Good morning SG, Sister Nora Kang, Chairperson of NTUC Women’s Committee, fellow NTUC CC members, tripartite partners, sisters and brothers from the unions, members and families.
Background of International Women’s Day
The International Women’s Day, which falls on the 8th of March every year, is a significant event that marks the contributions and recognition of women all over the world. It has gained so much awareness that it is now celebrated throughout the month of March. To commemorate this special occasion for women, NTUC Women’s Development Secretariat (WDS), has organised today’s event with the theme “Flexibility Works!” and a series of events, centred around this theme.
About the U Flex Movement
U Flex, an initiative by NTUC Women’s Development Secretariat is a great step forward to encourage employers and employees to exercise flexibility at the workplace. This movement advocates for employers to offer flexible work arrangements so as to empower their employees to excel at work and in their roles and aspirations outside work. The Labour Movement strongly supports this advocacy and the action plans to embrace flexibility at the workplaces!
The U Flex Teaser Campaign on 5 Mar
For a start, the team has engaged the working crowd at Raffles Place earlier this week and conducted a Facebook photo contest to share the essence of the U Flex Movement, which is to raise awareness on the business case for flexibility at the workplace. Like many will say, a picture speaks a thousand words. Let us sit back and take a look at the highlights during the teaser campaign.
Indeed, it has been an engaging event. And you can be part of this movement too, by prominently displaying the U Flex badge, especially at your workplace! Better yet, if you have a team under you, I would like to encourage you to make that move to empower your team through flexibility!
Flexibility Works! Job Fair
In conjunction with the IWD Celebrations, the Women’s Development Secretariat organises its inaugural Flexibility Works! Job Fair, under the Back to Work with U Programme. Recognising the importance of flexible work arrangements to recruit and retain women at the workplaces, 15 employers have come together to offer various forms of flexibility to the job seekers, offering a total of around 570 positions across various sectors.
Hunt for Best Companies for Mums 2014
Another effort includes identifying the best companies in terms of their work life policies and family friendly work practices for Mums. We hope to put on records and recognise the companies that create a happy and conducive environment for our women. And this year, we are happy to bring back the contest for the 2nd year by introducing new categories to acknowledge companies and individuals who have in one way or another help to make flexibility at the workplace possible.
Flexible Work Arrangement Conference and Exhibition
In line with the U Flex Movement, WDS will also be holding the first ever Flexible Work Arrangement Conference and Exhibition on the 14 March at the Employment & Employability Institute (e2i). Participating companies will see the business case for flexibility at work, learn from exemplary companies and IT solution providers as they share their flexibility journeys and motivate them to pilot some form of flexible work arrangement at their workplaces.
Conclusion
The journey towards workplace flexibility is a continuous one as we push forward to outreach to more companies to embark on the journey. Every employee needs to balance his or her career aspirations and family responsibilities. Flexibility thus plays an essential role to prevent employees, particularly women from dropping out of the workforce, and facing challenges in returning subsequently or even stop working totally.
The successful implementation of flexible work arrangements contributes to a happy, conducive and supportive work environment for both employers and employees, leading to win-win outcomes for both parties. Companies will be able to attract, motivate and retain dedicated, committed and happy female employees. And women are able to enjoy a fulfilling career without having to choose and compromise on their family care responsibilities.
Therefore, I would like to commend WDS for your continuous efforts and urge all our tripartite partners to work closely with WDS to create a flexible and supportive environment for women back to work. I also want to thank NTUC Women’s Committee for their support for the event.
On this note, I wish everyone a happy International Women’s Day once again and continue to have an enjoyable time. Let’s all work towards a U Flex Workplace!
-END-
