Debate on President’s Address - Speech by Ng Chee Meng Deputy Secretary-General, NTUC Minister in Prime Minister’s Office on 15 May 2018

INTRODUCTION

Mr. Speaker, I stand in support of the motion.

We are all well aware that the world is undergoing unprecedented rapid technological changes.

• No country or market is spared.
• The fast pace of change is having a major impact on how we work and earn a living.  

For Singapore to be competitive in this new arena, we need to be hungry.    

• Businesses will need to transform, towkays will need to change their mindsets, and our workers will need to be eager to learn, upskill and continually upgrade.
• These critical strategies have been mentioned numerous times, but we are not acting on it fast enough.
• We need to improve our workers’ productivity and employability skills.
• Companies and workers must embark on this transformation journey now.

The Labour Movement will need to push the transformation agenda by working even closer with Government and businesses, and this is how the Labour Movement will be here to assist.

Tripartite partners have collaborated extensively on the Industry Transformation Maps for the 23 sectors. We are now into operationalising these maps. The Labour Movement will fully support employers in the transformation of their businesses, because it will ultimately benefit our workers.

Businesses will have to play a leadership role by leveraging technologies to transform their businesses. Our workers must support businesses by working smarter and becoming more productive. The Labour Movement will support workers who are willing to improve and upskill.

Currently, we have high employment and our workers have enjoyed real income growth over the years. In fact, the median income has risen almost 22% in the last 5 years.

So when businesses do well, our workers benefit, have better wages, and higher quality of living

I HEAR YOU

In this short time that I have joined the LM, there are concerns on the ground, and I would now like to touch on these concerns.

• Workers are worried about making ends meet.
  • There are concerns about buying a home,
  • About their retirement savings,
  • About healthcare costs, and
  • having enough for their children’s education.
• They sometimes feel that no matter how hard they work, these needs may not always be adequately addressed.
• These concerns are all about the rising cost of living.

In a conversation I had with a very close relative, he pointed out to me that coffee prices have been increasing and is set to increase again. He said that while the price increase may only be 10 cents, the number of increases has been too often, and these expenses have added up over time.

Union leaders on the ground often share similar concerns as well – they are on the shop floor, and daily expenses are always on the radar screen of our workers.

Many older Singaporeans are worried about rising healthcare costs.

• The Government has introduced numerous policies like the 3M framework of Medisave, MediShield Life and Medifund to assist Singaporeans in their healthcare needs.
• Nevertheless, Singaporeans still have concerns, and I can understand their anxieties.

For our workers, retirement adequacy is another anxiety:

• They are worried that their CPF savings will not be enough for them to enjoy the quality of life they seek once they stop working;
• More crucially, if they lose their jobs unexpectedly before retirement, will they have enough savings?
• Can they be assured that if they work hard, save and contributed to their CPF savings, their basic needs of housing, children’s education, healthcare and retirement will continue to be taken care of?
• Singaporeans now have a longer life expectancy and the issue of retirement adequacy will become more and more pressing.

Your concerns are our concerns as well.

WE ARE WITH YOU

It is reasonable for Singaporeans, who are working hard, to have such concerns.

So how do we address them? How do we ensure we uphold the principles of meritocracy and equality that have brought Singapore to where we are today?

The Labour Movement believes that the best way to improve the lives of our workers is gainful employment, in good jobs and good wages. We need employers to maintain a nimble mindset and workers to help themselves by upgrading their work skills. Both employees and employers must stay relevant in the evolving business environment.

This is the best solution because wages can only increase with productivity gains. Real wage increase is necessary to keep up with inflation, to cope with the cost of living.
 
Weishen Industrial Services, a cleaning company, is an example.  The company embarked on the Inclusive Growth Programme and was able to exploit driverless ecobot technology.

1. The employers deployed this new technology and were able to redeploy their employees to higher value roles with higher pay.
2. The company became profitable and more productive. A good win-win outcome.

But, I know workers on the ground have experienced growth differently

• Some have done a little bit better,
• Some have progressed a little bit slower.
• This is the reality when technology disrupts businesses.

While we push to transform, I am particularly concerned with 3 groups of workers:

(A)      Low-wage workers

First, our low-wage workers. 

Back in June 2012, the Labour Movement under former Secretary-General Lim Swee Say, mooted the Progressive Wage Model for the cleaning, security and landscape sectors.

1. Collectively, these efforts by the tripartite partners have moved wages up for over 70,000 workers.
2. From 2011 to 2016, the real median gross wages of these workers grew by up to 6.4% per annum.
3. The Progressive Wage Model has done much to alleviate hardship of low-wage workers in the cleaning, security and landscape sectors.                

However, there are other sectors with low wage growth;

1. For them, I propose that we expand the use of the Inclusive Growth Programme and find pathways forward to support more workers.
2. We will work with the Government for better support and prevent these sectors from stagnating.

We must also take care of the freelancers - food delivery riders, self-employed, part-timers, people in the creative field and other forms of freelance work. 

1. With this emerging form of project based employment, we should ensure that our independent workers enjoy CPF protection, medical coverage, and skills development.
2. I note that the Tripartite Workgroup for Freelancers and Self-employed is currently working in this area, and we are keenly watching their progress.

(B)      Mature workers

Another group of workers that I am concerned with is our Mature Workers.

I chatted with 2 uncles, both 75 years old, at the curb side at the Changi Terminal 2. These uncles are working as porters.

1. They were spritely and fit, and
2. they appreciate that they can still contribute, work and earn a living.
3. On one hand, I was happy to see them healthy and active; but on the other, I wonder if provisions for their retirement are adequate when they are no longer fit to work or when they finally choose to retire.

In another conversation, this time with teachers from the Singapore Teachers’ Union,

1. They told me that they welcomed the Retirement and Re-employment Act that we passed in the chambers last year. This Act extended the re-employment age to 67.
2. However, being part of the baby boomer generation, they also wonder if they can be better protected with more assured terms of employment.

Many union leaders have very similar concerns. They cited that we can legislate retirement and re-employment ages, but we on the ground cannot legislate mindsets!

The real question here is whether employers are willing to employ senior workers instead of having the fixed mindset that these workers are a burden, more expensive and untrainable.

Union leaders and I are worried for this group of workers. For many of them, the job is essential – just like us, they have expenses, mortgages, and dependants relying on them.
 
Tapping on WorkPro, the Labour Movement continues to work with companies to implement age management policies and practices, and to redesign their workplaces.

• In addition, through the Special Employment Credit, the Government subsidises employers the net cost of employing mature workers.

We should empower the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) to look into this area of concern and do more.

Furthermore, I propose to set up a new Tripartite Committee to provide better support for our ageing workforce, and help our mature workers continue working if they choose to.

(C)      Middle-aged/Middle income workers

The third group I would like to talk about are the Middle-aged/middle income workers. They may be currently employed, but their earnings are just sufficient to meet their needs and their income growth is not high.

• This is because some of their skill-sets are diminishing in demand, or they lack the opportunities to progress.

There are currently several Government schemes outlined for this group of middle income workers. However, similar to mature workers, the entrenched mindsets against hiring middle-aged workers is worrying.

The Labour Movement will need more support from the Government and business leaders, to redesign jobs, encourage our workers to upskill, to stay relevant so that they can progress in their careers. We will continue to look into:

• Career-matching programmes,
• Programmes to change employers and workers’ mindsets.
• And for displaced middle-aged workers, work towards giving them a second chance at employment.

Minister Josephine Teo and I chatted, and she told me that employers would like to have “Plug and Play” workers but the reality is that workers need to “Plug, Train, and then Play”. 

MAKING IT REAL – ITMs

Beyond addressing the current concerns, we also want to help all working people seize opportunities that the future brings.

Hence I would like to touch on the Industry Transformation Maps, the ITMs. The best way forward for the Labour Movement is to operationalise the ITMs, continue to work with tripartite partners to translate these ITMs into tangible outcomes.
 
We need to make ITMs real for all our working people, whether it’s a PME in the finance sector or the worker on the shop floor, by distilling the ITMs into actionable, purposeful training programmes for them.

1. For example, in the aviation sector where I have interacted with when I was at MOT, the SIA Engineering together with union representatives have empowered 3,000 workers with the skills to handle technology in maintenance operations, including real-time data to facilitate more productive work.
2. With this outcome, workers can look forward to better jobs, and future wage increases. 

We need to stay relevant by making lifelong learning a habit. Not just a concept in our mind, the concept of lifelong learning is not new. The Chinese saying “活到老, 学到老” is a teaching dating back thousands of years.  By embracing lifelong learning and making it a habit, we will be better prepared for future challenges.

There will always be challenges along the way, and even hardship. But if we work smart and stay ahead of the curve, we will find solutions, progress and forge a better living for ourselves.

Mr Speaker, Mandarin please. 

全球化、科技化、数码化，这些改变,影响的不只是我们的企业，更是我们的工友。

在过去两年内，政府推出了 23个产业转型蓝图以协助企业转型和提高能力, 掌握未来的机会。

随着产业转型蓝图一个个的推出和落实，下一个阶段要做的是 执行蓝图、实践蓝图。

经济转型、企业转型、工作转型，工友们 自然也得转型。

在这方面，职总将帮助工友:

 “化繁为简 化难为易”

产业转型蓝图的内容 包罗万象，既有
1. 实现长远目标的宏观政策，
2. 应付未来挑战的策略，也有
3. 列出各种未来的机遇。

这些计划 这些资料 对很多工友们来说，太复杂、太高层次了。

我们必须把它简化、人性化。

因为工友们想知道的是：
• 我会被影响吗？
• 怎样被影响？
• 我会失去工作吗？
• 还是会有更好的工作？

让工友们了解以上之后，我们的下一步是帮助工友们做相应改变。

工友们想要改变，但他们不知道应该怎么去做：
• 我还欠缺什么技能？
• 这么多培训课程，哪一个才适合我？
• 得工作又得照顾家庭，要如何抽出时间和精力接受培训？

职总在这方面加大力度帮助工友。

我们设立了培训理事会，要把培训蓝图转换成让工友受益的培训计划。
如
1. 设计和推出适合工友的课程，
2. 鼓励雇主支持工友接受培训，
3. 积极推出小块单元课程 让工友们随时随地能吸收新知识。

经济改变、企业转变、工友应变无论怎么变,我们的最终目标和努力结果必须是让
• 我们的工友 有更好的生活 更好的工作
• 我们的人民 有更光明的未来。

Conclusion

Mr Speaker, we need to take better care of our low-wage workers, our middle-aged, middle-income workers. We also need to take better care of our mature workers.

The cost of housing, healthcare and education will be monitored closely. The Government will continue to find ways to do more and do better in helping Singaporeans improve their lives. But needless to say, solutions are only possible if employers, workers and Government work together.

It is critical that our businesses take the lead and do the right thing, that when our workers do their best, remember to share the gains with their workers and give them what is fairly theirs when the businesses thrive.

It’s imperative that we have a workforce that is competent and able to stay relevant.

We must continue to close social gaps by addressing the struggles of all our working people, especially the sandwiched middle-class and lower income workers. Help will always be available to those who need it, whether be it for employment, housing or education. Those who have done better should reach out to the less fortunate. In our Singapore, no one (no one) should be left behind.

We hear you, we are with you; and together, we will make it real for Singapore and for all our working people.

Thank You