Increasing Awareness of Adequate Retirement Planning amongst Employees Following Recent NTU and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy Study
Ministry of ManpowerSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the steps taken by the Ministry of Manpower to improve retirement planning awareness among employees, citing a study on CPF members meeting retirement sum targets. Minister for Manpower Dr Tan See Leng stated that retirement adequacy is underpinned by competitive jobs and wage-uplifting moves, alongside increasing retirement and re-employment ages to 65 and 70 by 2030. He highlighted specific initiatives like the CPF Retirement Planning Service, which provides personalized guidance for members turning 55, and annual retirement planning campaigns. Additionally, the Institute of Financial Literacy conducts free financial health clinics and workshops on money management and CPF savings to support individual planning. To further reach employees, the government collaborates with employers to deliver workplace financial literacy programmes and resources to help workers prepare for their future.
Transcript
32 Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim asked the Minister for Manpower given the finding of the recent study by NTU and Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy that only 65% of active CPF members who turned 55 in 2021 have either saved enough for the CPF Basic Retirement Sum and owned a property, or had saved the Full Retirement Sum, what steps will the Ministry take, together with employers, to increase the awareness of adequate retirement planning amongst employees, especially older workers.
Dr Tan See Leng: To help Singaporeans attain basic retirement adequacy, we, first and foremost, need to ensure that our economy continues to be competitive and create good jobs. We uplift lower-wage workers through Workfare and Progressive Wage moves. Singaporeans can be assured that they will be able to meet their basic retirement needs as long as they work and contribute consistently to the Central Provident Fund (CPF). About seven in 10 active CPF members who turned age 55 in 2022 set aside the CPF Basic Retirement Sum or more. This would improve to about eight in 10 for CPF members who turn age 55 in 2027.
As our life expectancy improves, more seniors are able and wish to continue working. We will support them by increasing the statutory retirement and re-employment ages to 65 and 70 respectively by 2030, up from 63 and 68 today. This will enable our seniors to work longer if they wish to and further strengthen their retirement adequacy.
Retirement planning is, ultimately, a personal responsibility. To help Singaporeans in this journey, CPF Board, MoneySENSE1 as well as MoneySENSE’s ground outreach arm, the Institute of Financial Literacy (IFL), conduct outreach and provide resources on retirement planning.
For example, CPF members reaching the age of 55 will be invited to a one-to-one CPF Retirement Planning Service, which offers personalised guidance, so that they can make informed decisions on how best to prepare for retirement with their CPF savings. CPF Board also regularly engages and educates members on retirement planning through its social media platforms, electronic direct mailers and face-to-face community events/talks. There is also an annual CPF Board Retirement Planning Campaign to inspire Singaporeans to start planning for their retirement.
IFL provides free one-to-one financial health clinics and retirement planning workshops covering topics, such as money management, managing CPF savings and estate planning. To reach employees, IFL has been partnering employers to deliver workplace financial literacy programmes.