It was a busy year for the Labour Movement in 2014 with its constant outreach efforts to all segments of the working population in Singapore. From reaching out to the pioneer generation of unionists who helped build today’s NTUC to ensuring that workers of all collars were paid wages they deserved through the Progressive Wage Model.
The Labour Movement As A Whole
“We have extended our protection and voice for the low wage workers through various platforms through the tripartite partners. On protection, for those in jobs, we had expanded to represent the PMEs (Professionals, Managers and Executives) to provide protection, networking and leadership development both within the union and community.”- NTUC President Diana Chia
Re-employing Mature Workers
“2014 has been another year of progress for mature workers. The Employment rate for older workers aged 55-64 reached an all-time high. The Tripartite Committee on Older Workers agreed to move the re-employment age ceiling from 65 to 67 in due course, and in the meantime issued an Advisory urging firms and workers to do so ahead of regulation. The employer contribution rate to the CPF (Central Provident Fund) for older workers was increased in 2014, taking another step towards narrowing the gap with younger workers.”- NTUC Deputy Secretary General Heng Chee How.
Lobbying for PMEs
"The Labour Movement achieved several milestones for PMEs in Singapore in 2014. These included expanding the scope of the Employment Act on 1 April to positively impact more than 300,000 PMEs. Likewise, the Fair Consideration Framework and National Jobs Bank were also rolled out on 1 August to level the playing field for local PMEs, which number more than 650,000. In November, the Protection from Harassment Act came into force. Amendments to the Industrial Relations Act to allow greater collective representation of PMEs were also introduced in Parliament. - NTUC Assistant Secretary-General and Director, PME Unit Patrick Tay
Education for workers
The Devan Nair e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) assisted over 88,000 workers get better jobs or earn better pay through career coaching, skills assessment, skills upgrading, and matching job opportunities. e2i also brought its career coaching expertise and employers connections to the graduating students from ITE and polytechnics. We want to help students understand and know more about the different industries and the training pathways, link them with employers and advise them on career choices and progressions.” – e2i CEO Gilbert Tan
Fairprice Initaitives
“A major milestone for 2014 was the completion of our FairPrice Hub, which will house our new headquarters, distribution centre and our latest retail format – the Warehouse Club. To promote workers’ welfare and help the poor and needy, we contributed about $10 million to the community. Our staff also put in more than 2,300 hours in volunteering services. We laid significant groundwork to address food waste reduction and look forward to involving the community further in this effort.”- NTUC Fairprice Co-operative CEO Seah Kian Peng
Helping Migrant Workers
“2014 was a very encouraging year for the Migrant Workers’ Centre (MWC) as it continued striving towards meeting the needs of migrant workers.Migrant worker housing conditions received a further boost, not only because of our work and advocacy but also due to a number of high profile cases and the announcement of a new dormitory legislation. The MWC has called for the community to play a part in policing and reporting housing breaches and will continue to be a key partner of the housing enforcement agencies towards the common objective of proper and adequate housing of our migrant workers.” - Migrant Workers’ Centre Chairman and NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Yeo Guat Kwang.
Source: NTUC This Week
