Thank you for joining us for the official launch of HR WSQ Industrial Relations program by the Ong Teng Cheong Labour Leadership Institute.
A total of 4 modules have been developed:
A fifth module on labour laws is in the pipeline.
These competencies like others in the HR WSQ framework were identified by the WDA in consultation with leaders in the HR fraternity.
In addition, specific input was given by the tripartite partners so that national employment concerns and initiatives are embedded in the training of HR practitioners.
The IR courses will support the efforts of the Singapore Tripartism Forum partners – namely, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), the NTUC and the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) - to institutionalize tripartism and good industrial relations practices in Singapore.
I am pleased to share that the OTC Institute will be the first to offer such IR courses under the HR WSQ. This initiative will contribute to the overall efforts to professionalise and raise the standards of human resource practice in Singapore.
A key strength of the OTC Institute is its reach to the unionized sector. Today, 10 of the leading industrial unions with the largest numbers of unionized companies will pledge their support to push for WSQ IR training by employers at their workplaces.
In addition, 2 house unions the PUB Employees Union and the Housing and Development Board Staff Union will also formally enter into arrangements with their employers to jointly embark on IR training for management and union leaders under the WSQ. In fact, even as I speak there is a class from the HDB which is now in progress on this floor.
Collectively, these 10 industrial unions and the two house unions represent 895 companies or close to 90% of the 1000 or so unionized companies in Singapore.
In addition, the largest public sector union, the Amalgamated Union of Public Employees (AUPE) and the Public Services Division (PSD) are working on an agreement to support the HR WSQ (IR) program.
Our target is for at least half the unionized companies to have IR trained practitioners in the next 5 years. The longer term goal is to get most if not all unionized companies to have such IR practitioners.
To focus on the practical aspects of industrial relations, the OTC Institute has drawn on the knowledge and experience of the tripartite partners in designing and delivering training. Experienced practitioners including those from the NTUC, the SNEF and the Ministry of Manpower will form the faculty teaching these courses.
Incidentally, the pilot workshops since late June were organised by OTC Institute together with the Food Drinks and Allied Workers Union and the SNEF for the companies in the hotel and food manufacturing sector. The classes led by Mr Toh Hong Seng, Deputy Director and Senior IR Consultant from the SNEF have been well received.
Besides existing and aspiring HR & IR practitioners, this suite of IR courses will also be suitable for managers & supervisors who deal with union members and union leaders on the ground. Supervisors and managers are the frontline of labour management relations at the workplace. Equipping them with requisite skills will further strengthen the teamwork and understanding between unions and employers at the shop floor level.
Here I am happy to share that today we have 6 early adopters pledging their commitment to provide IR training under the WSQ for managers and supervisors. Three of them, PUB Singapore’s National Water Agency, the National University Hospital (NUH) and the Housing and Development Board (HDB), are indeed the pioneers in providing IR training for line managers through the OTC institute for some years.
Joining them will be the SMRT Corporation Ltd, the NTUC First Campus and the Jurong Health Services Pte Ltd. Courses will be customised in each instance to make them more relevant for the particular organization or industry.
To minimize duplication and to maximize synergies the OTC Institute will collaborate with 3 leading training organisations to jointly market the OTC Institute’s IR courses. They are the SNEF, the NTUC Learning Hub and the SEED Institute.
SNEF offers industrial relations consultancy services for employers and is closely involved in the tripartite decision making process at the national level. LHub is the largest private sector training provider in Singapore. SEED is the premier training institute for the fast growing early education sector.
So with this three prong approach of working through unions, individual organizations and leading training providers, I am confident we can make a success of the courses being launched today.
