Singapore Labour law to cover more workers
Proposed changes to benefit confidential staff and lower-paid workers
By Goh Chin Lian
A LABOUR law which has not been changed in 13 years will soon be amended to keep it up to date with today’s labour market conditions.
The Manpower Ministry is tabling for public consultation a slew of proposed changes to the Employment Act, which offers basic benefits such as salary protection, minimum employment terms and dispute resolution.
Among the beneficiaries of the proposed changes will be some 153,000 ‘confidential staff’, such as accounts assistants, human resource clerks and secretaries.
These have been excluded from the Employment Act so far because it was deemed that their access to company information could lead to potential conflicts of interest and allow unions an unfair bargaining advantage.
In today’s corporate world, however, sensitive information is largely handled by senior management, said the Manpower Ministry when explaining the proposed change.
Also to benefit from the proposed changes: About 44,000 executives and junior managers who earn up to $2,500 a month. They will be able to go to the Labour Court for salary disputes, where previously they could not.
This change recognises the increased share of professionals, managers, executives and technicians in the workplace, said the ministry.
Their proportion has gone up from 40 per cent of the resident workforce in 1997 to 49 per cent last year.
They used to be excluded from the Act as it was assumed that they could protect their own interests by going to the civil courts.
But this process can be long-drawn and costly, so the ministry is offering those paid below $2,500 access to the Labour Court.
The Employment Act currently covers some 1.4 million workers. Senior managers, seamen, domestic workers and government employees are excluded, and will continue to be excluded even after the changes.
The proposed changes also factor in the outsourcing boom that has swelled the ranks of contract workers, from 59,400 in 2001 to 183,000 in June last year, and shortened employment tenures. One-year contracts are now not uncommon.
As a result, the ministry proposes that those who have worked at least three months can now qualify for paid sick leave, instead of six months.
Also, part-time employment will be redefined as working 35 hours or less a week, instead of 30 hours or less.
Many companies told the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) that the 30-hours cap limited their ability to offer part-time work, said its executive director Koh Juan Kiat.
The change will give them fresh impetus to offer such work and attract more women back into the workforce, he said.
In proposing the changes, the ministry said it struck a balance between protecting workers’ interests and ensuring Singapore’s labour market stays flexible and competitive.
The SNEF and the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) have already been consulted on the proposed changes, it said.
NTUC deputy secretary-general Halimah Yacob told The Straits Times yesterday that the labour movement has been championing the cause of confidential staff for years, as some of them do not earn high pay.
It has also been asking for the salary ceilings to qualify for benefits to be raised, in line with median salaries here.
She said: ‘If the salary ceiling is not revised, more and more employees will be excluded from the ambit of the Act.’
The Manpower Ministry is indeed revising the salary ceiling, raising it from $1,500 to $2,000 for workers who come within the Act’s ambit.
More details of the proposed changes can be found on the Government feedback portal, www.reach.gov.sg. The public can submit feedback by e-mail to MOM_WPSD_EA@mom.gov.sg .
Public consultation ends on Sept 22.
The proposed amendments are due to be tabled in Parliament next month.
Source : Straits Times - 03 Sept 2008
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