By Ryan Chan, Shukry Rashid, Ramesh Subbaraman and Fawwaz Baktee
"Future" has the buzzword trending in the Government, union and business circles today and the key challenge lies in preparing workers to embrace the demands that come with future trends in the economy and the workplace.
With that in mind, we polled workers on the street for their thoughts on how they perceived the workplace of the future. We also took the opportunity to hear from our Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) for their take on the question.
Labour MPs
“For our younger workers, work environments that foster mentoring, learning and professional development opportunities is especially key. They also perform better if work schedules are flexible and outcome-driven. For workers with young families, especially women, they will need access to flexible work arrangements such as telecommuting and, importantly, a genuine culture of care.” NTUC Director (Progressive Wage Model), Industrial Relations Department Desmond Choo and MP for Tampines GRC
“Mature workers look forward to workplaces that are increasingly age-neutral in policies, and have work design and training opportunities. They want to work with organisations that value and reward workers of all ages according to their strengths and contributions, not biases and assumptions.” NTUC Deputy Secretary-General Heng Chee How and MP for Jalan Besar GRC
“The ideal workplace for Professionals, Managers and Executives (PMEs) is one where every PME can realise their full potential, stay highly relevant, dynamic and resilient. In realising this vision, it is important for all tripartite partners to play their part. Employers must stay engaged and connected with their employees and nurture their workforce to make sure they stay future-ready and future-proof. This is done by creating a positive, safe and learning culture.” NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Patrick Tay and MP for West Coast GRC
“Small and Medium Enterprises (SEMs) will be able to explore the potential and opportunities available in the marker by tapping into a whole array of skills to find the best one to augment their business. Freelancers will also be able to command opportunities that are not confined to one company. This way, both SMEs and freelancers can have greater options and flexibility.” NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Ang Hin Kee and MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC
“Rank-and-file workers, especially, the low-wage workers will continue to be part of our labour landscape. The Labour Movement will continue to champion their interests and work with our tripartite partners to identify areas that will help them upgrade their skills to improve their productivity for sustainable wage increases.” NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Zainal Sapari and MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC
The top 5 things workers want in the workplace:
1. Career and Wage Progression: Workers highlighted their desire to progress both their careers and wages.
“Career progression isn't just about getting a higher position or a pay raise. The working landscape is changing and I hope to see professional and technical development through sharing of ideas. Many workplaces still adopt a top-down approach, and not many promote an environment where employees can freely voice suggestions to learn from each other. PMEs are doing their part to stay relevant; companies should too.” Luna Wong, 23, Quality Analyst
2. Upskilling and Upgrading: Workers want to see more opportunities for them to upskill and upgrade themselves to remain relevant to the workforce.
“I’ve been in the F&B industry for more than 20 years now. In Singapore, anything is possible if we are willing to work hard and strive for success. Workers need to upgrade and pick up new skills to make sure their jobs are secured for the long term.” Relawati Tanjong, 52, Food Stall Supervisor
3. Flexibility: Many workers, especially working mothers, are now calling for flexible work arrangements at the workplace in order for them to have a better work-life balance.
“I’ve had jobs where the working environment was pleasant and the management good, but I hope to see more workplaces provide flexible working hours for full-time positions. I currently have four children and have to work on a part-time basis so I can have a good balance between working and taking care of my children.” Rohaidah Rahman, 43, Retail Assistant
4. Autonomy: More workers are looking for jobs that can give them the flexibility and control of their career commitments. Today, freelancing is becoming a popular job option.
“I am freelancing for three different companies currently. I like freelancing because I can plan my own activities in the day and do whatever I want as long as I have done my work. I can also travel anywhere and still do my work. I can be in Indonesia or Vietnam, and I can still work as long as I have my laptop. I think SMEs in Singapore capitalise on the growing pool of freelancers as they may not be able to afford many full-time workers. Therefore, they employ freelancers on a project basis. I’ve been freelancing for a few years now and in my experience, I earn more freelancing compared to working full-time.” Morla Angelia, 24, Freelance Designer
5. Policies: Mature workers would like to see more non-age discriminatory policies implemented at the workplace.
“It’s encouraging to see things being done like increasing the re-employment age to 67. As long as I feel fit, I would like to work for as long as I can. I’m also a believer in going for courses to upgrade myself and stay relevant. I have an A-Grade Security Licence, which I can use to apply for security positions at just about anywhere, should I want or need to.” Presley Koh, 57, Operations Executive
Source: NTUC This Week
