01 Oct 2010
1. 1,317 children and youths will benefit from the Education Awards and Grants this year. NTUC will be distributing a total of $198,800 this year as the Labour Movement continues to help members’ defray the cost of their children’s educations for the 15th year. The Education Awards are awarded to children of NTUC GB members who have performed exceedingly well in their studies. The Education Grants are given to students from lower income families to help them cope with their education expenses.
2. This year’s Education Awards and Grants also received strong support from the U Care Scholarship/Bursary TOP-UP scheme, which amount to $61,100. Launched in 2008, the TOP-UP scheme provides additional funding which increases the Labour Movement’s support in education for members’ children. For more details on the TOP-UP scheme, please refer to Annex A.
3. Assistant Secretary-General for NTUC and the Guest-of-Honour at the ceremony, Mr Ong Ye Kung said, “Besides protecting the welfare of our members at work and providing enhanced lifestyle benefits to our members, we believe it is equally important to help our members’ children excel in their studies. We hope the NTUC GB Education Awards will motivate our members’ children with outstanding academic performance to strive for academic excellence continuously. At the same time, the Education Grants will provide some financial relief to the lower income families to help them cope with the educational expenses of their children.”
4. A total of 243 students will be receiving the Education Awards while 1,074 students will be receiving the Education Grants this year. The Education Award, ranging from $100 to $1,000, are awarded based on academic performance. NTUC has also introduced an additional GB Special Education Award amounting to $2,000 for those studying in the university this year. The Education Grant is a one-time off $100 assistance to help members with schooling expenses for their children. For more information on the breakdown of amount awarded, please refer to Annex B for more details.
5. Koh Ming Joo, a 3rd year student pursuing the Bachelor of Chemistry & Biological Chemistry Degree in the Nanyang Technological University and the first recipient of the $2,000 GB Special Education Award this year said, “I feel very privileged to be the first person to receive the NTUC GB Special Education Award this year. While I do not consider myself as an exceptionally intelligent person, the Special Education Award has indeed given me the extra motivation to persevere in my studies. I truly appreciate that NTUC recognises my efforts.” Ming Joo’s father is a union member who has been with NTUC for the past 3 years.
6. “I am very grateful to NTUC for disbursing the Education Grant to my son for the 2nd time this year. As the sole breadwinner in my household with three dependants, the grant has helped to relieve part of the heavy financial burden that is on me. I need not have to worry so much about not having enough money to put my children through school or buy them the necessary textbooks and stationaries,’ said Mr Ng Teck Tiong who is working as an Aviation Screening Officer earning $1,000 monthly.
Annex A
U Care Scholarship/Bursary TOP-UP scheme
As a Caring Labour Movement, we aim to assist our union members (both Ordinary Branch and General Branch), especially the low-income families, to ease their expenditure on their children’s education. Launched in 2008, the U Care Scholarship/Bursary TOP-UP scheme helps NTUC-affiliated unions increase their support to members’ children through their individual scholarship and bursary programmes, based on a set of eligibility criteria. In turn, this will allow NTUC to help more children.
Funding Mechanics:
1) Using 2008 as the base year, unions that have given out scholarships and bursaries in previous years will be entitled to a maximum top up equivalent to 100% of what they have distributed in 2008. For example, If a union distributed $10,000 worth of bursaries in 2008 and decides to increase it to $30,000 in 2010, the U Care Fund will subsidise the amount by $10,000. The union will only need to fork out $20,000.
2) For first timers (unions who never gave out scholarships before and decided to give out this year), they will be funded by the U Care Fund amounting to 50% of their budget, or up to a maximum of $50,000 (whichever is lower). Therefore, if a union decides to give out $10,000 this year, the U Care Fund will provide $5,000 worth of funding.
The eligibility criteria is dependent on individual unions.
Annex B
