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Mr Speaker,
We have had a challenging start to 2020. Singaporeans ushered in the new year amidst slowing economic growth and geostrategic uncertainties. With COVID-19, this has further impacted our economy.
Although the severity of COVID-19 remains unclear, the Labour Movement will work closely with the Government and businesses to tackle the spread of this disease and protect workers.
I would like to thank workers on the frontlines, who are working tirelessly to keep us all going: our medical staff, our drivers, our air crews, our cleaners, our security staff and many more, thank you.
Tackling New Threats
Mr Speaker, we are not unfamiliar with the current situation, given our experience with SARS. We are now much better prepared to tackle an infectious disease outbreak such as COVID-19. Our medical infrastructure, public health knowledge and training have improved significantly over the years.
However, this time round, we are facing a deeper, more wide-ranging impact to our economy than before. Our world is now much more interconnected with China and the disruption to the Chinese economy is starting to cause far-reaching ripple effects that have affected Singapore as well.
So let us all be mentally prepared and importantly, ready ourselves, stay strong, and overcome any challenges that come our way.
As Secretary-General of NTUC, I commend the Government’s swift and collected response to the outbreak. The strong Budget this year reflects the whole-of-Government approach to tackling the virus and maintaining our workers’ confidence in the economy.
Over the past few weeks, the Labour Movement has been hard at work collecting worker feedback through our union leaders, our industrial relations officers as well as from employer partners. Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat has factored these feedback into the Budget.
During this difficult time, workers are understandably worried for the health of their loved ones, friends and co-workers. Additionally, workers in some of the hardest-hit sectors are facing daily disruptions and as members have said before, they are worried about sustaining a steady income in this uncertain environment.
Just to give you a sense, hotel occupancy rates have gone down to as low as 35 per cent or worse, from highs of 85 per cent and more; our taxi and private-hire drivers have given me feedback that income have dipped up to 40 per cent; and even attractions in Singapore have seen visitorship drop by as much as 90 per cent; so many workers are anxious, they don’t know if they can keep their jobs, and worry also about reduced incomes given less work, less overtime.
As for employer feedback, we are starting to see delays in the supply chain as the reach of COVID-19 deepens. Also, some companies are suffering from a shortage of labour while ironically, other sectors have excess capacity.
I am heartened to see the Budget address these issues and many more.
The $4 billion Stabilisation and Support Package announced by the Government will help businesses across industries; and also specific sectors most affected by the outbreak, to help them defray business costs. Our workers can take comfort in knowing that the help for businesses will also help them keep their jobs and incomes.
The $1.6 billion Care and Support Package shows care for workers and addresses the needs of older workers, young families, the lower income and our future generations.
On NTUC’s part, we are doing what we can to help and protect our workers and their families.
Our Union Leaders are working hard to help companies manage excess manpower and reduce costs by arranging for subsidised worker training and upskilling through NTUC LearningHub and NTUC’s e2i during this lull period. In some cases, this is arranged through our Company Training Committees, which we launched last year, and have proven useful.
We are also looking at ways in which we can help workers, in particular PMEs, with their job worries. Something that could help is a pilot that NTUC is introducing this year, called the NTUC Job Security Council. I will explain more on this shortly. In response also to Ms Jessica Tan and Ms Sylvia Lim’s point about worried workers.
For the self-employed, the Labour Movement is working together with Government agencies to help cushion the financial blow and organise relevant training.
Supporting Workers through Change and Economic Transformation
Whilst we work together to overcome today’s challenges, I support the Government’s $8.3 billion Transformation and Growth effort to transform our economy and prepare for the realities and opportunities that lie ahead.
Singapore continues to face long term challenges. Industry 4.0 is changing the very nature of many jobs and creating new types of work, from 3D printing of our HDB flats, to friendly chatbots providing 24/7 frontline service to customers. All these are exciting opportunities if we can seize, will bring great possibilities for economy and for workers.
Our labour force is also changing. Our resident labour growth is slowing and our workforce is ageing. There are also now more PMEs in the workforce with better education and in contrast, the proportion of rank-and-file workers is declining.
I know that it can be difficult to think about structural change over the long term while we are facing immediate concerns that seem so much more pressing.
In these circumstances, workers do tell me that they sometimes struggle to keep up with these new realities. They are prepared for new transformation and change but at the same time, cause them much worry whether they can adapt to these new realities.
But the Labour Movement wants to assure every worker that you matter, and we will do our best to support you during this time.
In my view, Every Job Counts.
And the one thing we must enhance is to bring better Job Security for our workers. We believe that job security is the umbrella that protects our workers from passing thunderstorms. In today’s context, job security does not necessarily mean guaranteeing a job for life. Times have changed. More and more, job security means providing workers with what they need for skills progression and job placement, which ultimately will improve their work prospects that would bring more confidence and give themselves — the workers and families peace of mind in the new economy.
Our NTUC Labour Members of Parliament will be speaking today on how we are working to ensure job security for every worker: older workers, women in the workforce and especially the most vulnerable segments of our population, such as lower income workers and the self-employed.
Miss Jessica Tan was almost speaking like a Labour MP. And given that she has an important appointment as Director in Raffles Medical Group, it is music to my ears to hear an employer speaking in Parliament calling for more to be done for our workers.
Let me now elaborate on some of the tools that we can promote job security for all our workers as Ms Sylvia Lim has also articulated.
Update on Company Training Committees
NTUC introduced the Company Training Committees (CTCs) last year for union leaders and their management partners to work together for the company to drive towards transformation in partnership.
I am glad to hear DPM Heng Swee Keat mention the benefits that the CTC platform has brought to our businesses and workers. These Company Training Committees enable companies to refresh and deepen workers’ skill sets in line with new technologies and importantly, tap on Government resources such as the new SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit to aid with the needed training.
They have also the added benefit of providing a ready-made avenue for management to discuss more immediate issues with the union, such as manpower and cost issues arising out of today’s COVID-19 situation. Not originally intended but a good tool now for CTC to enable the discussion between management and workers to think about training in the lull period.
Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), which manages the Singapore Zoo, Jurong Bird Park and other attractions, has as I said earlier, experienced a significant drop in visitor arrivals because of COVID-19. Through a recent Company Training Committee meeting with the management, and in my discussion with them just this Monday, our unions proposed sending the workers for training and upskilling during this downtime. This will build the company’s and workers’ capabilities in tandem, and prepare them for the upturn in the economy when it comes, when more visitors return to the Zoo and Bird Park. Such a move will also give their workers the added assurance that they can continue with their jobs; less anxiety.
I am happy to see that Wildlife Reserves Singapore is fully on board. The company is particularly keen to build on their digital roadmap with the help of NTUC LearningHub to identify and customise relevant courses such as the SkillsFuture for Digital Workplace for its workforce of about 1,100 workers. These courses will help to shape Worker 4.0, actualise the value of technology in the workplace and equally importantly, help workers improve their work prospects and job security over time.
When we first announced the Company Training Committee last year, the Labour Movement made a goal to have 1,000 CTCs in three years. I am pleased to update the House that we are well on our way to meeting this target. To date, we have formed 352 Company Training Committees and we are starting to see workers in companies such as Wildlife Reserves Singapore reap the benefits of this partnership.
Well done WRS, and our unions — AREU [Attractions, Resorts & Entertainment Union] and SMMWU [The Singapore Manual & Mercantile Workers’ Union]!
NTUC Job Security Council
However, we can do more.
There are still some workers who continue to fall through the gaps.
Through my conversations, I noticed, as many of you have, that there is a growing concern among workers, usually in their 40s to 50s and more often PMEs, who find themselves displaced or retrenched because their skills have become redundant as technologies evolve. If they are retrenched, they can take a long time to get back into a job, and one which may not pay as well or may not even fully utilise their skills.
Although these numbers are not large. For the individual worker or PME who has mouths to feed and bills to pay, the situation can cause a lot of fear and anxiety.
NTUC wants to help ease this situation and help these workers and PMEs.
While the Labour Movement has already been training and matching workers on an informal basis, we want to formalise this process.
NTUC is therefore piloting the NTUC Job Security Council, to improve the matching of displaced or retrenched workers into new jobs.
We will create an ecosystem of ‘releasing’ companies and ‘receiving’ companies: ‘receiving’ companies being those that can absorb skilled workers and PMEs into the workplace from the ‘releasing’ companies.
The Job Security Council will work with companies to gather information on their job vacancies, jobs that may be phased out and importantly, jobs that could be redesigned for workers and PMEs.
The Job Security Council will then match these workers and PMEs to vacancies within this network and when needed, identify the skill sets required and top up workers’ and PMEs’ skills through training where necessary.
The Job Security Council can also help companies access the many Government schemes, such as the new SkillsFuture Mid-Career Support Package. All these schemes are intended to enhance skilling and placement efforts for local workers and PMEs. And NTUC or this Job Security Council can be the conduit to focus workers and companies on accessing the grants to help the workers seek new jobs and upgrade their skills.
The pilot will start with more than 4,000 companies. We have the strong support from our valued tripartite partner, the Singapore National Employers Federation and many other Trade Associations and Chambers such as the Workforce Advancement Federation supporting local SMEs, the Singapore Manufacturing Federation, and the Specialists Trade Alliance of Singapore from the building and construction industry.
These 4,000-plus companies come from a wide range and diverse industries, and of many different sizes. I am excited to see MNCs such as Rolls-Royce and GE Aviation coming on board. I visited Rolls-Royce recently and am very impressed by their dedication and commitment of the management to their workforce. We also have local start-ups and SMEs, such as Ebenezer Group in the engineering sector, Blu Ventures Holdings in wholesale trade, as well as Swee Heng Bakery and Montreux Patisserie in the food & beverage sector.
Swee Heng Bakery is a household name and has been in the bakery scene for just over 30 years. Their efforts to keep relevant causes them to up technology and in that process, partnering e2i to up the skills of the workers in using those machines and upping their productivity so that they can remain relevant and do a thriving business.
All these companies will stand to benefit from a lower-cost, ready-made recruitment tool through the Job Security Council. And with the added bonus of training and skills upgrading for our workers. Companies will also have access to a community of HR personnel and senior management sharing best practices and progressive employment standards.
Through the Job Security Council, we want to create a win-win for companies and our workers. We hope to lessen the anxiety for workers and PMEs and assure them that the Labour Movement is doing what we can to help them find good jobs.
We look forward to taking this pilot further and we call on companies who may not have yet joined us to contact NTUC and come on board. So Ms Jessica Tan, I expect a call from Raffles soon ;)
Mr Speaker, Mandarin please.
我一直很关心工友的就业情况，尤其是中年工友: 40岁到50岁左右的员工，尤其是PME。如果他们失业，要再找到新的工作，有些通常都会跟我反馈，他们会遇到不同的困难。
我们一年前就开始探讨如何在这方面帮助这些工友。
过去半年，职总e2i 和许多企¬¬业商讨，加入职总设立的 “就业保障联盟” 。
加入联盟的企业，少数可能会减少员工，但更多的会要聘请新员工。那些将失去工作的工友，通过联盟的配对，可以到有适合工作的企业谋生。如果工友需要有不同的技能，e2i也会安排他们接受培训、提升自己的技能，以担任新的工作。
我们至今有4千多家企业加入了这个就业保障联盟，合起来有超过50万名员工、超过九成都是中小企业。
我们将继续和更多领域的企业合作，让更多企业加入，使更多工友受惠。
Conclusion
Mr Speaker, I will conclude.
Around the world, the social compact in many societies is breaking down. The trust citizens have for their political leaders is eroding.
But in Singapore, we have the trust of Singaporeans. It is something that we must never take for granted.
In Singapore, we also enjoy the fruits of hard-earned tripartism, which has brought us economic resilience and social stability. Underpinned by this year’s strong Budget, all these will ensure that Singaporeans’ lives are uplifted together.
The Labour Movement will continue to work with the Government and employers to improve the social and economic well-being of Singapore and Singaporeans.
To this end, we will continue to strengthen and adapt the uniquely Singapore social compact, so that it will stand the test of time.
Mr Speaker, I stand in support of the Budget.
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