Classification Framework for SkillsFuture Courses
Ministry of EducationSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns Mr Mark Lee’s proposal for a SkillsFuture classification framework featuring a Mobility Index for career advancement and an Industry Heat Index for hiring trends. Minister of State Gan Siow Huang replied that SkillsFuture Singapore already collaborates with industry partners to publish insights on high-growth sectors and priority skills. She noted that current resources, like the Jobs Skills Dashboard and the annual Skills Demand for the Future Economy report, provide data similar to the suggested indices. Minister of State Gan Siow Huang welcomed additional partnerships with trade associations to improve course signposting and transparency for individuals seeking to upskill. She further explained that the government works with sector agencies to make training information more responsive to market needs and to address skills mismatches.
Transcript
2 Mr Mark Lee asked the Minister for Education (a) whether the Ministry will consider a classification framework for SkillsFuture courses, featuring a dual-index system with (i) a Mobility Index to assess the potential for career advancement of these skills within and across industries and (ii) an Industry Heat Index to gauge hiring trends in booming sectors; and (b) if so, whether the Ministry can collaborate with trade associations to ensure these indices accurately reflect industry demands, and integrate it into the MySkillsFuture portal for users to make informed choices.
The Minister of State for Education (Ms Gan Siow Huang) (for the Minister for Education): Mr Speaker, SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG) works closely with industry partners, such as queen bee companies, trade associations and professional bodies, to analyse market trends in high-growth sectors and translate them into job and skills insights. These are published regularly so that individuals can make use of the information. For example, the annual Skills Demand for the Future Economy report identifies the priority skills for the green, digital and care economies.
In relation to the Member’s suggestion of a Mobility Index, the Skills Demand for the Future Economy report provides information on career transition pathways to help individuals with relevant skills pivot to job roles in these growth sectors. Information on hiring demand for these priority skills, in terms of the number of job postings and types of jobs that require these skills, is also provided within the report and as an accompanying Jobs Skills Dashboard, which is similar in intent to the Member’s suggestion of an Industry Heat Index.
We welcome partnerships with the industry and trade associations, including the Singapore Business Federation, to further improve the signposting of SkillsFuture courses to individuals seeking to upskill.
Mr Speaker: Mr Mark Lee.
Mr Mark Lee (Nominated Member): I thank the Minister of State for her comprehensive reply. I was wondering because if you read the newspaper article on TODAY, there are certain sectors that are saying that there is a large skills mismatch, especially for the tech sector. Perhaps we can work more closely with the business community to ensure that there is more transparency and more signposts for individuals to understand what skills are required within certain specific industries. The trade associations are wanting to work hand-in-hand with you. And maybe there would be a requirement for higher subsidies for maybe the hottest skills that are needed and less for skills that are currently in less demand.
Ms Gan Siow Huang: I thank the Member for his suggestion. In fact, SSG welcomes more partnerships with the business associations and trade associations. Just for information, we work very closely with the sector agencies to identify suitable groups that we can work with so that the information on jobs and skills can be made more responsive and available to Singaporeans who are looking for jobs and skills training opportunities.