Minister Tharman, Chairman of SISEU Council of Advisors,
Members of SISEU Council of Advisors,
NTUC Central Committee Members and Directors,
Management and Tripartite Partners
Brothers and Sisters,
1. The Delegates' Conference is always one of the most important events in the union's calendar, and we are very grateful indeed for the presence this evening of our Council of Advisors and Central Committee members, NTUC colleagues, as well as Management and Tripartite Partners. We are privileged to have your continued support and guidance to SISEU.
2. May I invite our SISEU delegates to join me in thanking you.
3. At the last Delegates' Conference held in 2005, I had not in fact joined SISEU. Executive Secretary at that time was Brother Yeo Guat Kwang. I was fortunate that when I joined SISEU, it was already in very good shape. Brother Guat Kwang, together with the dedicated team of Exco leaders and staff had built on the foundations of their predecessors and put SISEU on a positive growth path. It is because of their work that we have been able to continue to grow SISEU to what it is today.
4. We also have several Exco leaders who served with passion and commitment in the last term and have stepped down. They are Brother Sanip Bin Ahmad of Bukit Batok Driving Centre Branch, Brother David Lee Yip Sing of Singapore Safety Driving Centre Branch, Sister Ang Ai Yong of Realty Management Services Branch.
5. At the same time, we have some 80 branch leaders who have made way for new leaders during the branch elections held earlier this year.
6. On behalf of the SISEU Executive Committee, I would like to put on record the union's heart-felt appreciation to Brother Guat Kwang, Brother Sanip, Brother David, Sister Ai Yong and all our former branch leaders for your service and contributions to SISEU.
7. Please join me in showing our appreciation to all of them.
8. Earlier today, we had shared with you the progress that SISEU has made over the last 3 years. It has been a fulfilling 3 years for the Exco as well as staff of SISEU. While we are encouraged, we are also very mindful that we must not rest on our laurels. There are now more branches to serve, more members to reach out to, more workers to help, more activities to organise and certainly, more management partners to add value to.
9. In our meeting earlier this evening, the new Exco agreed that as we consolidate our operations to do more, we must at the same time never forget the central role of the union, which is help our workers improve their lives.
10. This role is relevant in good times and bad.
11. In good times, we help to ensure that workers get to enjoy an equitable distribution of benefits, through better wage increases, better bonuses and better benefits. For sustainable improvements to workers' salary packages, we continue to emphasise productivity growth through skills upgrading and job re-design. These efforts have enabled Singapore workers to benefit from better opportunities created by economic growth.
12. In challenging times, we help to ensure that workers are supported, with retrenchment payouts, re-training opportunities, and placement services. While we cannot stop companies from restructuring, we can find ways to keep our workers employable and to help them adjust positively
13. SISEU is fortunate that in all of these efforts, we can tap on the many programmes and initiatives that are organised by the national centre which we are affiliated to, the NTUC. These programmes include the Job Re-creation Programme and the Back-to-Women Programme. We can also tap the efforts of the Re-employment Expert Group and Unit for Casual and Contract Workers (UCCW) to help mature worker as well as low-wage workers in our midst.
14. In addition, we are able to leverage on the efforts of NTUC Care and Share Department's fund-raising efforts to help needy members, and the Ong Teng Cheong Institute (OTCI) to equip our union leadership with a wide range of skills.
15. We would therefore like to acknowledge the departments and staff of NTUC who have supported SISEU. Thank you to IRD, MED, EED, E2I, WDS, REG, OTC Institute, UCCW, Care and Share Departments.
16. The unique feature of Singapore's labour movement is that we have adopted a collaborative Tripartite approach is facing challenges head-on.
17. Most of the programmes I mentioned to you have strong Tripartite support. In other words, the Government and the Employers are also involved and support them in one way or another. You could say it is the secret weapon which enables Singapore workers to weather the storms better than those in other countries
18. In SISEU in particular, we have been very fortunate to have management partners who not only support the union's activities and make it possible for their staff to serve as union leaders, they are responsive to suggestions that will help workers cope with a multitude of changes. For example, we have partners who readily supported our calls to introduce re-employment practices ahead of the legislation in 2012. Today, more than 60% of our branches already have some form of re-employment practice in place.
19. We are particularly thankful to the partners who have responded to the NWC's recommendations to pay a special lump-sum to help workers cope with the impact of higher-than-expected inflation. Many more are considering, and we are hopeful that they will agree to help.
20. May I ask all our delegates to acknowledge the support and contributions of our management partners.
21. Going forward, the Exco is keenly aware that we must never take continued economic growth for granted. Even as we look forward to better opportunities, we must always be prepared for challenges.
22. We know that it will not be entirely possible to shield our workers for the effects of a globalised world. This means that we must expect companies continue to restructure to stay competitive, and that we always face the prospect of job losses. From time to time we also expect to meet unforeseen challenges such as high inflation.
23. Nonetheless, we remain hopeful under all circumstances. This is because we have a Government that cares and will work on practical ways to address workers’ concerns. We remain optimistic because there is a labour movement that does not give up and will roll up its sleeves, go to the ground to get the job done. SISEU ourselves can and will continue to build the union up so that we have the resources and capabilities to help our members in sustainable ways. At the same time, we have the support of employers who do not forget workers' contributions and will do their part to help.
24. Brothers and Sisters, as we bring this SISEU QDC to a close, let us pledge to stay united and focused, and, working in partnership with the Government and Employers, strengthen our ability and enhance our efforts to improve the lives of our workers.
25. Let us stay the course to do well, do good, do together and do more, in service of our members.
26. On this note, let me thank our GOH Minister Tharman and all of you once again for gracing this occasion.
Till we meet again, good evening!
