Introduction / Background
Mr Speaker Sir, the proposed amendments support our young families, particularly on the pivotal role that fathers play in a child's upbringing.
Societal norms, work and family structures are evolving.
Families are increasingly faced with competing caregiving responsibilities for their young and old.
Fathers want to actively participate in their child’s upbringing and both fathers and mothers want to share the duty in caring for their elderly parents.
These amendments can help families to better cope with their caregiving responsibilities.
Fathers will have the support and encouragement to be more engaged and present in the precious moments of their children's lives.
It will also indirectly help to provide support to their wives.
Mr Speaker Sir, I will speak on two aspects of the bill, (1) the enhanced Government-Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL), and (2) the enhanced Unpaid Infant Care Leave. I will also be highlighting the importance of workplace support in line with the proposed enhancements.
Enhanced Government-Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL)
First, on the enhanced GPPL. The enhancement is a clear signal of the government's steadfast commitment to supporting fathers in their pursuit of shared parental responsibilities. These enhancements will benefit both employed and self-employed fathers.
The GPPL will be doubled from two to four weeks for fathers of Singaporean children born from 1 Jan 2024.
As a start, employers have the option to provide the extra two weeks of leave voluntarily, and the Government will reimburse them.
This transition period is critical for employers to adapt their work and operational systems to the new normal.
Some companies have taken the lead, such as H&M and Electrolux. They are amongst some of our nation’s employers who have taken an early start in providing paid paternity leave of four weeks since 2022.1
Standard Chartered Bank have taken a giant leap by offering 20 weeks of paid paternity leave. This is commendable, but at the same time, I recognise that not all companies can do likewise and will need time to adapt. But clearly, companies see this as an important HR policy and have taken the lead to do so.
Would the Ministry consider setting a clear timeline on when the enhanced GPPL benefit would be made mandatory? Such a clear signpost would give both clarity and impetus to companies.
In legislating these enhancements, we must also recognise the importance of supportive workplaces and awareness regarding the enhanced GPPL.
Many fathers would be assured if their management comes out strongly to support them in taking leave to care for their newborn.
Ensuring that eligible fathers are well-informed of the benefits enable them to make full use of these benefits.
Can the Ministry broaden its work with the Trade Associations and Chambers, and the Labour Movement to spread such support and awareness?
This becomes even more critical for self-employed fathers, such as freelancers and gig workers, who may not have the same level of workplace support and awareness of such schemes.
Next, a requirement for self-employed fathers to be eligible for GPPL is that they must be engaged in a particular trade, business, profession or vocation for a continuous period of at least 3 months before the child’s date of birth.
This effectively means that the self-employed father would have to be working continuously until the date of the child’s delivery.
There would be instances where the self-employed father would need to support his wife in the pre-delivery phase.
I hope that we can provide flexibility in meeting the continuous three months criteria. It would help our self-employed fathers to cope with their responsibilities better.
Enhanced Unpaid Infant Care Leave (UICL)
Next, on the Unpaid Infant Care Leave (UICL). Enhancing the UICL by six days per parent per year for children under two is important.
Parents would know that young children under 2 require frequent visits to the doctor. There would be routine checks, and the unavoidable catching of viruses and bugs.
The UICL will indeed go some way in helping parents attend to the needs of their children while being employed.
To enhance the usefulness of the UICL, we should enhance the flexibility of its usage. Rather than mandating that employees take the entire entitlement of the proposed 12 days in a single year, it would be beneficial to allow parents to use it flexibly during the child's first two years.
Moreover, could the Ministry consider a measured increase in the number of UICL days based on the number of children. Families with multiple young children may have different caregiving needs, and tailoring the allowances accordingly would be a good step forward.
Furthermore, we must also address the concerns of parents facing financial constraints, as the UICL is currently unpaid.
We must ensure that the intended benefits of UICL are accessible to families across the socio-economic spectrum, including low-income workers.
It might be difficult for low-income workers to use the UICL.
Perhaps we could consider offering a partial subsidy or support for lower-wage workers in taking their UICL.
This will alleviate financial burdens and make it more feasible for them to utilise this support.
Workplace Support
Next, on the importance of workplace support.
Offering paternity leave is not sufficient in isolation, and this is reflected by the low take-up rate of paternity leave of 55% in 2019.
One of the key reasons cited was the lack of workplace support.2 Could the Ministry share the latest take up rate of paternity leave based on latest figures?
Promoting such a workplace culture can start small, beginning with raising awareness among employees about the availability and importance of paternity leave. The longer-term goal would be to dispel stigmas associated with men taking time off for family responsibilities.
Offering flexible work arrangements, such as remote work options or adjusted schedules, can further facilitate fathers' involvement in childcare without compromising their professional commitments.
Additionally, companies can provide resources, like parenting workshops or support groups, to help fathers navigate their roles and responsibilities more effectively.
For example, Citi Singapore has been running a “Maternity Matters” programme3, aimed to support mothers throughout their motherhood: from providing support in designing handover plans, and also buddy programmes to help mothers assimilate back into the workforce post-delivery. We can also similarly develop such programmes for fathers.
Such initiatives exemplify the corporate world's potential to contribute to the well-being of families. Employers should look into implementing such programmes for both mothers and fathers. Where required, the union and Labour Movement stands ever ready to help our SMEs with developing such policies.
Supporting Other Caregivers
Mr. Speaker, the nation has made significant strides in supporting families with young children.
However, there are also families facing pressures with having to provide care for their both young and elderly.
Increasingly, as our population ages, more of our workers will have to assume some caregiving responsibilities for their elderly.
The families that we are supporting today to raise their young children would also need support to care for their parents.
The instances when they have to bring their elderly parents to the doctor are comparable to that for their young children.
We must not forget that our workers who are single would similarly face caregiving responsibilities for elderly parents.
As we work towards providing support for our workers to care for young children, I hope that the government can also look into providing more support for our workers with elderly caregiving responsibilities.
Conclusion
Mr. Speaker, in Singapore, where family values are the cornerstone of our society, these proposed amendments represent more than just legal adjustments.
They signify a progressive stride towards recognising and facilitating fathers' active involvement in their children's lives.
As Singapore ages rapidly, I urge the government to also consider how we can recognise and facilitate our family members’ active involvement in the caregiving of their elderly family members.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I support of the Bill.
2 https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/paternity-leave-fathers-newborn-children-family-2433306
3 https://www.straitstimes.com/business/banking/stanchart-to-offer-new-dads-20-weeks-of-paid-time-off-hsbc-extends-paternity-and-maternity-leave
