provide quarterly cash supplements.

We can only achieve and sustain better jobs, higher incomes and financial security for all if employers, unions, workers, Government agencies and the community at large work in unity. Together, we can instil pride and confidence in co-creating our desired future of a better workforce and progressive workplaces for Singaporeans and Singapore.