Spread over 30,000 sqm and up seven-storeys high, the brand new Devan Nair Institute for Employment and Employability will be a nexus of services that’ll give all aspects of the employment landscape a huge lift.
Operated by NTUC’s e2i (Employability and Employability Institute), the Institute was officially launched by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the May Day Rally on 1 May 2014.
Opened for business last year, the Institute has been dedicated to the late Mr C V Devan Nair who was a founding member of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and NTUC’s Secretary-General from 1963 to1965 and from 1970 to 1979.
The decision to name it the Devan Nair Institute for Employment and Employability was first revealed by NTUC Secretary-General Lim Swee Say at the 2011 May Day Rally, which marked the 50th anniversary of the trade union movement in Singapore.
“NTUC named the Institute after my father as a tribute to the pioneer generation of Singapore’s trade unionists,” said Mr Janadas Devan, eldest son of the late Mr Devan Nair.
“They helped build the Singapore we know today by infusing in the workers they led a sense of co-ownership. This Singapore does not belong only to the bosses but also to all workers. It is not only the Government and employers who are responsible for our well-being but also organised labour,” he added.
New Beginnings
The Institute aims to be a one-stop centre for workers, employers and training providers. There are a number of training providers who are already on location at the campus: NTUC LearningHub; ROHEI; Kaplan Professional; and SEED, among others.
Explained e2i Chairman Ong Ye Kung: “If you are an employer, I hope you’ll say ‘Wow, there’s so many things that I can do with this Institute to help make my working environment a much more pleasant one, including raising my productivity, so that the job will be more productive… and this will be an Institute where I can find workers to fill up vacancies for good jobs.”
“For a worker, if you are out of work for some time, you can talk to a counsellor who will be able to point you in the right direction…”
Meanwhile, e2i is poised to meet greater challenges in the Continuing Education and Training marketplace with the government undertaking a comprehensive review of the CET Masterplan.
The Devan Nair Institute of Employment and Employability is one of two mega CET campuses built by the government, with the other in Paya Lebar Central.
Check out next week’s issue to find out more about the man behind the Institute – Mr C V Devan Nair.
"I was very impressed with the facilities, with the courses being offered, with the passion of the e2i staff and also with the confidence and success of the graduates of e2i…”
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at May Day Rally
"The official opening of the Institute by Prime Minister reaffirms our commitment to make every worker a better worker, every job a better job…”
NTUC Secretary-General Lim Swee Say at May Day Rally
What’s In Store
