1 Mr David Ong asked\tthe Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (a) what is the impact of the current prolonged dry and hot spell on our supply and availability of water; (b) how will our water reserves cope with the further absence of rain; and (c) at which point will the situation be considered a crisis.
\tThe Minister for the Environment and Water Resources (Dr Vivian Balakrishnan): Mdm Speaker, we have been experiencing a dry spell since January 2014. In response, PUB has stepped up desalination to its full capacity of 100 million gallons per day. PUB has also increased NEWater production to more than 100 million gallons per day. The NEWater produced is a very pure source of water, and is mainly used by industries. Nevertheless, we have been able to produce additional NEWater which we have used to top up our reservoirs by as much as 35 million gallons a day. That is why we have been able to keep our reservoir stocks at a healthy level despite the lack of rain.
It is sobering to bear in mind that all this additional capacity has only come about in the last decade. In fact, the most recent desalination plant which added 70 million gallons a day only came on line six months ago, in September last year.
PUB has been making major investments to build up and diversify our water supply sources in order to strengthen our water security. This led to the introduction of NEWater and desalinated water into our water supply in the last decade. This supplements our local catchment – the 17 local reservoirs – as well as the water that we import from Johor. All these investments have borne fruit. Today, desalination and NEWater are sources which are resilient against drought or dry spells.
Ms Ellen Lee asked a question yesterday, which I promised to answer today, on whether we still need to buy raw water from Malaysia, given the capabilities that we have developed in NEWater and desalination.
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Mdm Speaker, we have invested considerably in developing all our water sources – the Four National Taps. I want to state that imported water remains an essential part of our overall water supply. It is also worth bearing in mind that we have spent over S$300 million to build the Linggiu Dam and Reservoir in the upstream portion of the Johor River in order to increase the yield of the Johor River, and ensure that there remains sufficient water in Johor River even during a dry period, like what we are experiencing now. These investments on the Linggiu Dam and reservoir have enabled Singapore to continue to draw the 250 million gallons of raw water per day, and indeed, for the Malaysian plants upstream of us to continue drawing water for their own local production.
In other words, all these additional investments have been a premium that we have paid for greater security and diversity of our water supply. Whilst we aim to attain self-sufficiency in our water supply before the expiry of the 1962 Water Agreement, which expires in 2061, in the mean time, we expect all parties to uphold the current agreement for as long as it is in force.
Having said that, it is also worth emphasising that there is still a need for everyone in Singapore to play a part in water conservation. Non-household users – the Town Councils, MCSTs which manage the condominiums and private areas, commercial and industrial buildings – can reduce their water use through measures like only watering heritage trees or essential landscaping, reducing or stopping the operation of water features and carrying out washing activities only when absolutely necessary. This is related to the other point – that if we litter less, and we contaminate the environment less, washing and use of water will also be reduced. I will also be announcing other measures to encourage longer term water conservation efforts in the non-domestic sector next week during my Ministry's Committee of Supply session.
All of us can do more to save water. Even small adjustments in our daily life can make a difference. For instance, we may not be aware that each minute that you leave the shower running, it is nine litres of water used. Similarly, making sure that we only wash clothes when the machine is full in order to optimise economies of scale or even things like washing dishes in a container rather than leaving the taps running – all these little measures add up and can save a significant amount of water for us.
This current dry spell is a stark reminder for all of us not to take our water for granted. It is a reminder for us to be more conscious to save water; and it is also a vindication of the decades of planning, hard work, enforcement and significant investments that have been made into our water supply
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infrastructure, in order to give us the security that we currently enjoy.
\tMr David Ong (Jurong): Mdm Speaker, I would like to thank the Minister for a very comprehensive reply. It is very assuring to know that whatever we have invested in technologies for water has borne fruit. We would still need to look at conservation, and to see what the Ministry will be doing to conduct more public education, both to educate the public and the industries on water conservation. At what point does the Ministry deem it is necessary for us to start conducting water rationing exercises?
\tDr Vivian Balakrishnan: I thank the Member for the very useful comments. First, the emphasis on conservation: the Member is right that we need to step up on publicity. We have actually already commenced on that. About a week or so ago, we issued letters to over 25,000 establishments in the non-domestic sector to remind them of the importance of water conservation. The mass media has also helped. Apart from the reports, there has also been an editorial in The Straits Times today.
On our part, we need to get this message out at an individual and at a collective level. As I said earlier, every drop is precious and every action helps.
I am glad the Member brought up the point on water rationing. This illustrates one of the uniquely peculiar challenges that Singapore faces. On the one hand, we are in an extremely fortunate position but it is fortunate not because of luck; it is because of decades of planning, which we have been able to implement effectively. On the other hand, we have what I define as a margin of safety; but I am also equally aware that conveying to Singaporeans that there is a margin of safety carries a risk of complacency. In particular, if during a dry spell, our water usage goes up – and in fact, it has gone up. According to our latest water demand figures, we are currently consuming about 420 million gallons of water a day. If the demand figure continues to increase, then certainly, I will have to re-evaluate the adequacy of our current practices.
Assuming all of us do our part, and we can keep a lid or even better, bring down the demand, then I can tell you, that for the foreseeable future, there will be no operational need for water rationing.
I have also received feedback from other well-meaning members of the public. They say, \"Even if you do not have an operational need for rationing, perhaps you should consider some exercises as a means of public education\". This is a suggestion that I am thinking seriously about, to remind people the
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value of water. It may not be a bad idea for us to rehearse procedures and processes which are needed if we ever got to a point where water rationing is needed.
I am looking at it right now as more of a public education tool. Fortunately, we are not at a point where it is an operational necessity.
Mdm Speaker: We do not have the time, so I suggest that Members who have clarifications on this matter raise these queries during MEWR's COS debate. Order. End of Question Time.
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[Mdm Speaker in the Chair]
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[(proc text) \"That the total sum to be allocated for Head M of the Estimates to be reduced by $100\". – [Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo] (proc text)]
[(proc text) Question again proposed. (proc text)]
The Senior Minister of State for Finance (Mrs Josephine Teo): Mdm Chair, I thank the Members for their thoughtful comments and questions for the Ministry of Finance. My colleagues from MTI spoke yesterday about measures to support industrial and SME development, and to raise incomes through
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quality growth. In fact, a whole-of-Government approach is needed to meet both economic objectives and social objectives. MOF's policies and initiatives thus complement the efforts of MTI and other Ministries to create an enabling environment for businesses to thrive and to meet the needs of our citizens.
I will organise my response to Members' cuts around two themes: first, supporting economic transformation and SME growth; and, second, strengthening Government effectiveness. I will then deal with tax incentives, reliefs and our reserves.
During the Budget debate, we have heard how SMEs can continue to participate meaningfully in our economy. In fact, SMEs have also had good access to Government procurement, which is a question that Ms Jessica Tan had asked.
In 2013 alone, about 80% of all Government tenders – and these refer to contracts valued above $70,000 – were awarded to SMEs. In terms of contract value, this was about 50% of contracts awarded by the Government. It is higher than the target of 25% share of Government spending that, as Ms Tan had shared, the UK has set for its own SMEs.
More significantly, SMEs were successful in tendering not just for smaller projects, but fairly sizeable ones. For example, of the 1,100 or so contracts valued between $1 million to $50 million that were called last year, SMEs won about 80% or 872 of them. In the construction sector, when we look at projects with contract values between $50 million and $100 million, SMEs clinched 60%, or 19 out of 31 projects, in 2013. SMEs have had good access to Government procurement.
However, there is scope to help SMEs, in particular, smaller SMEs, take on more or larger projects. For instance, in the IT and telecommunications sector, SMEs won 60% of the tenders award, which collectively accounted for 40% of total contract value. We intend to do more to focus our help to nurture Singapore tech start-ups in the IT sector and, at the same time, achieve better outcomes for the Government. MCI will be addressing this in their Committee of Supply response.
Madam, in the Budget roundup speech, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman had explained that the PIC is a broad-based scheme that we have deliberately
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kept simple to support as many businesses as possible in the productivity drive. To help SMEs, we will make PIC claims easier and process them more quickly.
First, they will get help to avoid common mistakes when applying for the PIC cash pay-outs. And this will be done through a web-based application form that provides built-in validation checks. In other words, even before they submit their claims, the application process will indicate to them how they can avoid common mistakes.
Second, from early next year, IRAS will be able to process most claims within two weeks, compared to three months today. From early next year, IRAS will be able to do it in two weeks for most of the claims. This is because they are improving their processes and, by then, businesses will get their PIC cash pay-outs with less paperwork and in a shorter time.
Many SMEs apply for PIC themselves, without using consultants because it is a fairly straightforward process. Businesses which need help can attend PIC seminars or sign up for PIC clinics which offer free one-to-one consultation sessions with officers from IRAS and through the SMEs centres which Minister of State Teo Ser Luck has talked about yesterday. He also provided all the telephone numbers and contact details.
The PIC covers a very broad range of activities. It is unlike SPRING's Innovation and Capability Voucher Scheme which is designed specifically to help micro and small SMEs to take their first step in capability upgrading with the support of external consultants. To keep things simple for such SMEs, there are pre-selected modules and pre-qualified consultants for SPRING's ICV Scheme, but not the PIC, given its much wider support for businesses and activities. By having a list of accredited PIC consultants, as suggested by Ms Tan Su Shan, or even accredited PIC vendors, this will make the PIC more restrictive than necessary. So, we will take a practical approach. Where it makes sense, we can have a pre-qualified list of consultants or vendors, but where it would be restrictive if we had introduced such a pre-qualified list, we would leave it open to the businesses.
Ms Tan asked if the eligible list of equipment was adequate. In fact, it covers more than 90% of PIC equipment claims. The list is regularly updated based on feedback from businesses and trade associations. In the past two years, we have included new sector-specified automation equipment for sectors, such as F&B, construction and cleaning. Businesses with equipment not on the prescribed list fill in a one-page form. IRAS has approved a vast majority of
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these applications and 80% of them within three weeks. To require an independent expert body to assess the claims would complicate and lengthen the process.
Besides the PIC, there are many other schemes which support SMEs. However, a common feedback is that SMEs have difficulty figuring out which ones to tap on for their particular needs. The Government processes more than 127,000 grant applications by businesses annually. There is scope to streamline grant criteria and to make the application process friendlier. We can also auto-populate common data fields using previously submitted data, for example. MOF and MTI are working with our agencies to improve the accessibility of these schemes. This is a complex exercise as it requires a fair amount of streamlining and standardisation across several agencies, but it is a worthy exercise as it will improve the productivity of businesses and will enable the Government to do better to meet the needs of SMEs.
Mr Liang Eng Hwa asked if we can further reduce the corporate regulatory and compliance burden on SMEs. Our corporate regulatory environment is considered pro-business with rules that are effective and not excessive. Since 2007, Singapore has been ranked first on the Ease of Doing Business Indicator which the World Bank's Doing Business Report, when it is published, indicates.
And we can do more for our SMEs. First, when the Companies Act is amended later this year, more companies will be eligible for audit exemption. Currently, an estimated 200,000 companies enjoy audit exemption. With the change, another 25,000 companies – almost all SMEs – will qualify for audit exemption as well. And this will mean savings amounting to several thousand dollars each from the audit fees that they would otherwise have had to pay. Now, this does not mean a loosening of governance and accountability, and existing safeguards will still be retained, such as requiring all companies to keep proper accounting records.
Second, tax filing has been simplified for micro companies with revenues of one million dollars or less. They can also file their returns electronically, thus reducing paperwork. These companies do not need to submit their financial statements and tax computations unless required by IRAS for audit purposes.
Madam, let me now address Ms Jessica Tan's question about strengthening Government effectiveness. It is an important question because an effective and high-performing Government is needed to prioritise and utilise resources optimally. As a central Ministry, MOF plays a key role in bringing this
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about. I will share two sets of initiatives.
The first is crowd-sourcing. The World Economic Forum conducts an annual ranking of ICT usage and readiness amongst governments. Singapore has consistently been ranked amongst the top three, out of 140 economies. But we recognise that we can do more. The Government is pushing for a more pervasive use of data analytics. In fact, some agencies are already doing so. For instance, LTA uses data analytics to better manage crowding on public buses. It is through the mining of fare card data that has allowed the LTA to pinpoint which segments of a bus service are most crowded, down to 30-minute intervals. This has helped the LTA to plan for the introduction of the Peak Period Short Service which has eased over-crowding on certain services when the crowding situation is the most severe.
We agree with Ms Tan that there is, indeed, room for more agencies to mine data more intensively and there is also a rich diversity of experiences amongst our citizens that we should draw on to improve delivery of public services.
Several of our agencies have, in fact, started crowd-sourcing competitions to catalyse ideas from the public. One such platform is the Apps4SG Competition, co-organised by MOF, IDA and Singapore Land Authority. Last year, we received close to 90 submissions of new apps or online services to improve the way we live and work in Singapore. One of the finalists was a pair of siblings, Hairul and Shireen who proposed an app called FundWagon. Leveraging on publicly available Government data, the app promotes crowd-sourcing of donations, by matching interested donors to specific projects of non-profit organisations. Another example is the HDB, which has been organising competitions since 2011 to crowd-source \"cool ideas for better HDB living\".
To proactively reach out to partner more citizens, MOF will launch a prototype of a whole-of-Government crowd-sourcing portal called e-Citizens Ideas. This will be done by April. e-Citizens Ideas will bring all such crowd-sourcing competitions in the Government together to make it easier for citizens to participate.
The second set of initiatives to strengthen Government effectiveness focuses on procurement. I agree with Ms Tan that tightening procurement practices to the extreme can be counter-productive. A balanced approach would require equal emphasis on robust rules, supervision and top level oversight, as
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well as investing in the capabilities of the procurement officers.
Last year, I spoke about plans to professionalise the procurement function. We will launch the Procurement Specialist Track by September this year. This will send a clear signal to more than 2,000 procurement officers across the Public Service of our commitment towards their capability development. With the launch, there will be more structured development opportunities and career pathways.
The Procurement Competency and Training Framework will also be enhanced. Currently, all procurement officers undergo mandatory basic training on Government procurement principles and rules. We will introduce mandatory continuous training to ensure that skills are deepened as the procurement officers progress in their careers. Besides developing the capabilities of individual procurement officers, the Government can build up expertise in specific domains and share it systematically across agencies so that we can all be smarter buyers. For instance, IDA will deepen its expertise in developing complex IT systems, agile digital services and data science. This will help other agencies tapping on IDA's expertise to procure the right technologies that will improve service delivery and policy implementation.
Madam, let me now turn to tax incentives and reliefs. Ms Tan Su Shan and Mr Yee Jenn Jong raised concerns that the bar for qualifying R&D activities was set too high. Madam, our R&D definition is similar to that of other jurisdictions, such as the UK and Australia. To facilitate businesses in their R&D claims, we have issued a note on the criteria, as well as the qualifying R&D activities, taking into consideration the practices in other jurisdictions. In addition, IRAS has established a Technical Advisory Panel, comprising academics and industry experts in the fields of Science and Technology, which it can tap on for advice in the evaluation of R&D applications.
We agree with Ms Tan that rules should not be set up to deter risk-taking of any kind. We are working with tax agents and relevant economic agencies to review the R&D note, to provide more helpful guidance to businesses. This new note will be ready by June.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong called for a review of two schemes, the Mergers and Acquisition Allowance (M&A) and Life Insurance Relief. The M&A scheme was introduced in Budget 2010 and enhanced in Budget 2012 to help defray the cost incurred by companies undertaking M&As. Sixty-seven companies have benefited from the scheme thus far, of which 50 – which is about 75% – are
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SMEs. More than three quarters of the tax benefits in Year of Assessment 2013 went to SMEs.
The M&A scheme's main purpose is to promote restructuring through consolidation amongst SMEs. Therefore, the requirement is that the acquiring companies must take a controlling stake in the target companies, which can include acquisitions taken in smaller steps over a 12-month period – restructuring does not have to be just a one step to achieve the controlling stake but it can be smaller steps over a 12-month period. It is not catered to companies acquiring parts of a business operation, such as plant and machinery or intellectual property rights. Such asset acquisitions already qualify for other tax deductions or allowances, for instance, under the PIC.
The M&A scheme is due to expire in March 2015. We will take on board the feedback and useful perspectives provided by Mr Yee and others when conducting the review.
The Life Insurance Relief is claimed by fewer than 10% of individual taxpayers, so Members may not be familiar with it. It has been around since colonial times and catered to people who bought life insurance as a form of retirement savings. In 1955, we introduced the CPF, and that provided citizens with a dependable form of retirement savings. As part of the Government's support, taxpayers enjoy tax relief for their mandatory employee CPF contributions.
However, the Life Insurance Relief has been retained as a concession to those who are not required to contribute to CPF, or who have low CPF contributions of less than $5,000 per year. The cap of $5,000 for life insurance premium relief is not low. Based on current information, more than 60% of the claimants were not affected by the cap. In fact, there are three-quarter million, or 40% of CPF contributors, with less than $5,000 in mandatory employee contributions. These will, thus, enjoy tax reliefs of $5,000 or less.
We have no immediate plans to increase the cap for the Life Insurance Relief cap. To boost retirement adequacy, our focus is on strengthening the CPF system. Tax relief is available for voluntary contributions by self-employed individuals, as well as for the topping up of Retirement Account or Special Account under the CPF Minimum Sum topping-up scheme.
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Madam, let me now turn to some very important questions that Mr Inderjit Singh has posed regarding our reserves and also CPF. First, Mr Inderjit was concerned that we may be spending too much from our investment returns and asked if the returns would be sufficient to prevent a decline of our reserves. The Net Investment Returns (NIR) framework allows us to tap on the investment returns of our reserves for budgetary spending in a sustainable way. Under the framework, the Government can only spend up to 50% of the long-term expected real returns from the net assets managed by GIC and MAS. Hence, what this also means is that 50% of the expected real returns are retained in our reserves, ensuring that it is not de-cumulated over time.
Our Government spending needs will increase over time but that should not drive the investment strategies of GIC and Temasek. They must continue to invest with the aim of achieving good risk-adjusted returns over the long term. So far, they have achieved this. If the Government is in need of more revenues besides that attainable within the NIR framework, the solution is not for our investment entities to take more risk in the hope of higher returns. The solution has to rest on our budgetary measures, not the investment strategies of GIC and Temasek.
Mr Inderjit also asked if the interest rate of 2.5% for the CPF Ordinary Account is fair and how it compares with other systems. Let me first highlight a few points that have to be borne in mind when comparing CPF returns with those in other systems.
First, for the purposes of long-term savings, it is not appropriate to look at the Ordinary Account, or OA, rate alone, as most CPF members use the OA account mainly for home purchases. If we look at the Special Account, the SA, and the Retirement Account, the RA, that are invested for the long term, the interest rates are higher. Members can also choose to transfer monies from the OA to the SA. The SA, which is for long-term savings, pays an interest rate of 4% currently. Further, we pay an extra interest of 1% for the first $60,000 of CPF balances.
A second point to bear in mind is that the returns on any financial instrument have to be viewed in the context of the performance of their domestic currencies over time. Interest rates are typically higher in countries whose currencies have tended to depreciate over time because higher interest rates compensate for weaker currencies.
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A third factor is that many pension funds abroad, especially in emerging markets, are predominantly invested in their domestic capital market and take on the risk of the equities and bonds that they are invested in. For such pension funds, the returns that can be expected by members will depend mainly on the performance of the domestic market. Unlike many other pension funds, the CPF system does not expose members to market risks. The CPF monies are invested in risk-free Singapore Government securities. Their value is assured as they are guaranteed by one of the few remaining AAA credit rated governments in the world. Regardless of when CPF members retire or the state of the financial market when they retire, their CPF monies are safe.
In many pension funds abroad, there is a promise of higher returns. But depending on when you retire and the state of the financial markets at that time, your pension withdrawals can vary quite significantly. In our system, with the CPF monies being invested in Government securities, it is the Government that bears investment risks. And what does this mean?
The Government's assets that back its liabilities to the CPF include those managed professionally by GIC in particular. GIC invests in a widely diversified global portfolio with the aim of obtaining good long-term returns. GIC has, in fact, delivered creditable results over the long term. However, over the short term, returns can fluctuate widely, depending on global market cycles and shots. This is, indeed, what happened during the global financial crisis when the global markets fell sharply. GIC's returns during this recent period were, hence, much lower than what the Government paid the CPF and, in turn, what the CPF paid its members. GIC's returns over five, 10 and 20 years are presented and explained in its annual report. Temasek also publishes, each year, extensive information on its performance.
The basic point, Mdm Chair, if I could summarise, is that unlike many pension funds, our CPF system does not expose members to market risks. It provides a fair return for the majority of Singaporeans who would not want to be exposed to high levels of investment risks. Those who are prepared to accept higher risks in the hope of potentially higher returns can already invest through the CPF Investment Scheme although, in doing so, many have found their investments not performing better than the returns offered on the Special Account.
Madam, we have achieved good returns from the GIC over the long term but, over the short term, its exposure to local markets can mean that its returns fall short of what the Government pays the CPF. The Government takes the risks, not CPF members. As I have explained earlier, investment returns that we
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expect to make by taking this long-term view and, bearing the risks of investments, are not hoarded away in the reserves. Fifty percent of the returns from our reserves flow back to our annual Budget. The long-term returns, therefore, help to fund spending, which benefits our citizens.
Mr Inderjit asked if giving higher CPF returns will be better than sharing benefits through Government transfers. The CPF system, with its risk-free returns, together with our fiscal transfers, is a fair and equitable approach for our citizens in the long run. Unlike most pay-as-you-go pension systems, our CPF system is designed to be sustainable. There are no inter-generational transfers. Instead, CPF contributions are personal savings and members withdraw their own savings.
However, the Government systematically tops up the CPF savings of the lower income. We do this through Workfare, housing grants and other schemes. These top-ups are all borne by the Budget as explicit fiscal transfers. So, the main responsibility for progressivity is placed on the fiscal system.
Mdm Chair, we have and will continue to adapt our system of CPF and social transfers that are borne by the Budget to suit our changing circumstances and needs. Mdm Chair, I thank all Members once again for their cuts and thoughtful comments for MOF.
The Chairman: We have very little time, so please keep your clarifications and replies short.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong (Non-Constituency Member): I would like to thank the Senior Minister of State for the answers. She has said that the Government is reviewing the R&D note for PIC for better advice. I am glad to note that. I just want to share that a lot has been talked about Block 71 at Ayer Rajah. In fact, that is where I went to ask them about their claim experience for R&D on PIC. So far, it has all been negative. These are companies that are trying to develop some world-changing app or stuff like that. Is it intended to be so that the IT companies will find it rather difficult to claim for R&D, and are the ground staff in IRAS able to assess their claims?
Mrs Josephine Teo: Mdm Chair, as Mr Yee was asking his question, I was also thinking about earlier comments that Er Dr Lee Bee Wah had raised during her contributions to the Budget debate. As it turns out, Er Dr Lee had been given feedback by a number of businesses who had difficulties claiming for PIC cash pay-outs. It is a relevant question; it is a meaningful question to ask and it gave
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us impetus to check.
What our checks do reveal is that there are such companies. Part of the reason why they did not get their cash pay-outs as quickly as most others was due mainly to incomplete documentation which can be easily rectified. I would attribute it, in part, to a lack of familiarity by the companies involved and also on the part of our officers responding quickly so that they can make the adjustments soon.
I suspect that in the case of R&D claims, we are also going through this learning process. I do not discount at all the important view that Mr Yee has shared, which is that startups operating in Singapore have found it to be not so easy for them to make their R&D claims. Our commitment is to understand it more deeply and to find ways to be helpful. So, what I can assure Mr Yee is that we will take his feedback, as well as those of the businesses that are operating – not only at Block 71 but elsewhere – very seriously, and whatever it is possible for us to do to help them, we will certainly do so.
I would also hasten to add that tax incentives are just one of the many ways in which we can encourage R&D and innovation. Putting an over-emphasis on the incentives will not serve us well. Many other factors need to come into play in order for the economy, in order for the businesses within an economy, to have a very enterprising spirit as well as to be willing to take risks and to venture. And our approach is to try and be as supportive as possible. That is the assurance that I will give to Mr Yee.
The Chairman: If there are no other clarifications, Ms Jessica Tan, do you wish to withdraw your amendment?
Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo (East Coast): Mdm Chair, I would like to thank the Senior Minister of State Mrs Josephine Teo for taking our questions and considering all the cuts, because I went through the list. She had addressed all the cuts. Thank you very much and, with that, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.
[(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)]
[(proc text) The sum of $677,424,100 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)]
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[(proc text) The sum of $157,022,500 for Head M ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Committee of Supply – Head S (Ministry of Manpower)","subTitle":null,"sectionType":"OS","content":"Mr Zainudin Nordin (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mdm Chair, I beg to move, \"That the total sum to be allocated for Head S of the Estimates be reduced by $100\".
Madam, our small independent nation will turn 50 next year, a tender age, compared to many other countries around us with established histories.
We have come far in such a short period of time. Let us take education, for example. In 2006, there were 62,918 going to universities. In 2012, six years later, this number went up to 76,665. That is a huge jump of about 20%. Over a span of six years, the number of graduates will certainly be on the rise with our constantly improving education system and the opening of more tertiary level institutions. That would mean more highly educated people looking for employment and career opportunities.
As our country becomes more developed, it will be more challenging to create good jobs and career opportunities for Singaporeans. As an example, in cities like Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing, their youth are contending with the problems of more college graduates than good jobs. Like the Chinese idiom goes, \"More monks than porridge\".
In 2013, it was reported that only 28% of Beijing's graduates and 44% of Shanghai's graduates had found jobs. In Tokyo, undergraduates start job hunting as early as one year before graduation so that they can secure good jobs in large corporations. The competition is so intense that some of these graduates went through at least six rounds of exams and interviews to get a job. These are real recent circumstances that others are facing. It is not happening in Singapore but could fall on us if we are not careful.
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The examples and challenges that I mentioned beg the question to be answered: what should we, as a small country, do to grow and develop quality manpower in a sustainable manner that will be able to drive the economy?
I believe our strategy, going forward, must be to ensure that Singapore workers, and in particular Singaporeans, enjoy good jobs, competitive wages, and that companies are able to have a highly skilled workforce to help them grow at the same time.
For many years our approach has been to boost productivity for the workers. The productivity enhancement to education and training is, hopefully, giving us the results. Are these efforts to improve the productivity of our workforce giving us the outcomes that we want? Very often, we hear feedback from our young complaining about not getting the good job, the good pay. And, sometimes, we can understand that they are also looking at the investment that they have put in over the years and by their family for education. How then could we ensure that we maintain the sustainable workforce load and at the same time providing opportunities for Singaporeans?
Nevertheless, in the current tight labour market, I am heartened that the Government is taking more concrete measures to promote employment for women and also for the elder workforce. Are we getting more traction for our flexi-work schemes or are we still having challenges in the efforts to get the women to come back to the workforce? We also hear feedback about other workers who are willing to work beyond the age of 65. I believe that the elder workers who are healthy, capable and skilful should be allowed to continue to contribute to our economy without the worries and the cut-off age being put over their heads.
As we look at the Budget this year, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman had announced at the Budget there will be no foreign workforce tightening measures except for the construction industry. Besides managing the quantity of the foreign workforce, we need to seriously manage the quality of our foreign workforce. In this regard, Madam, what are the measures that are being looked at that can help our industries improve their foreign workforce quality?
In conclusion, Madam, a few days ago, this House had overwhelmingly endorsed Budget 2014 that has a far-reaching set of planning parameters. This commendable vision that we want more white collar workers to be active in the industry but more steps need to be taken to ensure that Singaporeans are prepared for the future. What can we do to ensure that they have the proper
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skills and aptitudes so that they can pick up these jobs in the future and continue to provide a good workforce and manpower quality in Singapore?
Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo (East Coast): Madam, a key assumption of Singapore's success with our restructuring and transformation is premised on growth. And Mr Lim Hng Kiang yesterday in our COS discussions talked about the growth sectors that we are looking at and what is being done.
I have spoken on the point of access to qualified manpower to support this growth. This is an area that I am concerned about as I feel that while we are driving growth opportunities and creating these quality jobs, how do we ensure that we also have the right talent to be able to fill and support these jobs? Given the constraints of our labour market, the core of this talent base has to be a Singapore core.
Access to quality manpower is a key determinant for the businesses to locate their operations here, as well as to encourage our companies in Singapore to continue to locate their operations here, which then, in turn, creates our ability to build those jobs, improve wages and continue to have the quality jobs.
One of the areas I also touched on in my Budget speech was about innovation and our ability to use technology as well. What we have noticed is that there has been a drop in the enrolment of students in engineering, the sciences and IT as well. This is an area that needs to be addressed. I would like to ask what measures are being taken to ensure that we continue to have the talent going into these areas so that we can then build on the skills.
I had also mentioned in my Budget speech that technology and globalisation will affect the way that we work while they present new opportunities as well as challenges. Many of the future jobs do not even exist today. What this means is that our workers have to be agile. What are we doing to help the workforce as we talk about skills building is more than just training? What are we doing to ensure that our workforce is able to adapt to these changing environments? Skills like critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, communication: these are going to be very core for our workers to be successful.
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Change is not a bad thing. In fact, change in this instance is good because we are talking about better jobs, better quality and a better work environment for our workers. But in order for them to succeed, they need to be able to adapt. I would like to ask MOM what is being done to help our workers adapt to these changes as we continue to train them with the specific skills required for future jobs.
Mr Teo Siong Seng (Nominated Member): Mdm Chair, Members of Parliament, good afternoon. Budget 2014 is a far-sighted, bold and inclusive Budget which can be characterised by 3 Ps – Pioneer, People and Productivity.
For the business portion of the Budget, productivity is at the centre of the economic agenda. Since 2010, the call for productivity has been repeated in practically every major policy speech. There is a strong push for productivity at all levels.
SMEs have accepted the Government's call to rely less on foreign workers and taken measures to raise productivity. It is not an easy path, as SMEs, unlike the larger companies, may not have the knowledge and guidance on how to embark on their transformation journey. Nevertheless, most SMEs know that this is a path that they have to take for their long-term business sustainability.
However, even with all these efforts made and the help from the Government, we often hear SMEs' frustration over the inability to recruit Singaporeans, including local executives. SMEs, unlike the large local companies and MNCs, cannot afford to meet their relatively higher salary expectations. The manpower shortage also means that companies, especially the larger ones offering better salaries, better career advancement and employment terms, would be able to recruit the workers they need. SMEs, thus, would be left with the short end of the stick.
By 2020, 16,000 Singaporeans would have been placed in six local universities. This would represent 40% of Singaporeans in each cohort, up from 27% today. We have not included the graduates from private schools and those who had gone overseas. These better-educated Singaporean graduates will have higher job expectations. Jobs deemed to be of a more humble nature will be less desirable. But this means that there is an increasing vacuum for the lower-end jobs which are subject to foreign labour restrictions and higher levies. If manpower needs are not met, companies will be stranded as they cannot
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deliver goods and services and may be forced to close or relocate. Firms like Japanese specialised chemicals maker, Ishihara Sangyo Kaisha, and hard-disk maker, HGST Singapore, have already closed their doors and retrenched a few hundred workers.
This brings to us another casualty of economic restructuring – retrenchments. We may be looking at a situation where many of the retrenched are PMEs who used to command a relatively higher pay and positions. According to the statistics from MOM's third quarter 2013 Labour Market report, PMETs formed nearly two-thirds of residents laid off in the third quarter of 2013, and as many as 33.7% of those unemployed are actually university graduates. On one hand, there is a manpower shortage. On the other hand, those older or mature PMEs find it difficult to get absorbed back into the workforce, especially among SMEs who are constantly screaming out for manpower. PMEs find it difficult to lower their salary expectations substantially, and are much less willing to take on a more diverse job scope, but that is mainly in SMEs. Ironically, SMEs account for 70% of our employment. So, how can this situation be tackled?
Manpower issues are extremely challenging, and we have been trying our best to counter them with productivity measures. But at the end of the day, can productivity gains solve all the manpower problems?
SPRING Singapore has put together an SME Talent Programme to help Polytechnic and ITE students get jobs in SMEs to help with the manpower crunch. Perhaps, a similar programme could be started to help displaced and mature PMEs find relevant jobs in SMEs.
In addition, we noted that WDA, through the Professional Conversion Programme and Max Talent, has made an effort to help retrenched PMEs in reskilling themselves for the possibility of finding new careers in selected industries and placement in SMEs. However, SMEs may not be from these selected industries, such as healthcare, tourism, aerospace, finance, F&B and so on. Therefore, would it be possible for this Programme to be finetuned so that more SMEs can enjoy the Programme? We certainly look forward to having specific support to bring the two groups together.
Mr Png Eng Huat (Hougang): Madam, in May 2013, the National Development Minister made a call for more local crane operators in the construction sector. It was reported that only half of the 3,600 operators here
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are Singaporeans. There is a need to reduce reliance on foreign workers for two reasons. These are well-paying jobs that Singaporeans can do. According to the Minister, crane operators can earn $4,000 to $7,000 a month with overtime pay and allowance.
A tower crane operator came to my MPS recently and shared his side of the story. He said many companies in the construction sector are still hiring more foreign crane operators, not less. These foreign workers are cheaper and can work longer hours. As a result, salaries came down and many of his operator friends are unable to secure full-time work. Some of his friends work only two times a week. He handed me a letter with the names of 46 tower crane operators pleading for help.
Last night, I met a fellow diner at the hawker centre near my house and I found out he is also a crane operator. He added that foreign construction companies tend to hire their own people to operate cranes. He also felt that the number of foreign crane operators has not come down despite the move to train more local crane operators.
Madam, the reliance on foreign crane operators will never come down despite the call to train and hire more Singaporeans. This is because BCA has launched a temporary initiative to relax the recruitment of foreign crane operators at the same time when it launched an initiative to attract more Singaporeans to join the trade. Under the relaxed ruling, for every new local crane operator hired and trained, a company can now recruit up to four new foreign crane operators. This will probably explain why people are seeing more foreign crane operators and not fewer.
Putting the two initiatives side by side, the percentage of Singaporean crane operators in the construction sector will come down significantly over time. So, the call to reduce reliance on foreign crane operators will not happen anytime soon. I would like to ask the Minister when we can see an improvement in this sector.
Next, major clients like LTA and HDB often require tower crane operators who have at least five years of experience to improve safety. So, the idea of hiring and training new local crane operators is not going to make sense for companies bidding for major public projects. Some have called for the five-year experience requirement to be reviewed and replaced by the number of hours an operator clocked at work as a better gauge of safety regulations.
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This idea is worth exploring because an experienced pilot is known for the number of flying hours clocked and not by how long he has his licence. I urge the authorities to look into this so that more local tower crane operators can qualify to work on major projects sooner rather than later.
Madam, I also urge the Minister to look into helping local crane operators find a footing in the industry, if necessary, set in place rules to protect them so that they can have job security. Does it not make sense for the Government to encourage more locals to become crane operators when there are few jobs for them at the end of the day?
Mrs Lina Chiam (Non-Constituency Member): Madam, the world's economic agenda is not to preserve existing jobs. The preservation of jobs is in direct conflict with labour productivity. Manpower-saving technology is being created more rapidly these days. The case is even stronger now as we face smarter machines.
MOM cannot focus only on pseudo-productivity growth within a sector or within a division. We need to integrate cross-industry trends. For example, 3D printing has productivity innovation potential for the biomedical and chemicals sector.
What we need is a quicker pace of transformation. Industries that do not pick up pace should be engaged. Their workers should be offered social support, such as unemployment insurance and special lump-sum subsidies. It may be even more costly to keep a low value-added job than to create a stronger social net. MOM should begin to study the economics behind this.
We cannot resist change. But we can mitigate the impact. Singapore seems to be making small change and is afraid of increasing social expenditure. Getting workers to retrain and upgrade themselves may be a luxury that the Government can no longer afford. Upgrading was still feasible in the 1980s when technology was improving progressively. Now that change has come exponentially faster, adjustments would become more painful. Singaporeans will be brave enough to face it if the Government is also brave enough to face the change. Unless we embrace revolutionary changes by restructuring our
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industries, we will become obsolete and irrelevant to the needs of the world.
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song (Non-Constituency Member): In the latest breakdown of economically inactive persons in Labour Force Survey 2013, there were 8,600 discouraged workers. These are persons who are not actively looking for a job because they believe their job search will not yield results.
There are others who want to work but cannot because of family responsibilities like childcare, care-giving to family and relatives, and housework. Almost half of the over 300,000 economically inactive women cited these reasons.
There were also over 85,000 time-related underemployed residents. These are part-timers who were willing and available to work additional hours but are unable to find better work.
Finally, there are underemployed workers who are doing work that they are overqualified for. Many older PMEs are in this group.
May I ask the Minister:
(a) What is MOM doing to help discouraged workers to find work?
(b) How does MOM help the underemployed to increase their working hours or find jobs commensurate with their skills and experience?
(c) And how is MOM working with companies and other agencies to remove structural impediments to employment, like lack of childcare, student care, eldercare or flexi-work arrangements?
Can MOM publish a new aggregate measure of labour under-utilisation that factors in not only the unemployment rate, but also discouraged workers, the underemployed and economically inactive persons who want to return to the workforce?
Tracking this measure will help focus minds on factors that lead to a lower labour force participation rate, which has a direct impact on economic growth
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and household incomes.
Mr Hri Kumar Nair (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mdm Chair, thank you. The principle of meritocracy should apply not just in school but at the workplace.
A recent IPS study on racial and religious harmony reported that of the more than 3,000 people polled, 20% of Malays and 18% of Indians said they often, very often or always feel discriminated against when it came to applying for a job and there was a similar response for promotions. Significantly, this perception was not limited to members of the minority races.
While this survey was about perception and not actual discrimination, in such matters, perception is also important. Age discrimination made the news last year when it was reported that several agencies in schools had imposed an age limit when hiring security guards, thereby flouting anti-discrimination guidelines. These examples are not exhaustive. Other forms of discrimination exist, including against gender, nationality and the disabled.
We have guidelines against discrimination issued by TAFEP but they do not have the force of law and there are no penalties for non-compliance. The time has come for anti-discrimination legislation. The usual argument against such legislation is that it will be ineffective —
The Chairman: Mr Hri Kumar, your time is up.
Mr Hri Kumar Nair: I have two minutes, Madam.
The Chairman: Please proceed. There is something wrong with the system here.
Mr Hri Kumar Nair: Thank you. The time has come for anti-discrimination legislation. The usual argument against such legislation is that it will be ineffective as employers who discriminate will not admit to doing so. Yes, it will be difficult to enforce but that is not a reason for not having it. More importantly, such a law will carry a strong moral force and it sends the message about what we believe in and that there must be accountability in employment practices.
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In line with this, I also urge the Minister to set up a labour tribunal to hear all employment disputes and grievances quickly and at low cost, much like how FIDReC does for financial disputes. Having a job makes a world of difference in the lives of many people, and those who lose their jobs or are treated badly at work rarely have the ability or appetite to take on their ex-employers in court. Where Singaporeans have a legitimate grievance, we should help them resolve them in a fair, transparent and expeditious manner.
Ms Mary Liew (Nominated Member): Mdm Chair, in this knowledge-based economy, globalisation and technological advancements can greatly improve productivity and output. Computers are now smarter, can access more data and, in certain sectors, have even replaced many workers' jobs with just a click of the mouse. As we embrace the wave of technological advancements, we must also look out especially for PMEs even in the service sectors and in office and administrative roles.
If workers and PMEs are not multi-skilled or up-to-date with new skills, they will be vulnerable to retrenchment at a faster rate. The employment statistics released by MOM indicate that in 2013, 11,400 workers were laid off, 390 more than the year before. If more is not done for our Singaporean PMEs to stay employed or employable, this figure may continue to rise, in line with technological advancements.
Firstly, can the Minister identify PMEs working in low-growth sectors and launch, nation-wide, an intensified and concerted effort to help them be trained for alternative jobs in high-growth sectors? This is to ensure that they will be protected against redundancy. Assistance can also come in the form of funds required for training, should they make a mid-career switch, especially if they are in their 40s.
For example, present funding support for Part-time or Executive Diplomas in our national institutions are restricted to a five-year time lapse upon completion of the Diploma before the applicant is allowed to embark on subsequent courses funded by the subsidies. With globalisation and a knowledge-based economy, we must constantly stay ahead of global competition through innovation and better productivity. This means that continuous training, learning and education are a necessity for all Singaporeans to stay competitive. Can this five-year time lapse be reduced to two years if we
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are to remain relevant?
Secondly, will the Minister consider tripartite determination of a national wage range for different jobs? Through the tripartite consultative process, we now have the Progressive Wage Model for the cleaning sector. Extending this to other sectors would be a good progression to determine a wage range to commensurate with PME jobs. This is not a call for a minimum wage, but a conscious tripartite effort encompassing professional associations, including the unions and industry bodies, to determine the fair wage to be paid to PMEs in different sectors. This would be a more comprehensive extension for the role of the National Wages Council.
Thirdly, simply open up any newspaper or online job ad and you can see many jobs in the market today that require someone to be a degree holder – even if it could be a simple and entry-level marketing or administration job at times. If this is to be the trend, will the Minister extend the funding to help citizens in terms of scholarships and bursaries for a University education, since the phenomenon has become more of a necessity than the norm.
Governmental stimulus or policy is crucial in allowing our talented and hardworking PMEs, who will be the rank and file of tomorrow, to flourish and succeed and lead better lives in this Singapore we call our home.
Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng (Moulmein-Kallang): Madam, I have observed three trends that will change the face of the workforce of the future in Singapore.
One, trends that are closer to home, the Singapore labour market:
(a) trimming of the foreign workforce;
(b) rise of the blue-collar workforce;
(c) entry of more fresh graduates into the workforce with the new targeted 40% University enrolment rate per cohort; and
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(d) the continued push for productivity improvements through IT, process engineering, job enrichment and lifelong learning.
Two, trends that arise from the unstoppable pace of a digital global world.
This is an age where work is not bound by geography, where learning is not confined to physical classrooms and face-to-face lecturers. This is the age of not only full-blown Massive Open Online Courses but also simpler \"playlist-type\" of learning models where digital citizens can personalise what they want to learn, sometimes from just YouTube or Google education channels without being obliged to take full certification courses.
Three, trends that relate to an expanded and changing pool of contributors to work.
Beyond the confines of the enterprise wall with its core set of permanent staff is a critical new extended workforce – a global network of outside contractors, outsourcing partners, vendors, strategic partners and other non-traditional workers. Many of them may be one-man self-employed workers or \"portfolio workers\" who serve several clients; whose work can range from being gardeners to plumbers to webmasters to bookkeepers or even lecturers. Some are partners in small start-ups, similar to the founders of companies like Facebook and WhatsApp in their early days.
I have three recommendations for the Ministry's consideration as it maps manpower plans for the future.
One, MOM should update the mode of teaching and learning of the 21st century workforce in the new CET masterplan it is developing. Three groups of people that make up the workforce of the future in the next decade and beyond will need different types of learning support:
(a) the digital natives who are born into the world of iTune, smartphones, apps and playlists;
(b) digital migrants – many of us here – those who have to learn how to retool and learn to work in the world of digital tools and language;
(c) digital outcasts – those who, for various reasons: age, ability or deprivation – are aliens in the digital world and are at risk of being outcasts
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forever if they are not supported.
For all of them, it is important to identify and develop the core skills and prioritise elective skills that each group needs in order to maximise their full potential.
Even for vocational skills training, there is room for current MOM-approved CET solutions to move from a more traditional face-to-face methodology to a more updated pedagogy. For instance, to learn how to make a bed, it is likely that a typical WDA trainee will be taught through face-to-face Powerpoints and demos from a trainer. How much more efficient and consistent it is if there are online resources, such as good quality bed-making YouTube clips that will allow the trainer to repeatedly use to ensure a consistent best way to make a bed; and the trainee, if he is able, to first learn at his own time, pace and place and then meet his trainer face-to-face for more individualised coaching? Blended online face-to-face instructions; and flipped classrooms are already common practices in the education system.
I urge the Government to provide more funding to allow MOM to source learning content, pedagogy and assessment that are more relevant to the 21st Century.
Two, MOM should study the profile of the new extended workforce and include them in the Ministry's efforts to attract, train, develop and retain talents. The CET masterplan and any other efforts to improve productivity through schemes, such as the PIC, should seriously take into account self-employed individuals or smaller scale local employee-owners.
Lastly, but not least, I urge MOM to take an even stronger interest and be one of the lead Ministries to innovatively identify and stitch jobs and contracts for those who are at risk of being left behind – the elderly and those with special needs. This cannot be simply left to charity and compassion. If properly trained and supported, they can perform many work tasks for the Government and other employers and free other human resources to be redeployed to more suitable areas of work.
Mr Christopher de Souza (Holland-Bukit Timah): Mdm Chair, the need for higher wages is most acutely felt by low-wage workers who earn less than $1,500 per month. These workers often struggle to make ends meet and require
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the assistance of Government schemes to assist them with their daily needs.
Therefore, there has been a clear need for the Government to adopt measures that would mitigate the wage disparities in our society, and to ensure that low-wage earning Singaporeans are not left behind. Rather than simply mandating a minimum wage or forcing employers to increase the wages of employees across the board, the Government has rightfully adopted a wider and more comprehensive approach by raising wages the right way.
Initiatives, such as the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS), have been an effective means for low-wage workers to supplement their incomes, be it in the form of cash payouts or CPF top-ups. Similarly, the Workfare Training Support scheme has been implemented to great effect to provide generous subsidies for the continued training of workers and, consequently, raise the wages of these workers.
In addition, the Government introduced the Wage Credit Scheme (WCS) and the Inclusive Growth Programme (IGP) to provide support for employers who raise the wages of their local employees, as well as to incentivise employers to share productivity gains with their employees.
Taken together, these initiatives have paved the way for low-wage workers to improve their skills through training and to increase their productivity and wages over time. However, I wish to ask the Minister for Manpower: what further efforts are being contemplated to continue to raise the wages of our workers the right way, particularly the wages of low-wage workers who have to make ends meet with less than $1,500 a month, through increased productivity and training?
With the Government and the public sector taking the lead by implementing best sourcing practices, through supporting programmes like the Best Sourcing Initiative, it is my hope that such best practices will also filter down to the private sector and influence their procurement procedures.
I would like to also commend MEWR for championing the recent amendment to the Environmental Public Health Act in Parliament this month. In a sector that is particularly prone to cheap-sourcing measures, the implementation of the new licensing regimes in the cleaning industry will ensure that cleaners are offered better training and employment conditions.
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This amendment is particularly important as it will operationalise the implementation of the Progressive Wage Model that was recommended by the Tripartite Cluster of Cleaners in late 2012.
A further expansion of the Progressive Wage Model should be encouraged across other industries like the security and landscaping sectors as this model provides a fair and transparent means for workers to attain an increase in wages. As these are industries where wages are often suppressed due to the cheap sourcing measures, the implementation of the Progressive Wage model ensures that low-wage workers in these industries have a clear path for career progression and an increase in wages.
Furthermore, by having a clear ladder for the increase in wages through skills training and increased productivity, workers will be empowered to take a personal responsibility in the improvement of their own skills and the consequent increase in wages.
Progress has certainly been made in recent years to raise the wages of our workers. However, there is still more that can be done to further improve the wages of our workers and to do so the right way.
Mr Yeo Guat Kwang (Ang Mo Kio): Madam, we all recognise the need to complement our workforce with migrant workers, but rather than recruiting by headcount, employers should recruit migrant workers for the skills and value that the migrants can bring to the job. MOM should help our employers to keep their better foreign workers for longer, rather than to encourage the churn of new migrant workers into Singapore which will facilitate illicit profiteering by the errant overseas employment agencies, and the young and unskilled migrants are able to come here for the low-skill jobs just simply by paying more money to the intermediary.
We need to actually emphasise the skills and productivity in our recruitment process. I urge the MOM to have a skills and performance-based standard as a condition for Work Permit renewal for migrant workers. This will increase the overall skills profile of our migrant worker population. Better skills and qualified workers are also easier to upgrade and integrate, more productive and are also less likely to come with the burden of a large agency debt.
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Besides skills certification, currently, there is also no standard contract for the migrant workers and this leads to malpractices and exploitation by overseas agents promising terms and conditions that distort and misrepresent the true state of the working and living conditions here.
I hope the MOM would also work with the unions, as well as the Migrant Worker Centre (MWC), to put in place some form of standardised all-model contract for migrant workers or sectoral guidelines covering all the key terms and conditions for employment, living and social amenities in Singapore and yet, at the same time, incorporating the terms or guidelines into the permit approved documentation, and also translate this into a language that they can understand, so that they all know what they are really coming for.
Of the grievances handled by the MWC over the last four years, a large share is due to the calculation and payment of salaries. While the mandating of payslip issuance to the workers has been put in place in the pipeline – MOM has set a two-year implementation target – but to avoid such salary disputes further, I hope the Government will reconsider mandating electronic payment of salary through Giro for all workers, particularly of all the Work Permit holders, as it is already the case for all the S-Pass holders currently.
Mdm Chair, I commend the Ministry for the willingness to review the \"one employer from entry to exit\" rule at the moment. I hope the Ministry will review this, however, because this control has created an environment that discourages aggrieved migrant workers from coming forward to report the infringements of their employers as they fear being repatriated even if their grievances are legitimate.
I urge the Ministry to allow a change or transfer of employer scheme for all the Work Permit holders, for example, one, workers who have reached the end of their terms of employment; two, workers who can prove legitimate grievances against their employers; three, workers who have obtained their existing employer's consent to change employers. The benefit is definitely significant.
Next point – fair and proper treatment for migrant workers should extend beyond the workplace into their living environment. The major dormitory operators in Singapore, under the advice of the MWC, have already come together to organise Dormitory Associations of Singapore, and have a self-initiated collaboration with SPRING Singapore to formulate some form of
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accreditation standards for the industry.
I want to call on MOM to encourage as well as participate actively in this collaboration and also lend its endorsement to this set of standards. I would like MOM to consider making this set of standards a regulatory bottom line for the industry to guide the enforcement and prosecution of those who fall below the standards of care, hygiene and amenities.
I would also like the Ministry to tell us whether there are plans to build more recreational centres for all the migrant workers in Singapore.
Madam, connected to the issues of living conditions and the standards of work is also the issue of transportation for the migrants. So, I would like to also ask the Ministry whether they have a plan to ensure that such transportation remains accessible and is safe for all migrant workers between their workplace and their \"play\" place.
Madam, we would also like to urge MOM to really look into how they can work more closely with the NGOs to strengthen the dispute resolution mechanism for all migrant workers to ensure that there will be amicable resolution of all disputes.
Mr R Dhinakaran (Nominated Member): Thank you, Madam, for allowing me to raise the issue that is affecting the reliability and reputation of our services sector. I would like to declare my interest on this subject.
In the bid to reduce the dependency on manpower, particularly foreign manpower, we have tightened the foreign manpower quota and raised the levy. This has been applied across all sectors, with the different types of businesses grouped together. While this approach may have helped some industries, I would like to highlight the significant inconvenience and loss of business to some service sectors, like retail and F&B.
These businesses are very heavily dependent on labour. Setting up a retail store is a function of people who sell the product, organise and maintain thousands of products you choose from in a store. But, today, the services sector is a broad classification in which retail, F&B, financial, insurance, real estate, transport, storage, and so on are all lumped together. It is apparent that the level of automation possible and the human customary interaction needed
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are not the same in all the listed industries.
I would like to request that a study to afford to segmentise the service sector businesses, based on the dependency on human labour, be done so that labour-intensive businesses like retail are not punished unduly.
Today, with the severe staff crunch, we are losing businesses with inadequate services and opportunities to service our customers. Further, the severe drop in quota is already hitting the businesses so hard that the increased levy is an additional blow. The quota, in itself, is sufficient to reduce the foreigner influx, if that is the motive, and the additional levy may not be needed.
I would like to seek a study to rationalise the grouping of the service sector businesses, keeping the practical differences between the businesses in mind so that we do not inflict damage unknowingly with heavy curbs on quota and levy.
Ms Mary Liew: Madam, the pleasure craft industry is an off-shoot of our maritime and hospitality industry that is centred around Singapore's four marina clubs, namely, Raffles Marina Club, ONE Degree 15 Marina Club, the Republic of Singapore Yacht Club and Marina at Keppel Bay Club. Luxury multi-million dollar yachts and pleasure boats owned by the wealthy are berthed here as we encourage them to come to Singapore to work and play.
According to the Business Times in 2012, Singapore's pleasure craft industry commands a cool US$45 million or approximately 13% of the Asian market, which is estimated to be worth US$345 million a year. As an industry associated with the affluent, we have identified this sector as one with a high potential for Singaporeans if given the opportunities to earn good wages.
On 1 January 2013, MOM discontinued the issuance of Landing Passes by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) and imposed a work pass requirement for foreign crews working onboard a Singapore-registered pleasure craft. Further to that, a progressive reduction of the dependency ratio was introduced over five years – from one Singaporean to four foreigners, to one Singaporean to two foreigners by 2018. These initiatives give opportunities for Singaporeans to work in the pleasure craft sector and give time for the industry to adapt during the transition phase.
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Mdm Chair, I would like to ask the Minister:
(a) What enforcement measures are presently in place to ensure that foreign crews employed to work and allowed to reside on a specific pleasure craft are not freelancing or working for another employer within the respective marinas?
(b) What enforcement measures or legislation prohibits foreigners from entering on social visit passes under the guise of a guest of the pleasure craft owners but, in reality, are working on these pleasure crafts?
I hope that these policies are in place and with rigorous enforcement, so that Singaporeans can benefit from the good jobs and wealth this industry brings.
Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan (Nee Soon): Mdm Chair, it is the hope of every Singaporean Professional, Manager and Executive (PME) to have a fair shot at the job they desire. I applaud MOM for introducing the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) and National Jobs Bank which both will be in force later this year in August. I recall, as part of the milestone of the FCF implementation, that MOM will start to engage companies with a disproportionate number of EP holders the first half of this year. Can the Minister provide an update on the outcome of this first phase of actions, how the FCF is taking shape, and the progress of the National Jobs Bank software system development?
On the topic of S-Pass, I wish to submit that despite raising the qualifying salaries for S-Passes to $2,200 and new quotas, I still hear two kinds of complaints. Firstly, the complaint of creative circumvention of this salary requirement by companies. Secondly, although S-Pass is for selective strategic skillsets in specific industries, for example, like healthcare where they are welcomed and needed by fellow workers, there are cases where S-Passes are issued to employers for workers doing mere administration or office tasks.
Considering how local mature and young PMEs are facing challenges in having employers' acceptance and finding good-paying jobs, such practices have caused much angst and frustrations amongst our people. Are there any safeguards to make sure that Singaporeans are not replaced by these younger, better educated S-Pass holders? Is the scheme too attractive and flexible such
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that it will be abused?
Mr Zaqy Mohamad (Chua Chu Kang): Mdm Chair, I welcome the Fair Consideration Framework that will come into effect soon, as the outcome is intended to benefit local professionals, managers and executives. I see this as among the positive outcomes of the framework, but there may be question marks and uncertainties about how the framework will work and its implementation.
Many Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians (PMETs) I speak to have concerns with regard to how effective the framework will be, as they are concerned that some employers could find ways to navigate their way around the requirement and, in the end, continue with unfair hiring practices.
In this regard, people need to be aware of the idea behind this framework, how it will work, and what the intended objectives are – for this to work effectively for both the employers and job-seekers.
On the part of employers, some see it as a disadvantage, as it may slow down their hiring process, especially smaller companies. Hence, I agree that the framework applies to companies with over 25 employees and they need to first advertise for jobs on a Government-run jobs bank. Can the Minister update the House on what are the details of this jobs bank and what are some of the inputs gathered from employer feedback?
It remains to be seen how companies adhere to this requirement and what sort of impact the framework will have on the economy, especially how we continue to attract new investments. Companies will also need to review their human resource policy and factor in this new framework.
What is MOM's assessment in terms of the impact of this policy on Singapore from the foreign investors' and foreign business' perspective? But over the long term, this framework has to be one that will balance the needs of the local worker. At the same time, employers will also find it valuable over time as a resource to seek local employees more effectively than they would have in a tighter labour market.
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The Acting Minister for Manpower (Mr Tan Chuan-Jin): Mdm Chair, with your permission, may I request for slides to be presented during the course of my speech?
The Chairman:\tYes, please.
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin: I thank Members for sharing their views about our manpower policies.
As Minister and Member of Parliament, I have had the privilege to meet many Singaporeans from all walks of life. To me – and I think many of you would agree with me – this is probably one of the most meaningful parts of life in public office. They share with me a slice of their life stories. I have listened to their aspirations and hopes for themselves and, especially, for their children. They work hard and seek to have good jobs, stable jobs, good incomes, to buy a home and save for their retirement and also for their children's needs.
Low-income families worry about how to make ends meet; young graduates worry about competition; mid-career workers worry about whether they have enough savings when they retire, and business owners worry about rising costs and manpower constraints, as many Members have shared over the past few days.
Sometimes, there are contradictions and tensions. Some Members would have encountered this as well. Some feel that we should slow down and smell the roses, and in the same conversation later, express concern about whether we will be sufficiently dynamic and vibrant, so that we can create good opportunities for their children when they grow up; or whether the economy would be strong enough to provide for all their needs when they themselves grow old. Some will grumble about the fickleness of our local workforce, how they are very picky, how they will job-hop at the slightest opportunity for pay increments, and that we should loosen our foreign manpower policies. But in the same conversation later, they will lament about the loss of character in Singapore with too many foreigners here and, of course, the crowdedness they encounter every day. I will always ask them, \"Which part of your request would you like me to fulfil?\" I suspect they probably want answers to both parts.
On our part, we have to listen and, ultimately, we have to discern and decide what is the best option. It really is never about just doing more. We have to face the inevitable trade-offs even as we still try to settle for win-win
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outcomes wherever we can. There are always competing demands to balance.
Our responsibility as a Government is to provide for our people's needs, and this forms the bedrock and foundation for them to pursue their dreams and to achieve their aspirations. We are responsible for not only the individuals but also for the broader community. The needs are not always exactly the same. We also have to be responsible for our future generations by ensuring sustainability in all the things that we do.
The practical side of governance need not be incompatible with the aspirational desires and values that many of us share. Making our economy work for every Singaporean is at the core of what we need to do. Better jobs and higher incomes for Singaporeans are at the centre of our mission at MOM. How we do it will reflect the values that we hold. Achieving it will also provide us with the ability to realise those very aspirations and ensure that Singapore remains a nation of opportunities for our people.
Let us take a look at the present. I will first update Members on the present state of our labour market before going on to the future economy and other issues. Our economy grew by 4.1% last year. The unemployment rate, which is 2.9% for Singapore citizens, is among the lowest in the world.
To Mr Gerald Giam's question, I am especially encouraged that Singaporeans, in particular older workers and women, have benefited from our economic restructuring efforts. The labour force participation rate of women aged between 25 and 64 rose quite significantly over the decade, from 61% in 2003 to 72.2% in 2013. The labour force participation rate of older citizens, aged 55 to 64, also climbed to 66.8% in 2013 from 47.2% in 2003. This is quite a significant improvement over the past decade. Mr Gerald Giam raised the issue of the economically inactive and those who are discouraged. I think that is important. We are particularly concerned about this group. There are many diverse challenges that they face and we are trying to do what we can.
Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi Daipi will elaborate further on our efforts and some of the measures that would help in this area. Some have been out of the workforce for quite some time. They do need substantive support and skills training to improve their employability. This is why we heavily subsidise training programmes through our Continuing Education and Training (CET) system to help them pick up skills, so that they can re-enter the labour market. We have also introduced WorkPro to incentivise employers to hire them. Clearly, it is not just only about skills, it is also about hand-holding, because many of
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them would be discouraged. They also do lack the confidence to return to work. So, we have started traineeships where we attach trainees to companies to undergo on-the-job training programmes. This enables them to try out and adjust to working life again and, hopefully, they can transit to actual work and thereby rejoin the workforce.
Singaporeans have benefited from economic growth. It is important for us to understand that without economic growth, many other things will not be able to follow and we are better off than we were previously. For example, growth in real median monthly income – and this includes CPF contributions – for full-time employed Singapore Citizens was 4.6% in 2013. Over the past five years, from 2008 to 2013, real median income increased by 1.7% per annum. This is not bad, considering that many countries are also facing wage stagnation. That is for the median income. Let us look at the lower percentile, the 20th percentile. The real income growth for them was 2% per annum, keeping pace with real income growth at the median level.
The foreign manpower tightening measures that were introduced over the past years are beginning to bite, which explains the concerns that many Members have expressed. Many of us have received the same feedback as well. In 2013, foreign employment, excluding Foreign Domestic Workers (FDWs), grew by 48,400, down from the increase of 67,100 in 2012. About two-thirds of this growth was driven by the Construction sector, and we understand why. There are a lot of infrastructure projects that we need to fulfil. If we exclude the construction sector and FDWs, foreign employment grew by 16,800 in 2013. This is about half of the growth of 32,200 in 2012, and the lowest growth since 2009. Having said that, we still have some way to go in terms of reducing overall foreign manpower reliance. So, that effort needs to continue.
When we compare ourselves to other advanced economies, and when I meet my foreign counterparts, it becomes quite apparent that we are in pretty reasonable shape. While certainly not perfect, we should not shortchange ourselves; what we have here is respected and admired. We need to continue to build on it and not take it for granted, to continue to strive and improve where we can.
Ms Denise Phua and Mrs Lina Chiam asked very important questions about our future – the competencies that we may need and the impact of technology. Let us take a quick glimpse at what the future might be like.
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We believe that Singapore's future economy will create many diverse and exciting career opportunities for our people. We are well-placed in our region to ride on the growth that is happening around us. We are transforming our economy to develop higher skilled, higher value industries. While Mrs Lina Chiam has expressed some of these concerns, I can assure her we are not taking it for granted, and we are definitely seeking to transform, as much as possible, where we can and where it makes sense. New growth opportunities will emerge as technologies like data analytics, robotics and 3D printing become more pervasive.
The future economy will be driven by rapid technological change and shorter skill cycles. Longer life expectancy and shorter skill cycles mean this – workers, both white- and blue-collar workers alike, are unlikely to just have one career for their entire lifespan. In all likelihood, there may be two or more distinct careers over their working lives. Therefore, it is crucial that workers are able to master new skills, adapt, evolve and move on to new things. Change will be the permanent feature.
Let me just cite one example. We all remember Nokia. We used to have Nokia phones and MMI was great, and you cannot imagine anyone else doing any better. In 2005, Nokia had about a third of the world's mobile phone market. But it failed to adjust to iPhone's introduction in 2007 and evolving smartphone technology. By 2009, its profits fell sevenfold and it was sold to Microsoft last year.
Today, smartphone technology continues to evolve. A single messaging application – WhatsApp – can be valued at US$19 billion. We are seeing wearable mobile electronics, such as Google Glass and Samsung's Gear. Our workforce of the future should have both the hard and soft skills to competently adjust, not to mention also the soft aspect, the ability to communicate with acronyms, hashtags and the emoticons! So, let me, perhaps, for the first time, introduce emoticons into Parliament.
This is exactly why workers – and I would add and emphasise – including PMEs, must be able to adapt to change and have that commitment to lifelong learning. Ms Jessica Tan talked about the need to help our workers adapt and to move on. That is something that we are committed to. MOE is doing its utmost to continuously strengthen our education system. On MOM's part, we believe that our cutting edge would be our Continuing Education and Training (CET) systems. This is where we will raise the quality of our local workforce, especially as the world adjusts and moves on, we will be able to respond quite quickly. I totally agree with Ms Denise Phua's comments about the way we
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teach and learn. That is something that we will have to embrace. It is happening in the classrooms. When I was in the army, that was something that we were moving on in a very big way.
In the CET realm, that is something that we need to go on to as well. To better prepare for our future, our entire system needs to help us build a broader and deeper foundation for learning, and enable our people to be adaptable in picking up new knowledge and skills throughout their lives. Mr Teo Siong Seng expressed concerns about PMEs and their re-employability. Let me emphasise this again. Sometimes, we do get feedback that people look at CET as something that is required for blue-collar workers. CET is something that everyone needs to embrace and PMEs themselves also need to embrace it and participate in it. We will do our part to support it as best as we can with programmes and assistance. For example, we tried out the PMEs Specialist Assistance Programme.
The composition of the workforce will also change. Some Members have made mention about that. We know that more are aspiring to enter University – as Asians, that is probably particularly more acute. As a result, we see increasing numbers of graduates entering the labour market. By 2020, we will see 40% cohort participation in our local Universities. There are also many who are pursuing private education and overseas degrees. In theory, what this would mean is that we would be able to increase the pool of better-educated employees in Singapore. We will have a more skilled workforce. We should also be able to move up the value chain. Mr Teo Siong Seng recognises this but he is also concerned about what would the impact be on the lower-end jobs. In fact, we see these trends happening elsewhere as well.
We need to understand that these jobs will only be created by good companies. These companies, both local and foreign, will only be in Singapore if we have healthy economic growth and also a conducive business environment. Let us not kid ourselves; the competition is real. It is not about \"if\" but it is about \"when\". Companies will move; companies will go. Labour capital is exceedingly mobile and, increasingly, will continue that way. We do need to compete to have the companies, even our local companies, to remain here, so that these jobs can be created and those opportunities can be provided for our children as they grow up and as they pursue their education opportunities.
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Therefore, it is important for us to understand that even as we look at providing for our people across the different areas, especially on the social side, we still need to make sure that our future economy needs to be strong, robust, healthy and vibrant, so that these opportunities can be created for our people. That is the base upon which they can then go on to fulfil their dreams and aspirations. It has to go hand-in-hand. Our economic agencies will do what is possible to continue to anchor Singapore as a regional headquarters for high value-added activities, while helping local enterprises to grow as well.
Other countries are facing a different type of challenge. Mr Zainudin Nordin raised similar concerns. In particular, we should note the situation in South Korea and Taiwan. Mr Zainudin cited some examples in Japan, and we can see some of these trends happening across the world. In South Korea and Taiwan, there has been a relentless pursuit of paper qualifications. It has resulted in a glut of graduates. The Director-General of Taiwan's MOE stated that \"the abundance of university places had undermined the quality of degrees and created a skills mismatch in the job market. People have become over-educated and under-employed.\" Taiwan is taking steps to address this.
But again, this is something that we need to observe. We can potentially see some of these trends happening. So, we cannot take for granted that we will not face these problems in the future. I was talking to Education Minister Heng Swee Keat last night and we were discussing about our respective parts in the Budget today. This is one area that we are watching carefully the developments. It is important for Singaporeans to make informed educational choices, not just the individuals but especially the parents. We will also develop viable career pathways and options for those who may prefer a more vocational and technical route instead of pursuing a University education. Singaporeans should not have to feel that the only way that they could be successful in life would be to pursue a University education. As we all know, if everyone becomes a University graduate, which theoretically could be possible, we will not have enough jobs to go around as well.
Correspondingly, the market would also respond to the quality of degrees that come from different institutions. The ASPIRE Committee that is helmed by Senior Minister of State Indranee Rajah will play a very important role to help address this situation. This is one area that we are particularly concerned about and we will pay attention to that. I agree with some of the concerns raised, especially from Mr Zainudin Nordin. Ultimately, as people move up the value chain in terms of the education process, we need to make sure that we continue to create jobs. That is key. For many countries that face some of these problems, they are not creating enough jobs. That is something that we are doing fairly
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well at the moment. We should not take it for granted. We need to create jobs at various levels, not just at the graduate level, but also at the non-graduate level – the vocational level, technical level – so that good job opportunities abound for Singaporeans at all levels because all of us do have different potentials and abilities. At the same time, we should equip our people with the skills and facilitate the information transfer so that we know where the jobs are. It is an entire continuum of effort.
Going forward, we must continue to restructure the economy, and change the way jobs are being performed. Restructuring for higher productivity will be painful. There is no way around that. We need to invest more in technology, streamline processes and create higher value products through innovation. This is the only sustainable way to ensure wage increases for all workers.
But let me end this section about the future by stating that even as we transform the economy, there will be natural limits to what education and training can do. There will still be Singaporeans working in lower skilled jobs. We will do what we can do to upskill them, but that segment of society will remain even as we go forward. What we need to do is to not neglect the contributions of Singaporeans at that level. They continue to play an important role in our society and we will and must continue to support them in their endeavours.
Given how the future may unfold, how do we ensure that our economy will work for all Singaporeans? I will highlight three areas: (a) creating better jobs and raising incomes for Singaporeans through upgrading our workers and supporting restructuring; (b) achieving inclusive growth and retirement adequacy; and (c) making sure that workplaces get better and are safer.
Firstly, creating better jobs and raising incomes through upgrading the workforce and supporting restructuring. We all know that raising productivity is central to our efforts to create better jobs for Singaporeans.
For businesses, it means taking a long hard look at their business models and processes, to see how they can produce higher value goods and services, and reduce their overall reliance on manpower. We are already seeing some changes. Many Members may have noticed when eating out that more F&B outlets have started using iPads for food orders. Others are asking customers to pay at the cashier on their way out, reducing the number of service staff required. So, do not get annoyed. This is an inevitable part as we tighten, as we move up the productivity and value chain. These are practices that will be there.
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All of us, as consumers, have a part to play by supporting this effort.
Other companies are finding different ways to deal with it. For example, I hear this story of Jellyhearts. It is a bakery selling customised cakes. The owner is Mr Darren Loh. He partnered e2i to prototype moulds that will help reduce the overall time taken to produce these customised cakes. When we took this picture, we wanted him to show that mould. But he said that it was a trade secret, so he could not show us. The key thing to this is this: the workers at Jellyhearts saw an eventual wage increase of about 10% to 20% as a result of improved productivity. This is why productivity is an important effort. Not only will it allow us to streamline our economy to be manpower-leaner, but at the same time, it will allow us to help our workers to earn more wages. Because only with productivity can income increases and wage increases happen.
I agree with Mr Zainudin Nordin when he says that, for workers, raising productivity means undergoing training to improve their skills so that they can add more value to their jobs. The Government is committed to providing Singaporeans with the fullest support possible to improve their skills through CET. This is a cutting edge and we will support that. We are in the midst of a major review of our CET Masterplan, and we will make our CET system even more relevant for our workers and businesses, and to further strengthen the link between training and skills utilisation at the workplace. So, the participation of employers is important, because their feedback will shape the kind of courses that we run, so that they will be applicable and relevant for the workers, and when they are trained and re-enter the workforce back to the companies, they are completely relevant.
This is a real tripartite partnership. This is something that we can make it work and work well. This will ensure that our workers will adapt quickly to industry needs and provide Singaporeans with more assistance to achieve their career aspirations. Senior Minister of State Amy Khor will be elaborating on this in her speech.
Let me address the point raised by Mr Png Eng Huat about tower crane operators.
We know that the demand for crane operators is increasing, largely in terms of where we are going for the construction industry, not just by the volume of work, but we are also pushing the industry to adopt much more prefab approaches, so crane operators play a very important role. In terms of numbers, for local crane operators, they have increased in the last couple of years, from
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3,600 to 4,600. Foreign workers have increased from about 1,600 to 2,950. There is also a Dependency Ratio Ceiling (DRC) imposed. At present, we have a transitional DRC where you need one Singapore crane operator before you are eligible to hire another. You can hire up to four foreign crane operators. The idea is to transit to a ratio of 1:2 by 2017.
For Work Permit crane operators, only Malaysians are allowed. For S-Pass, we also allow crane operators from China as well. While we recognise that there may be some concerns, I would appreciate if Mr Png could flag out those specific cases. I also face residents who come to me for crane operating jobs, not of the nature that Mr Png had mentioned. I am quite distressed because when I arrange for jobs, they go and work and then they drop out for a host of reasons. It is not an easy job, mind you. We also find it challenging because for many Singaporeans who may not be able to find other jobs, this becomes a very suitable option. We find that some of them are quite reluctant to take on that job, I think for good reasons. Ultimately, we leave it to the individuals to decide.
What we need to do is to support that local pipeline. Similar to what we mentioned earlier, how do we support in terms of training? We have a crane operator apprenticeship programme. For example, we offer various types of crane operations and provide apprentices with an attractive monthly remuneration package of at least $2,500. It is a one-year programme and it offers training for them. On completion of the training, to obtain a crane operator licence, these apprentices will commence employment with their employers and undergo on-the-job training and future upgrading courses which are also subsidised. After completion of this programme, apprentices will qualify for BCA's CoreTrade registration. BCA has received an overwhelming response from local applicants and we will also facilitate in the placement process.
This is just to illustrate how we can support from the training perspective and also from the job placement perspective. This is what we mean when we talk about supporting our workers in terms of their employability and upskilling as they move to other sectors.
In terms of inclusive growth and retirement adequacy, we do know that many Singaporeans are worried that they do not have sufficient savings for healthcare and living expenses upon retirement. Some of these issues have been touched upon. MOH will cover quite extensively some of the programmes that we are looking into, to assure Singaporeans. Those are important. It is also important to make sure that those packages are sustainable. This is something
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that many countries are grappling with. Others have also shared their concerns over the more vulnerable groups of Singaporeans who struggle to make ends meet and have fewer opportunities to move ahead.
We remain as a Government committed to fostering inclusive growth. Much of what we have done – not just this year but in the last few years – has indicated that that is something that we are placing emphasis on. We want all our citizens to enjoy the fruits of our economic success to achieve financial security for themselves and their families.
Work is the best form of financial security. Our strategy at the broadest level is to keep unemployment low by keeping the economy healthy so that good jobs can be created; and at the same time, maintaining a tight labour market and encouraging more to work. With increasing life expectancy, many Singaporeans are able and want to work until they are older.
As announced in Budget 2014, we will be increasing the CPF employer contribution rates to the Medisave Account for all workers. Older workers will also enjoy further increases to the CPF contribution rates to help them build up more savings for their retirement needs.
I share the concerns of Mr Christopher de Souza and recognise that certain groups of Singaporeans will remain there, even as we transform. Particularly, lower-income Singaporeans will require more help. Mr Teo Siong Seng, Mr Gerald Giam and Ms Denise Phua also asked how the Government can assist retrenched mature workers, the unemployed and other vulnerable groups. This is important not just from MOM's perspective but from a whole-of-Government perspective to support them, not just in terms of work but also education, health, housing and so on.
Workfare remains the key pillar of our social security landscape. It is one pillar but it is an important one. We made enhancements to the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) quantum and income cap last year, to boost take-home pay and retirement savings of low-wage Singaporeans. We also further enhanced the Workfare Training Support (WTS) scheme, to provide greater subsidies for training. With better skills and capabilities, our low-wage workers can raise their productivity and employability to enjoy positive wage outcomes. We need to continue to build on this to help more of our workers move up the value chain for themselves and, ultimately, for their families.
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For the unemployed or those seeking a career switch, they can tap on the existing networks of Career Centres at CDCs, e2i and also CaliberLink, which is focused on helping the PMEs, to enjoy employment assistance and training advisory services. We also have targeted career conversion programmes to help individuals reskill and acquire necessary competencies to take on new jobs. Senior Minister of State Amy Khor will speak more on these efforts and retirement adequacy, while Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi Daipi will touch on measures to uplift low-wage workers later on.
We are also paying particular attention to lower-income Singaporeans, especially for those who work in industries that are more prone to stagnating real wages. Where productivity improvements do not translate well into wage increases, for example, in sectors where there is cheap sourcing, I am glad that the unions are also working closely with us on this. We plan to introduce sector-specific and targeted measures. We have done this by incorporating the Progressive Wage Model, which is developed by NTUC, into Government regulation for the cleaning sector. We will also set up a tripartite body to assess the need for a Progressive Wage Model in the Landscape sector. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi will further elaborate on this.
It is important to move in these sectors for a range of reasons, one of which is what I alluded to earlier. There will always be Singaporeans, despite whatever efforts that we have made to try to uplift them in terms of educational level, who may continue to work at some of these lower-skilled jobs. That is why having the Progressive Wage Model in these sectors is particularly important because these are viable, respectable jobs that Singaporeans can take up.
It is essential that as we carry out these various measures, we need to continue to make our workplaces better and safer. We will re-double our efforts to entrench a safety mindset and culture in the workplace. In 2013, we had 59 workplace fatalities, a slight increase from 56 in 2012. The Construction sector continues to be the main contributor to workplace accidents. In the first two months of 2014, we had nine Construction workplace deaths. This is quite unacceptable. We will step up enforcement efforts against errant employers, who will face harsh penalties under the law, including imprisonment.
Harsh penalties aside, the key to having a safer workplace is about having a safety culture. It is not just like about building the big stick, which plays a part, but, more importantly, we must all embrace that mindset. That is not easy to
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mandate but it is something that we will continue to promote.
As we build safe and healthy workplaces, we are also embarking on encouraging progressive workplace practices. This is the part about a better workplace. Singaporeans have increasingly indicated a stronger desire to have a more fulfilling pace of life; more time to pursue other goals and priorities outside of work. Many have called for greater support for flexible work arrangements and more pro-family practices. We will strengthen our efforts on this front to promote more progressive employment practices, to support work-life priorities for Singaporeans. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi Daipi will talk more about this. Again, some things can be mandated, but a lot of it is also about culture. A lot of it has to do with the fact that we need to look at ourselves as employees in the way we work and look at ourselves as employers as well, in the way we make our demands upon our employees.
Even though the Employment Act was recently amended to protect more Singaporean workers, Singaporean PMEs who earn more than $4,500 a month and fall outside the scope of the Employment Act have approached NTUC and MOM for assistance on workplace disputes. There are cases where employees have legitimate grievances but might not be able to afford to take legal proceedings. MOM is presently working with our tripartite partners to enhance employment dispute resolution mechanisms, as part of the Employment Act Phase Two review. We are looking to provide an affordable and expeditious avenue for employees to resolve disputes relating to breaches of individual contract of employment. As part of this review, we are also looking into how we can enhance the current tripartite mediation framework for union members in non-unionised companies. We are discussing with relevant stakeholders and we will provide an update in due course.
Let me now return to our efforts to restructure the economy. Mr Teo Siong Seng and Mr Dhinakaran have expressed the strains the businesses are feeling, due to the tight labour market and rising business costs. In fact, many of you have raised this in the past few days. As Minister Lim Hng Kiang shared yesterday, we are keeping close tabs with the ground. We have been receiving this feedback ourselves. Some of these business people are not your big businesses; they are small SMEs in your local area; and they are struggling because, for some of them, it is really a matter of life and death. Ms Jessica Tan spoke at the time about how it is so important to access to quality manpower because it is key for businesses to locate high-value operations in Singapore. As I mentioned, this is important because, ultimately, when that happens, job opportunities are created for us.
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Let me share with Members a recent dialogue that I have had with Pasir Ris East residents. You could see their tensions. Mr Benjamin Wan, a resident, shared how he was affected by employers who, he claimed, preferred to hire foreigners to locals. Some Singaporeans, like Mr Wan, wanted us to be more stringent on admitting foreign talent; others call for a \"Singaporean first\" policy.
At the same dialogue, another participant, Mr Leong Weng Kuan, lamented about our tightened controls on foreign workers. Mr Leong runs a local business and shared how difficult it was to find locals to fill jobs that are available in his firm. Mr Leong was less concerned about PMEs as he felt that these Singaporeans are quite mobile and that there are already significantly good career opportunities for them. Within one dialogue, we could see divergent views – both equally valid in some sense, but how do you strike that balance?
I have one over-riding consideration when I look at how to shape our manpower policies. Do they, on balance, benefit Singaporeans and Singapore? I had mentioned earlier that it is critical that our economy remains healthy so that good jobs can be created to meet the needs of a better-educated workforce. As a country with a small domestic market, it is important for us to understand that we need to remain open to the global economy. It is our lifeline. It enables us to thrive and create those opportunities that we have been talking about. An important part of this equation is to have a diverse global workforce that allows employers to tap on skilled foreign manpower who complement and augment. Some global and even regional set-ups, need a cosmopolitan make-up due to the nature of their business and the reach. Yes, it will mean that when foreigners are here, they will compete for jobs, but yet, at the same time, by being here, it allows companies to be here and at the same time, generate those very jobs that go to our people. These jobs are generated directly from the jobs created in these companies, and indirectly from the business that is generated by having those companies here in the first place. Again, it is a fine balancing act.
We also know that given Singapore's physical size – we have discussed some of the concerns in this House because of the constraints and the infrastructure – we really do need to grow within the constraints that we have. This explains why we need to tighten foreign manpower access at all levels. Again, you can see that there is a balancing effort that needs to be struck here: that between maintaining our competitiveness and the need to moderate growth in our labour force. We need to ensure that whatever the trade-offs, that these trade-offs are real. On balance, what is the net effect? Is it positive for our people? Is it positive for our society?
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We have introduced tightening measures in a progressive manner since 2010. Foreign employment growth has slowed down significantly, for the non-Construction sectors. We know that many local companies, both SMEs and non-SMEs, are feeling the pain. Take Yang Kee Logistics, for example. This is a local SME with more than 60% local employees. The company provides end-to-end logistics solutions for various sectors. Similar to many logistics firms, Yang Kee faces difficulties in servicing their clients, given the tighter manpower situation.
Yang Kee has adapted by forming an alliance with four other transport companies to pool excess trucking capacity through an order exchange cloud server. This has helped to alleviate manpower constraints in its trucking positions, as companies are able to fully utilise the resources at their disposal. The companies are also able to tap upon each others' expertise and enjoy access to resources previously unavailable. So, this is a classic example of how some companies have embraced change. These changes have allowed Yang Kee to enjoy productivity improvements of up to 20%.
We want our SMEs to do well, we want them to adapt, we want them to continue to create good jobs and opportunities for Singaporeans. But we cannot proceed with business as usual. We will be committed to helping companies like Yang Kee transform their existing business models. This includes support through the Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC), which has been extended until 2018 and other schemes, such as the new PIC+ that is targeted at SMEs specifically. The feedback that Members have provided in terms of making sure that these PIC schemes are easily accessible remains an important one. We will continue to improve on that.
I want to take this opportunity, and I think it is important to do this, to remind all businesses that a few of the foreign manpower tightening measures that we had previously announced will take full effect this year and in 2015, when the transition period ends. Often times, we get feedback, \"How come you suddenly change policy?\" We have not. It has been announced; we have given time for transition. We would like to remind all businesses that this is going to happen in July this year and in 2015. This includes the higher S Pass minimum qualifying salary, and the reduction in Dependency Ratio Ceilings (DRCs) and S Pass Sub-DRC from 25% to 20%. Members will be glad to know that we are not introducing further tightening measures this year, with the exception of the increase in foreign worker levies for the Construction sector. We will monitor foreign manpower growth and productivity improvements in each sector carefully, before deciding whether any further measures are necessary.
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I would like to thank Mr Zainudin Nordin, Mr Yeo Guat Kwang and Mr Teo Siong Seng for their views on the foreign workforce. The measures that we have announced in the Budget this year signals our intent to raise the quality of our foreign workforce and, by extension, productivity. We need to encourage firms to recruit and retain skilled foreign workers, and move towards having a slightly smaller pool of skilled foreign workers, rather than just relying on sheer numbers of inexperienced and low-skilled foreign labour. That transition must happen; we cannot grow at the same rate as before.
Therefore, we have introduced a new Market-based Skills Recognition Framework for the construction sector. This is to encourage firms to retain experienced \"Basic Skilled\", or what we call the R2 Work Permit Holders for a longer period, on higher salaries. With this, companies can upgrade their R2 workers to \"Higher Skilled\", or R1 status, and therefore, will not have to bear the higher foreign worker levies that we announced in Budget 2014. We will also extend the maximum Period of Employment (POE) for R1 workers from Non-Traditional Source (NTS) countries and the People's Republic of China (PRC) who work in the Construction, Marine and Process sectors.
Together with MND and BCA, we will also be consulting the industry on a longer term proposal to impose a minimum level of R1 workers across all Construction firms.
We will also review our Skills Recognition Framework, and the eligibility criteria for foreign workers to qualify for R1 status. We want to ensure that we raise the quality of the foreign workers here and encourage employers to retain experienced and skilled workers. We have already begun discussions with firms in the Process sector, and will soon be extending this review to cover the Marine sector. We encourage companies to provide your feedback to us. In response to Mr Yeo, we feel that the situation is less pressing for Services and will not extend this move to that sector.
These measures will mean that firms that are more reliant on new, inexperienced workers, or who choose to constantly churn foreign workers, will be subjected to higher levy bills. I think this makes sense. Conversely, firms that rely more on experienced, higher quality workers, will be less affected.
As I had mentioned in Parliament in January, while the situation with regard to our foreign workers' well-being is generally good but we do intend to improve where we can. Mr Yeo spoke about holistically and deliberately planning for the needs of our foreign workers, not just in their workplaces, but
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also where they live and play. Indeed, this has been so in our on-going efforts in managing the foreign workforce in Singapore. Since 2008, an Inter-Ministerial Committee has been looking into issues, such as foreign worker housing and transport. One of our on-going priorities is to speed up the construction of dormitories so that foreign workers can stay in these purpose-built accommodations. As part of these efforts, we intend to enhance our levers with the larger foreign worker dormitories by developing new regulations. I mentioned previously that the Government will also be launching more dedicated foreign worker recreation centres. In all, these measures will enable us to better meet the evolving needs our foreign workers face as well as to facilitate a more harmonious co-existence with the communities in the vicinity of large dormitories.
I would like to take the opportunity to thank Mr Yeo for his leadership and his team, and to congratulate the Migrant Workers Centre (MWC) and the Private Bus Associations on their initiative to enhance weekend transport for workers. We want to celebrate such ground-up initiatives because they will definitely play a part in complementing whatever that we are doing. And we encourage and hope to see more of these efforts.
We regularly review our legislation to ensure adequate protection for workers. We will study Mr Yeo Guat Kwang's suggestions to facilitate electronic salary payment and we have already begun discussing with industry on how to broaden the circumstances under which foreign workers may change employers, with a view to reduce the churn of experienced workers. This is something that MOM has been looking at for some time and I am particularly keen to take this forward, to see if we can make this possible.
With regard to having a standardised employment contract and sector-specific guidelines, a sample contract covering key employment terms has been worked out in consultation with the tripartite partners, and this has been made available on the website of the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices (TAFEP). We further welcome any efforts by industry associations to come up with sample contracts covering specific terms that are relevant to their sectors. Please do come forward with your suggestions.
With a large and diverse workforce, invariably and inevitably, some employment disputes will be inevitable. I would like to reassure Mr Yeo and Members of this House that where these involve basic employment standards under our laws, we will ensure that standards are upheld. We will continue to build on existing processes for NGOs like Migrant Workers Centre, HealthServe and so on, to help workers seek assistance from MOM. MOM will also continue
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to step up enforcements against contraventions of the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA). In 2013 alone, we prosecuted about 550 employers for EFMA contraventions.
Mr Dhinakaran raised a suggestion to further segmentise the DRC for the Services sector. We have debated this in the last several debates. We have applied our foreign manpower policies consistently across the Services sector. However, in exceptional circumstances, we have been flexible. Healthcare is one industry where we have granted more liberal controls, due to their essential nature and an acute shortage of trained locals.
We do not rule out further flexibility where warranted, but we would want to be assured first that the industry is essential, that productivity is already high, and that the locals therein are relatively well paid and have reasonable career and wage progression pathways.
For industries appealing for more generous foreign worker quotas and lower levies, we need to ask whether the industry is as manpower-lean as it is in other developed countries, whether the local workers are paid fairly and, more importantly, are paid better than alternative jobs in Singapore. Because that raises the question of whether the wages offered are not as attractive as it should be and why these industries are not generating good jobs for locals.
Mr Dhinakaran has also asked whether we should increase levies when we have reduced quotas. Well, we have looked at this extensively over the years and the point is, we do need to do both but in a judicious manner. Why? Firstly, despite the DRC cut, the number of Services work permit holders and S Pass holders is still growing, albeit at a slower pace.
Secondly, if the cost of foreign labour is significantly lower than local workers, firms will be incentivised to recruit foreign workers first on the basis of lower cost and will seek to maximise their usage of foreign workers.
Thirdly, too low a cost of labour will also delay and deter the adoption of labour-saving technology. That is the whole point. We need to move towards a much more manpower-lean economy.
Firms can reduce their levy burden by either becoming more manpower-productive to rely on fewer foreign workers, or in hiring higher skilled R1
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workers where they are needed. The more foreign workers they rely on, the more levies they pay. It is quite a fair and simple principle, but I think it is meant to shape the economy so that we can move towards the direction that we are looking at. It sends a clear signal to less productive firms and industries that behaviours and business models will have to change in order to survive.
Let me next address the concerns raised by Mr Patrick Tay, over the relevance of the S Pass in our Work Pass framework.
The S Pass was introduced in July 2004 to enable companies to bring in middle-level skilled manpower, such as Associate Professionals and Technicians (APTs), to augment manpower gaps across various industries within a given quota. Even as our local workforce becomes more educated and skilled, the S Pass will remain relevant in two ways. First, there will still be APT manpower gaps which our local workforce may not be able to fill. In the 2013 Job Vacancy Survey administered by MOM, there were more than 4,000 APT vacancies reported by employers in September 2013, which they found hard to fill with locals. Second, more junior-level foreign PMEs will fall into the S Pass category as we progressively raise the Employment Pass (EP) qualifying criteria to level the playing field for local graduates, and they will be subject to the S Pass sub-DRC and levies. This forms part of our effort to raise the overall quality profile of our foreign workforce over time, so that they continue to complement our increasingly educated local workforce.
To strike a careful balance between meeting the manpower needs of industries and maintaining a level playing field for locals, we have been progressively tightening the S Pass qualifying criteria, raising the foreign worker levy and cutting the S Pass sub-DRC since July 2011. Most significantly, in July 2013, we required S Pass holders with more experience to qualify at higher salaries and further cut the S Pass sub-DRC for the Services sector from 20% to 15%, as locals do tend to look for jobs in that sector. As a result, Services S Pass growth has moderated from 8,100 in the second half of 2012, to 1,000 in the second half of 2013.
We will continue to monitor the situation closely as the effects of the recently announced S Pass tightening measures are still working their way through. We will continue to review the S Pass framework, to ensure that the quality of S Pass holders continues to meet the manpower needs of industries and complement our local workforce.
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Mr Patrick Tay and Mr Zaqy Mohamed have asked for an update on the implementation of the Fair Consideration Framework (FCF), and the specific actions that we had taken on those with nationality-based discriminatory HR practices.
The purpose of the FCF is to encourage a level playing for Singaporeans and signal the importance of considering Singaporeans fairly for job opportunities. From 1 August 2014 this year, firms must advertise their vacancies in the Jobs Bank for at least 14 days before they are eligible to apply for an Employment Pass if needed.
The Government has started identifying firms that may have scope to improve their hiring and career development practices. These are firms with a disproportionately low share of Singaporeans within the PME levels in their industry. Since the start of this year, we have identified and started initial discussions with more than 50 employers.
Firms with shortcomings in their HR practices will be required to implement an action plan to address these shortcomings. In some cases, the issue may not be a problem with their HR practices, but rather a gap in the skills that are available in the local workforce. This happens. We will work closely with the industry, to explore ways to support manpower-lean business models or develop a local pipeline of workers with the relevant skills and experience. This is where MOM, MTI and MOE work closely to make sure that the local pipeline is provided for.
The new Jobs Bank will be launched in the middle of 2014. WDA is now in the process of engaging groups of employers and potential job seekers, to test the beta version of the Jobs Bank. As with all new platforms, I do not think it will be perfect from the word \"go\" and users will take some time to become familiar with it, but we will continue to refine and improve the Jobs Bank, as we gain more experience and feedback from Singaporeans and employers. This is an exciting development, and we see a lot of potential in this.
Mdm Chair, allow me to summarise in conclusion. While we have not announced major foreign manpower tightening measures for the non-Construction sectors in Budget 2014, businesses must press on with restructuring and should lose no time in making the adjustments needed to remain viable. As Members can see, some companies have moved on and have embraced the change. Many companies are now coming round to it and many of them have been appealing. Many Members have received the appeals but
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we do need to move on and many are beginning to respond, so that is encouraging. The fact is there will be casualties in any restructuring effort and it will be painful for many. But for those willing to adapt, the Government will help through our transitioning support package.
All of us – Government, employers and employees – play a part in our restructuring journey. This strong spirit of tripartism is a real strength for Singapore. In addition to restructuring their businesses, employers have a role to play to make their firms attractive places to work. This means paying attention to career and wage progression, engaging employees, and designing work arrangements that enable their employees to contribute their best to the firm. This has significant bearing in productivity. Are they prepared to go the extra mile for you? If we are able to pay attention to that, that would have a big part to play in productivity. Employers also have a significant role to play in training and upgrading their employees' skills. Singaporeans, too, must respond by seizing these training opportunities and ask what value we as employees can add to the firm and not simply focus on what the firm can offer to us. All of us really, have a part to play.
So long as we keep working together, we will continue to ensure that Singapore remains a Nation of Opportunities, for all Singaporeans.
Ms Foo Mee Har (West Coast): Madam, as part of our growth strategy to entrench Singapore as the Global-Asia Hub, both Government and employers have critical roles to play in ensuring that Singaporeans have the capabilities and skills to take up the best jobs. I urge the Government to broaden the coverage of CET to include the development of Singaporean leaders to fill top regional jobs here. This will not only secure the best opportunities for our people, but also enhance our competitiveness with the availability of world-class management talent.
Currently, the typical approach taken by MNCs to fill top regional jobs is to simply send in senior managers from their foreign head offices or overseas branches.
This is partly because these organisations need their \"man in Singapore\" to have deep knowledge of the corporation's culture and processes and a well-cultivated network of contacts in the wider organisation. But I believe that Singaporeans can be prepared for these roles, if we provide them with
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opportunities to gain international experience.
The Government should launch a programme to encourage employers to proactively identify and groom top Singaporean managers. A key part of this programme should include sending high-potential (Hi-Po) executives on overseas job postings to either manage a large overseas market or to take on assignments at the head office.
These postings should be for about two years to be meaningful both to gain management experience in different markets as well as build wider networks in these large organisations. These Hi-Pos are then required to return to work in Singapore.
Such postings are costly undertakings for most companies. I propose that the Government consider off-setting their costs, as part of our efforts to build a strong Singaporean Core in strategic industries for the future.
Madam, in fact, nine years ago, in my previous capacity as the China Head for Standard Chartered Consumer Banking business, I supported the Asian Business Fellowship programme under MTI by sponsoring seven Singaporeans. Under this programme, the Government paid for the interns to gain valuable exposure in a fast-growing Asian market, whilst the Bank provided them with development opportunities in an international setting.
Madam, instead of just focusing on entry/mid-levels, we need a programme targeted at senior executives, which we may call the Future Leadership Incubation Growth and Hi-potential Programme or FLIGHT school, in short. This Top Gun programme will give wings to a Singaporean Core of world-class corporate leaders who can then help take the country soaring towards our aspiration as a Global-Asia hub.
Mr Patrick Tay Teck Guan: Mdm Chair, firstly, I would like to thank the Acting Minister for agreeing to and supporting NTUC's call to look at the spending; the Tripartitie Mediation Framework and also expanding the employer dispute resolution for PMEs earning more than $4,500.
Our PMEs in Singapore remain vulnerable to a changing landscape and the economic restructuring. We have talked about getting PMEs to be equipped with T-shaped skills – the vertical part of T signifies a deepening expertise of a
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particular skillset or discipline whereas the horizontal part of the T signifies the ability to collaborate across disciplines.
Learning from the series of crises the past decade, the uncertainties of the global and local economy and having dealt with and engaged many PMEs in Singapore, I would like to put forward, the first time in this House, the concept of developing not T-shaped but π-shaped PMEs. Why Pi-shaped and the symbol π? Because the two verticals connote having two deep skills instead of just one deep skill. In other words, Pi-shaped also means second-skilling.
Why second skilling? We must not just develop competency and depth in one's main job but should equip ourselves with an additional backup skill or training that will come in to ensure employment and employability in the unfortunate situation of job loss or retrenchments.
As a real example, an IT programmer may have a passion for photography. His main deep skill is in IT programming but his second skill can be photography; professional photography. In the event he loses his job as an IT programmer, he can switch to being a professional freelance photographer to stay employed. Another example would be a banker who has a passion for counselling, possibly even a hobby for it. His second skill could be in counselling. Once he develops the deep skills of counselling, if there is a downturn and he is laid off from his banking job, he could still use his professional counselling qualifications to take on work as a counsellor or social worker in a VWO. The list and examples go on.
We seriously need a fundamental rethink of how employers, Government and PMEs should view second skilling and whether employees would be happier and far better off if they are allowed to explore new areas of professional development in their personal time. The employers can play their part; we will also need a shift in Government perspective in terms of how training funds can come in to support second skilling. This can come through by increasing the channels of deployment of the Lifelong Learning Fund and Skills Development Fund.
If we can expand the scope of Government funding for individual-initiated training, it will really help to facilitate the growth of second skilling, hence, assuring the employability and financial security for Singaporeans.
Previously, I have mooted actively for the establishing and linking of Lifelong Learning Fund to individual-based learning programmes rather than
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just relying on employer-centric training programmes. I am, therefore, pleased to note that there is a current trial on the Individual Learning Portfoilo by WDA that will provide a history or tracking of the individual PME's learning and development.
I recall vividly this. We had the Surrogate Employer Scheme in the past decade but which has now been overtaken by the Workfare Training Support Scheme. Can MOM or WDA continue the Surrogate Employer Scheme so that PME employees, some below 35 years and have PME level incomes, who are not supported by their employers and who embark on individually initiated training like embarking on Diploma or higher programmes in our local Polytechnics or reputable private education institutions enjoy funding and training allowance or absentee payroll? Madam, in Chinese, please.
(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] In this globalised world where people face stiff competition in the labour market, our local PMEs must plan ahead. I propose that we not only develop \"T-shaped\" PMEs, but also \"Pi-shaped\" as well. Why the Pi-shape?
This is because for local PMEs to have just one deep skill is not enough; they need to have two deep skills. A good example would be someone in the finance industry. If he has a passion for counselling and if he were to be retrenched during a financial crisis, he can also join the counselling industry to continue working as a counsellor. There are many such examples.
I hope that employers would continue to encourage and develop local PMEs so that they can master a second skillset. I also hope the Government can allocate more resources to help them.
The Chairman: Your time is up, Mr Tay.
Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar (Ang Mo Kio): Mdm Chair, currently, those who wish to withdraw their names from the HDB flat that is co-owned with their aged parents, in order to purchase a new BTO flat with the spouse or spouse-to-be, would require the repayment of the CPF funds used, with accrued interest by the remaining co-owners. The remaining co-owners are usually the aged parents. This repayment, usually in cash, has to be made within six months of
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the name withdrawal, back into the CPF account of the co-owner who has withdrawn.
I have met several residents who are in this very situation. One of them is Mr Yeo and Ms Liu, who are getting married and have applied for a new BTO flat. However, Ms Liu currently co-owns a flat with her aged parents which she has helped pay for over the past three years. She appealed to CPF Board to seek a waiver of the repayment of about $42,000 by her aged parents, back to the CPF account when she withdraws her name from the current flat. However, her request was rejected.
Mr Yeo and Ms Liu are not alone. In the past two-and-a-half years, I have met a few other residents who are in the same predicament. The reasons for wanting the waiver for repayment are reasonable. They are still young, they are working, and are capable of building up the CPF funds for retirement, but their aged parents, usually in their 50s or 60s, are not able to do so.
There is a strong sense of filial piety amongst these young Singaporeans who feel that waiving the CPF repayment by the parents is a small gesture of repaying their parents' kindness and sacrifices. And they feel that the current CPF policy prevents them from being able to proceed to purchase a new flat and may be an obstacle in them starting a family. I understand the reason for rejecting the waiver of repayment, which is to ensure enough funds for their own retirement in the future. But this is another 20 to 30 years for them.
I would like to seek MOM's consideration to review the existing policy for repayment of CPF funds used, and instead allow options where Singaporeans can decide to: (a) seek repayment of the CPF funds used as a lump sum; or (b) seek repayment of CPF funds used in instalments for an agreed period of time; or (c) waive the repayment of CPF funds used entirely. Impose caveats, if need be, but I hope that the Government can consider these.
Ms Lee Li Lian (Punggol East): CPF proceeds are distributed according to the intestacy law if the member did not make any nomination prior to his or her death, with the exception of our Muslim friends whose proceeds will be distributed under the Administration of Muslim Law Act.
The intestacy law states that when a CPF member is married, it will revoke a previous nomination. However, when a member goes through a divorce, it
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will not revoke the previous nomination unless the member makes a fresh nomination after the divorce or remarries. Unfortunately, many CPF members are not aware of this fact.
I have come across cases in Punggol East where there is confusion amongst the immediate relatives of the deceased, uncertain about where their relation's CPF money has been transferred to. Very often, family members approach the CPF Board to understand who the beneficiaries are but are turned away as this is considered confidential information.
This allocation process may not be in line with the member's wishes and their money may not reach the people whom the member feels need it most. For example, if spouse and children are financially self-reliant, the member might have wanted to provide for their elderly parents, disabled or unemployed siblings, grandchildren or even grandparents.
I would like to suggest to the Ministry to send notices to CPF members whenever their marital status changes so as to allow members to make changes to their nominations if they choose to. This will require some additional administration but it can help to eliminate confusion and pain for CPF members and their immediate families.
Section 73 of the Conveyancing and Law of Property Act (CLPA) has generated much controversy in the past. One of the contributing factors was lack of awareness. Similar to CPF nomination, members are not aware that their beneficiaries change according to marital status. It is timely to conduct a review of the consequences of the intestacy law and greater awareness must be generated to the public on how this will affect their CPF money.
Mr Seng Han Thong (Ang Mo Kio): Although the increase in Minimum Sum for 2012 was about one-third lower than what it would have been, only about 50% of the active CPF members were able to meet the Minimum Sum at age 55 last year. For those who are unable to meet the Minimum Sum, many also have difficulty serving their housing loan. And many of them come to our Meet-the-People Sessions for help.
On the other hand, over the last 10 years, about 10%-15% of each cohort turning 55 has chosen to leave the balances in their CPF accounts above the
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Minimum Sum. These are sums of money that they could otherwise withdraw.
Thus, when the Minimum Sum reaches the target of $120,000 in real terms (2003 dollars) next year in 2015, may I know if the Government will conduct a review on the long-term Minimum Sum policy?
May I also suggest that the future Minimum Sum policy to have a tiered Minimum Sum targeting at different income groups, with higher income Singaporeans having bigger Minimum Sum and lower income workers keeping a smaller Minimum Sum?
In this House, we always hear this phrase: \"not one size fits all\". I say: \"not one sum pleases all\".
Ms Jessica Tan Soon Neo: With the Retirement and Re-employment Act (RRA), the statutory minimum retirement age is now 62. Employers are also required to offer re-employment to eligible employees who turn 62, up to the age of 65.
This year's Budget has also announced an increase in CPF contribution to Medisave and an increase in CPF contribution for older workers. With Singaporeans working longer and retiring later, marrying later, and more are single, should there be a refinement to the age requirement for CPF funds transfer to the Retirement Account at the age of 55 to meet the Minimum Sum? If individuals at age 55 are still servicing their housing loan, once the funds are transferred from the Ordinary Account to the Retirement Account to meet the Minimum Sum requirements, the individual may not have much funds left in his OA to continue to service his housing loan and his Home Protection Scheme (HPS) or Dependants' Protection Scheme (DPS) insurance premiums. This would mean that they would have to service this through cash and, in some cases, as Mr Seng Han Thong had referred earlier, the low-wage workers do have challenges meeting this.
I have had several cases of residents who come to see me at MPS where they continue to work and they are still making contributions to the CPF. And once their funds are transferred at the age of 55, they have problems meeting their monthly mortgage payments.
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I do understand the logic for the fund transfer to meet the Minimum Sum to ensure retirement adequacy. But at the same time, I look at the cash flow implications for these individuals who because of that age change, but they are still contributing to CPF, are now facing challenges in their day-to-day servicing of their loans, as well as meeting their daily requirements.
The Chairman: Mr David Ong, you have two cuts. Please take them together.
Mr David Ong (Jurong): Singapore is a rapidly ageing population and that translates to a fast-greying workforce. The changing demographic will require adjustments to be made by individuals and society at large. In particular, Government policies and attitudes of both employers and employees on retirement age, CPF and employment of seniors need to be re-calibrated to reflect the signs of our time.
For many years, in our policy to enhance the employability of older workers, we reduced the employer's CPF contribution. To-date, many of our older workers suffer a drop in their CPF savings. Older workers, as they age, would, therefore, suffer the double whammy of stagnated and reduced salary or a drop in employer's CPF contributions. Both combined worsen our older workers' retirement savings.
Budget 2014's move to further restore the CPF contribution rate for older workers will help them accumulate retirement savings faster and is a welcome move. But it may not be enough as older workers have faced reductions in their CPF contributions for many years. CPF savings is significant for our seniors, as they will depend even more on them for their retirement and healthcare needs.
In 2012, less than 50% of those who turned 55 were able to meet their Minimum Sum, whilst 40% did not meet the Medisave Minimum Sum.
Even with this Budget's attempt to restore CPF, our seniors' CPF savings will take a dive as they age. From next year, when they turn 55, their total CPF contribution will drop significantly by 10% and at 60, another 9% dip resulting in a 20% gap between them and their younger counterparts. Hence, the older they get, the tougher it is for them to shore up CPF savings for retirement and housing mortgages. This is especially so, given the changing Singapore demographic, where people are getting married and have kids later, upgrade
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their homes in their mid-career and thus may still be paying their mortgages and their children's education even when they are in their 50s.
As our workforce is greying and more are staying longer in employment well into their 50s and 60s, I call on MOM to move towards helping older workers grow their CPF retirement savings. Rather than tinkering with the older workers' retirement savings by using CPF as a calibrating tool to make them more affordable and employable, I hope the Government can continue to leverage on other levers, such the Special Employment Credit and now the Temporary Employment Credit, to help improve older workers' CPF retirement savings whilst assisting companies cope with rising costs.
On mindset change for employers, the Government can implement schemes where employers who want to recognise the contribution of their older workers can be motivated to voluntarily restore their CPF contributions.
Mdm Chair, it is important that workers remain employed longer as this will enable them to start dipping into their savings at a much later date, thus supporting financial self-sufficiency.
In my Budget speech, I asserted that staying employed for longer is not just important for financial reasons, but also for self-worth, dignity and productive ageing for our seniors.
MOM reported an improvement in the participation rate of seniors in the workforce, but we have also heard of many others who are unwillingly ushered into an earlier-than-planned retirement, are denied promotion, or are offered re-employment contracts with lesser pay and benefits even though they are re-employed to do the same job.
Let us start honouring our seniors in the workplace by paying them fairly. Our Civil Service has taken the lead in establishing fair and equitable compensation upon re-employment for Divisions 3 and 4 officers. More can be done to both the public and private sectors to accord our older workers a compensation based on merit and contribution, rather than on perceptions of productivity based on age.
The setting of a statutory retirement age perpetuates prejudices, stereotypes and age discrimination, thus creating barriers that prevent
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organisations from accessing and retaining the skills and talent they need.
Whilst the Tripartite Re-employment legislation provides the framework and flexibility for both employers and employees in re-employment, I would endeavour to seek an enhanced Re-employment legislation where we raise the re-employment age and do away with the statutory retirement age. Recourse for wrongful dismissal or inequitable compensation will be provided under this legislation regardless of age.
Hence, the removal of the statutory retirement age is, at its core, a symbolic but important step in changing the mindset and attitude of employers, to drive home the message that age is not a barrier to productive employment. Workers should be given the flexibility to choose how long they want to work or when they wish to retire. The important factor is the restoration of choice for our senior workers on retirement rather than being subject to a legislative policy.
However, the removal of retirement age does not necessarily mean that jobs will be available for older workers. The Government can and must do more to help our senior workers enhance their employability currency. At the same time, companies can extend the productive years of our older workers through deployment of productive technologies, re-designing jobs, adapt workplace practices and upgrade skills of older workers. If our companies are unable to adapt to an ageing employee profile, the economy will suffer from structural rigidities, ultimately, leading to job losses for all.
The Chairman: Mr Heng Chee How, you have two cuts. Please take them together.
The Senior Minister of State, Prime Minister's Office (Mr Heng Chee How): Thank you, Madam. Last year, I pushed for the Re-employment Age ceiling to be further revised from 65 years old to 67 years old in view of the ageing population of our workforce, the tight labour market, as well as for the self-esteem and dignity of our older workers. The Re-employment law was enacted in January 2011 and it became effective from January 2012. It has been two years of implementation since. And the outcomes – the employment rate of older workers aged 55 to 64 continues to improve, as shared by the Acting Minister earlier. The employment rate of those above 65 years old has also increased. And we can all see that the tight ongoing labour market conditions
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are favourable.
Another point to note is that workers who reached 62 years old in January 2012 will turn 65 years old in January 2015.
I am glad that the tripartite partners have agreed to put this on the agenda to discuss and to learn from the on-going implementation experience and to see what measures need to be put in place to get ready for the next step. I would like to ask MOM whether there is a timeframe to aim at in making this move, as I believe that many older workers are looking forward to it. Such an indication would also help employers in their planning and in acquiring the know-how in good time.
Madam, my second cut is on enabling age-friendly workplaces. There are four manpower taps: school-leavers, labour productivity gains, retaining and prolonging the work lifespan of older workers and encouraging women to go back to work, and as well as imported manpower.
With prolonged low fertility, the pool of school-leavers will remain limited. Labour productivity improvement has been lacklustre in recent years. With tighter management of imported manpower, tapping the source of older workers cannot be over-emphasised.
At the same time, the labour market is very tight and employers are experiencing difficulty in filling vacancies. Furthermore, the citizen population is ageing, and many older workers value the opportunity to continue to contribute at work and to earn a fair wage.
Against this background, it is clear that both economically and socially, pervasive adoption of age-friendly human resource, operational process and job design practices will be critical to help both employers and older workers find a win-win path forward.
One clear hurdle is the cost of making these adjustments and improvements. In this regard, PIC grants help. At the same time, there is also the WorkPro programme which was designed to help spur the creation and improvement of age-friendly and flexible workplaces. I would like to ask MOM
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for an update of WorkPro's progress since its launch at last year's Budget session.
Money aside, I believe a potentially even bigger hurdle is the lack of know-how. Without sufficient know-how, companies are likely to carry on doing things the same way, whether from a productivity standpoint or from an age-friendliness standpoint, that is, knowing how to design things to be more age-friendly. They will then just seek ways to lower cost instead of finding ways to unleash value and that would not be a sustainable approach in our realities.
I, therefore, ask for MOM's assessment of the state of know-how of companies in designing and implementing age-friendly measures, both from the human resource as well as operational standpoints. What is being done to help companies acquire such know-how and to nudge them towards making concrete efforts to acquire such know-how and then implement them? In this process, is there a sufficient pool of age-related job and process re-design consultants for them to tap on and how can we better help grow this pool for them?
Mr Seng Han Thong: A recent survey shows that many Singaporeans have their retirement plan but, in reality, they end up working longer than originally planned for various reasons.
The employment rate for our senior citizens aged 55 to 64 is now 66.8%. With more and more Singaporeans approaching the retirement age, may I know what is our longer term target of employment rate for older workers and what are the policies and programmes to encourage more Singaporeans to work longer and employers to engage older workers?
The Government's approach should be to create an economic structure that will make the older workers productive and are able to generate economic value. This is no different from EDB creating jobs for the graduates from University, Polytechnics and ITE. We can create meaningful jobs for the seniors and train them for these jobs.
The Senior Minister of State for Manpower (Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan): With your permission, Mdm Chair, may I display some slides on the LED screen?
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The Chairman: Yes, please.
Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Mdm Chair, I thank members who spoke passionately about the need to ensure that our workforce remains responsive, relevant and resilient.
Acting Minister Tan Chuan-Jin mentioned the need to support the restructuring of our economy by promoting improvements in the quality of our workforce. I would like to elaborate on how my Ministry intends to do so. The main thrust of our efforts is to empower Singaporeans to embrace learning for life to meet the challenges of our collective future.
We cannot assume that what we know or do today will continue to be relevant. The future will bring new opportunities for all Singaporeans – many new jobs have yet to be created. A number of these jobs will be in new growth sectors that Ms Foo Mee Har, Ms Denise Phua and Ms Jessica Tan alluded to earlier. We need to prepare ourselves to take advantage of these opportunities.
I will first give an update on the broad-based measures that my Ministry has undertaken to improve our Continuing Education and Training system, or CET in short. These measures seek to better support our economic restructuring efforts and help our workforce seize the opportunities that restructuring will bring. I will then speak on our targeted efforts to reach out to two groups of workers who have more specific needs. Finally, I will speak about the issue of retirement adequacy.
Last year, as part of Our Singapore Conversation, MOM organised several sessions to hear what Singaporeans had to say about CET. As one participant said, \"Learning is living; when we stop learning, we stop living. Lifelong learning is about how you create value for yourself.\" Our Government recognises that CET remains the cornerstone of a resilient workforce, and will continue to empower Singaporeans to improve themselves.
The story of Mr Jai Prakash illustrates this well. Mr Prakash, aged 47, sought assistance from WDA's Career Centre at North West CDC after being retrenched as a Distribution and Marketing Manager. He was keen to hone his skills as a trainer to widen his job options.
After understanding his needs, Mr Prakash's Career Consultant referred him for the Advanced Certificate in Training and Assessment (ACTA) course where he completed all six modules during a five-month period last year. On
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top of substantial course fee subsidies, he also received a training allowance.
His perseverance paid off when he secured a job through his own initiative as an Assistant Operations Manager with a logistics company in December last year, after being unemployed for eight months. He was able to apply his newly-minted skills gained from the ACTA course in his new role to train new staff in handling chemical products and managing inventories. Mr Prakash is currently pursuing the Singapore Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) Advanced Certificate in Workplace Safety and Health conducted by NTUC Learning Hub, to further develop his skillsets.
At the Budget debate, several Members, including Mr Zainudin Nordin, had asked about the progress we have made in CET. Back in 2008, we launched the Masterplan to develop CET into a key economic and social institution that undergirds our economy, our competitiveness and helps Singaporeans stay employable.
Since then, we have more than doubled the number of CET centres from 19 to 51, and increased the coverage of WSQ frameworks to cover more than 30 industries, from Creative Industries to Precision Engineering. A total of one million workers have now been trained in WSQ. And with our two new CET campuses, more workers will be able to access CET programmes.
In addition, our Polytechnics and ITEs have quadrupled their academic CET programmes from about 40 in 2008 to over 160 programmes in 2013. Since 2011, these programmes have also been modularised to better meet the needs of working adults for flexible upgrading.
We also look at outcomes from the perspective of our workers and employers. WDA's latest survey findings are encouraging. Ninety-seven percent of our trainees indicated that they were better able to apply their skills, an increase from 93% in 2009 when the survey first started. Seventy-seven percent of employers felt that WSQ training led to productivity improvements, compared to 62% in 2009.
Mr Christopher de Souza had earlier asked about productivity and training for lower-wage workers, and I am pleased to share that our lower-wage workers, in particular, have benefitted from WSQ training. Based on another WDA study, from 2008 to 2010, lower-wage workers with WSQ Statements of Attainment (SOA) received wage increments of between 2.6% and 4.6%, compared to those
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without SOAs.
The progress we have made since 2008 has allowed us to fulfil the aspirations of more Singaporeans, such as Mr Low Weng Hoe. Mr Low graduated with a Degree in Network Computing and joined the IT industry as an IT executive, but subsequently decided to pursue a career in healthcare.
During a course for therapy assistants, Mr Low worked closely with therapists in the hospitals who dealt with neurological and geriatric patients. It was then that he discovered a passion for geriatric therapy. He enjoyed interacting with the elderly while assisting them in their exercises and felt a sense of fulfilment when he witnessed their recovery. In 2010, he won the WDA-Professional Conversion Programme award to do a three-year Diploma course in Physiotherapy. Although Mr Low is currently earning a salary which is 10% lower than his previous job in the IT industry, he has no regrets entering the healthcare sector.
We are also providing more support for our SMEs' training efforts. This contributes to the Government's efforts to transform the SME sector, as Deputy Prime Minister Tharman spoke about earlier in the Budget debate.
At last year's COS, I introduced the Enterprise Training Support, or ETS, scheme to provide a holistic HR and training package for companies to develop their employees and raise productivity. WDA rolled it out after we listened carefully to our SMEs, many of whom have asked for more help to develop their HR expertise.
By the end of last year, the ETS had benefitted 68 companies and approximately 12,000 local workers. Seventy percent of these companies were SMEs, and I am glad to share that feedback from the SMEs has been very positive.
Nonetheless, many SMEs also indicated that the tight labour market made it difficult to send workers for training. WDA will thus enhance the ETS to support e-learning and mobile learning from 1 April this year. This will provide more flexible training options for workers and, as Ms Denise Phua mentioned, reflect learning in the digital age.
Several SMEs have also told us that they found it difficult to access WDA's schemes and training programmes. Hence, since last year, through closer collaboration with the one-stop SME Centres set up by SPRING Singapore,
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SMEs that prefer one-to-one advice on training advisory or manpower development can approach WDA Programme Advisors at any of these five SME Centres.
Response from SMEs has been positive. Of the SMEs that approached the Programme Advisors, 40% eventually expressed an interest to tap on the schemes. In fact, the majority of SMEs engaged in this manner are small enterprises with less than 20 employees.
I urge more SMEs to tap on these services. A mindset of continuous improvement does not apply only to workers; employers are also important conduits for these improvements to take place.
At the start of my speech, I spoke briefly about the challenges of the future. CET is a key strategy in our response to these challenges. And we must actively look and plan ahead so that our CET system keeps our workforce agile in an evolving world fuelled by uncertainty.
Hence, as we announced last year, we are embarking on a major review of our CET Masterplan. Given the future challenges faced by our workforce, the review of the CET Masterplan will help to achieve the following.
First, to build a culture where individuals are better empowered to pursue their career goals and aspirations through CET. We will give greater emphasis to self-initiated upgrading to build a \"career-resilient\" workforce that embraces lifelong learning.
Second, companies need to take greater ownership of their HR planning. They can do this by more effectively integrating CET into their business strategy and performance management, developing attractive careers and wage pathways.
Third, at a systems level, we want to improve the responsiveness of our CET system to meet the evolving skills needs of growth sectors. More details on the revised CET Masterplan will be announced in due course.
Allow me now to turn our attention to two specific groups of workers, namely, the PMEs and our older workers. I thank Mr Patrick Tay, Ms Foo Mee Har, Ms Mary Liew and Mr Teo Siong Seng for their concerns about our PMEs. Let me set this issue in context. On the whole, our PMEs are doing well. For example, unemployment rates for Singapore citizen PMEs remain low at 2.5%
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in 2013, compared to 3.6% for all citizens. However, some PMEs are facing employment challenges, as alluded to by some of our hon Members.
On average, unemployed PMEs took longer to find jobs. The median duration of unemployment among those previously in PME jobs was 13 weeks in June 2013, compared to eight weeks for those from non-PME jobs.Fskil
While our unemployment rate is currently low, we cannot be complacent and expect it to remain that way. The number of PMEs in the labour market is also increasing. As the educational and skills profile of our workforce improves, the share of PMEs in the Singapore citizen workforce has risen from 25% in 2003, to 28% in 2013. And this number is expected to grow further.
Our efforts to provide broad support for PMEs to improve themselves must, therefore, be redoubled to help more to take on the jobs that have been created. WDA provides funding for training beyond WSQ and continually reviews this to expand the range of PME programmes funded.
Our PMEs also benefit from the Place and Train Programmes funded by WDA.
One such pilot programme that we fund, working with the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME), is the Max Talent programme which is open to all SMEs, regardless of industry or sector. Mr Teo Siong Seng will be glad to note that a total of 740 PMEs have been placed across 706 SMEs under the Max Talent programme, from its inception in April 2012 to 31 December 2013.
Ms Foo Mee Har pointed out that some PMEs need help to gain overseas exposure. She spoke about the Asian Business Fellowship (ABF) programme which she had supported during her stint at Standard Chartered. I am pleased to inform Ms Foo that the ABF has evolved into a \"Market Attachments\" component under IE Singapore's Global Company Partnership (GCP) Programme. In fact, the Deputy Prime Minister announced in this year's Budget Speech that \"Market Attachments\" will be enhanced, expanding the scope of support for staff attachments in overseas markets.
For displaced PMEs, we will continue to help them get back into employment quickly. CaliberLink empowers our PMEs with greater ownership
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of their CET journeys by providing more platforms for self-mastery, exploration and enrichment. Since its launch in December 2011, CaliberLink has assisted more than 5,000 PMEs through its training and career consultation services, networking events and workshops. Of these, about 2,000 sought dedicated employment assistance in the form of career coaching services, and 750 have since found employment. Although CaliberLink is relatively new, these figures are encouraging. Our career consultants are critical to ensuring that workers receive personalised advice that best suits their needs and aspirations.
Take Mr Glenn Au, for example. Mr Au was 51 years old when he approached CaliberLink in May 2013 when his position as a Senior Specialist in Human Resource at an MNC was made redundant in a restructuring exercise. Apprehensive about the job market's negative perception towards older workers, Mr Au wanted to explore job opportunities in other sectors and other job functions. He also felt that his degree in Engineering may hinder his finding a job in HR.
The career coach from CaliberLink, Mr Mohamed Alfee, advised Mr Au that his previous work experience in HR was relevant and that he should continue applying for jobs in HR. Through Mr Alfee's guidance, Mr Au overcame his self-perceived \"mature age\" barrier to employment by continuing to apply for jobs in Human Resource, working closely with the coach to redraft his resume to highlight his transferrable skills, as well as HR and Training experience.
Through CaliberLink's support, I am glad to note that he finally secured a job as a senior Human Resource Manager in SMRT Corporation and enjoys a higher salary compared to his previous job. I am told that he now even shares his job search journey with other job seekers at workshops organised by CaliberLink. We will help displaced PMEs like Mr Au get back on their feet as quickly as possible, so that they can continue to support themselves and their families.
Mr Patrick Tay and Ms Mary Liew spoke about the need for multiple skillsets for our PMEs, with Mr Tay further suggesting a PME Capability Development Fund. Over the years, our approach to helping PMEs develop their skills has evolved with the changing needs of the economy.
In light of the rapidly changing environment, deep expertise in one area may no longer be sufficient, as Mr Tay had noted. PMEs may require different skills and competencies from what they have today, and we will help them
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acquire these necessary skills through CET.
As Mr Patrick Tay suggested, one way to do so is to help PMEs develop deep vertical expertise in two or even more areas, and strong transferable skills which are relevant across industries – moving from developing T-shaped to pi-shaped workers. We are, in principle, supportive of this idea. In our review of the CET Masterplan, we will also be looking at funding support for training these PMEs.
Mr Patrick Tay also raised his concern about graduates from private education institutions. As he pointed out, strong career aspirations have led to a greater demand for academic upgrading, especially for degrees. Adding on, Ms Mary Liew and Mr Tay both spoke about affordability.
While we will continue to create quality jobs for Singaporeans, we also need to ensure that our educational institutions produce graduates who are highly employable, with strong substantive knowledge and relevant skills. For the private education sector, the Government will continue to maintain standards through a holistic approach that integrates regulation and quality assurance, and consumer education.
Students also need to take greater ownership of their own careers, and be discerning in their choice of institutions and courses. Prospective students should do their homework to find out about the employment outcomes of graduates of the education provider. Cost should also factor into their calculation.
Education should never be a paper chase. Increasingly, employers are seeking to recruit employees with relevant competencies and skills, regardless of the qualifications they hold.
Allow me now to move on to Older Workers. Several Members, including Mr Heng Chee How, Mr Seng Han Thong, Mr David Ong, Mr Zainudin Nordin and Mr Gerald Giam have raised their concerns.
Our basic principle is this: we want to help Singaporeans who desire to work to be able to do so. We will continue to improve job opportunities for them and help them develop the necessary skills to access those opportunities.
At last year's COS, I announced the WorkPro programme to provide comprehensive support to encourage older workers and economically inactive
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locals to return to work, and to promote work-life harmony. I thank Mr Heng Chee How for his concern about its progress.
The take-up rate has been encouraging, with more than 700 companies coming on board as at December 2013, nine months after the programme was launched. Another aspect of WorkPro is aimed at promoting flexible work arrangements. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi will elaborate more on the Work-Life Grant in his speech.
We are doing more for our older workers. With increasing life expectancy, many Singaporeans are capable of and desire to continue to work till an older age. I fully agree with Mr Seng Han Thong that we should help them to do so. This allows them to remain meaningfully engaged, to continue to earn an income and to be better prepared for their retirement. Just as importantly, working also sustains a sense of dignity and self-worth. So, it is not just about working longer for retirement adequacy.
The employment rate of older residents aged 55 to 64 reached 65% in 2013, a target we attained two years ahead of time. Few countries have achieved these levels, so we will monitor the trends going forward and see if it is realistic to push for an even higher target. But we will not let up on the current momentum and we will continue to help those who want to work to do so.
Mr Seng Han Thong will be pleased to note that we have reconvened our Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers. Our efforts to help older workers can be grouped into five broad thrusts. First, improving workplace practices and support; second, raising productivity and skills of older workers; third, shaping positive perceptions of older workers; fourth, enhancing employment facilitation; and fifth, improving retirement planning.
Through our outreach to companies, we recognise that different sectors, such as hotels, retail and F&B, have unique needs and constraints. As Mr Heng Chee How has pointed out, some businesses may not know how to go about re-designing their workplace processes to cater to their older workers. Hence, the Tricom will work with industry associations to build companies' capabilities in managing an ageing workforce and roll out relevant age management practices. We will also work with industry partners to develop a training curriculum and standards for age management consultants, who can then help businesses implement age-friendly programmes.
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Mr Heng Chee How also asked for an update on our plans for re-employment. Since we implemented the re-employment legislation in 2012, progress has been smooth. Based on the preliminary findings from our latest survey, 99% of private sector local employees who turned 62 in the year ending June last year were offered re-employment, including 67% of retiring employees who were offered re-employment on existing contracts, with no change to their employment terms.
Mr David Ong raised a related issue of wage adjustments upon re-employment. I would like to re-iterate that any adjustments to the employment terms for re-employed employees should be based on reasonable factors, such as employee's productivity, duties and responsibilities, and the extent of seniority elements in the wage structure.
So far, statistics have been encouraging. Among those re-employed in the same job in the private sector, 96% did not experience a basic wage cut.
Overall, employers are keen to tap on older workers' skills, knowledge and experience. The positive results of re-employment have affirmed that this approach works for us. We considered various options, including extending the statutory minimum retirement age. But we have decided to adopt the re-employment approach as it allows workers to work longer, while ensuring that employers have sufficient flexibility to manage their manpower needs.
We are looking into further raising the re-employment age from 65 years old, possibly to 67. As the Retirement and Re-employment Act (RRA) has been in effect for only two years, the Tricom, in consultation with employers and unions, feels that we should allow time to monitor its impact. At the same time, the Tricom will review and iron out any outstanding implementation issues and update the law and the Tripartite Guidelines on the Re-employment of Older Employees. We will announce the proposals, including the appropriate time frame for raising the re-employment age, when these are ready.
We should also not rely only on legislation to support the employment of older workers. Mr David Ong rightly pointed out that addressing age discrimination is an on-going journey which requires a mindset change by all members of society – employers and employees, supervisors and so on. To that end, the Tricom will be launching an initiative to shape positive perceptions of older workers, to highlight the value they bring and to encourage companies to tap on their experience and skills.
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Finally, I would like to cover the important topic of retirement adequacy for Singaporeans. The CPF contribution rate changes announced at Budget 2014 were made in close consultation with our tripartite partners. In deciding on the quantum and the pace of the increases, we were mindful of the need to strike a balance between providing for better retirement adequacy, and making sure that we do not raise wage costs to an extent where it affects the employability of our workers and our businesses lose their competitive edge.
I thank Mr David Ong for his concern about the adequacy of retirement and healthcare savings of older workers, and for his suggestion that employers could contribute even more to the retirement savings of their employees.
Raising employer CPF contribution rates further is one way to help provide better adequacy, but it will have an impact on business costs and thus employment opportunities. I think both sides of the issue were aired during the Budget Debate. Any further increases in our employer CPF contribution rates will have to be carefully considered by the tripartite partners and, if deemed necessary, done in a calibrated and gradual manner.
More importantly, we have to keep at our efforts to improve the employability of our older workers. The Government supports the employment of older workers heavily, especially older low-wage workers, through schemes like the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) and the Special Employment Credit (SEC).
Mr Seng Han Thong spoke about the increase in the Minimum Sum (MS) and asked if the Government could conduct a review on the long-term MS policy. The MS aims to provide enough for the basic retirement needs of Singaporeans. What is basic? If you have the full MS in cash at 55 today, you should be able to cover the expenditure needs of a two-member retiree household in the second quintile, in other words, between the 20th percentile and 40th percentile of households.
We tried to keep the MS increases as gradual as possible to minimise the impact on each successive cohort. We have no plans to revise the MS further in real terms in the near future, after the MS target has been reached in 2015. However, in nominal terms, the MS will still have to be adjusted to account for inflation and ensure that the real value of the MS, in 2003 dollars, is preserved. I would like to assure Mr Seng that we will continue to review whether the MS is sufficient to support basic needs and will take his suggestions into consideration. Mr Seng had earlier said that \"one size does not fit all, so one
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sum does not fit all\". However, the fact is that this is a Minimum Sum, so it is one sum that is required by all.
Ms Jessica Tan asked if the age at which the Retirement Account (RA) is created to set aside the MS could be reviewed as Singaporeans work longer and retire later. There are several reasons why an RA is created and the MS amount set aside at age 55.
First, it helps Members grow their savings more quickly in the final years prior to the draw down age, as the RA pays a higher rate of return than the Ordinary Account (OA).
Second, the setting aside of the MS is linked to several other schemes which also take place at age 55. For example, members are allowed to withdraw $5,000 or any savings in excess of the MS and Medisave Minimum Sum at age 55. The rest is transferred into the RA where the rules governing withdrawals are necessarily stricter to safeguard them for retirement needs.
We empathise with situations of lower income older Singaporeans who face difficulty paying the mortgages for a basic HDB flat. But rather than delay the creation of the RA at age 55, we take a targeted approach. We evaluate the financial situation of such appellants and, where warranted, we will allow them to use savings in their RA that originated from the OA for their housing needs.
Mr Seng suggested having a lower MS for lower income members so more members can have access to their CPF savings for housing or other withdrawals after the age of 55. More generally, several Members of the House have also previously petitioned for the CPF to be more flexible in allowing access to CPF savings. This echoes Dr Intan's call for flexibility in the repayment of CPF savings withdrawn for housing.
While I understand that many look forward to withdrawing their CPF monies when they turn 55, this is not the primary purpose of the CPF. The CPF is fundamentally for long-term retirement needs. With rising life expectancy and more members staying single, as Ms Jessica Tan had pointed out, we should. in fact, be looking at putting aside more savings. The CPF is our nest egg for retirement, and not a golden goose to be slain upon reaching 55. By and large, we must uphold the principle that the design of the CPF system should be tilted towards meeting longer term needs. Hence, restrictions are placed on
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the use of CPF savings for other purposes. This includes the use of CPF savings for housing. However, we do allow for flexibility today where the case merits.
In particular, Dr Intan asked if we can be more flexible in requiring the repayment of CPF savings, in the case where a member buys his own HDB flat and has to withdraw as a co-owner of his parents' flat. Under the CPF Act, any withdrawals of CPF savings for housing must be secured against a charge on the property and refunded to the member's CPF account when he gives up ownership of the property. This safeguards his CPF savings for future housing and retirement needs. In fact, we do not require the refund of CPF if the CPF member continues to retain ownership of the first property, for instance, if he buys a private property as a second property.
In the case of HDB flats, one family is allowed to own only one HDB flat at any one time, so that more families can access public housing. HDB requires a person to relinquish ownership of the first flat within six months upon taking possession of his new flat. This then triggers the refund of CPF taken to purchase the first flat. Today, CPF members who have difficulties repaying in a lump sum may opt to make progressive payments to bring down the total refund amount until the new flat is ready, which may be in two to three years' time. Alternatively, households can obtain a loan from HDB or the banks secured against the property, or make a transfer of CPF funds from the eligible accounts of other co-owners of the flat to effect the refund.
We empathise with the difficulties some families might face and are currently jointly reviewing with MND if further flexibility can be provided, without unduly compromising members' retirement needs.
On the issue of CPF nomination highlighted by Ms Lee Li Lian, when a CPF member passes away without making a nomination, his CPF monies will be distributed to his immediate family by the Public Trustee according to the intestacy laws. This safeguards the welfare of his immediate family members. The CPF Board's nomination scheme provides CPF members with an option to nominate other recipients of their CPF monies upon their demise and how much each nominee should receive. Our view is that it is best left to members to decide if they wish to make a nomination depending on their circumstances.
Once a nomination is made, the Board is legally bound to abide by the member's nomination, except upon marriage, when the nomination is actually nullified. In particular, in response to Ms Lee Li Lian's query, the treatment of CPF nominations is generally in line with the treatment of wills. Nominations
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are not nullified in the case of divorce as we consider that the member may still intend to provide for his ex-spouse and/or children.
Ms Lee Li Lian said that this causes confusion and she asked that more awareness be generated on this issue. We will take her point about generating awareness. But I would like to also note that it is stated in the first two lines in the general information section of the CPF nomination form, that a marriage will automatically revoke the existing nomination, and a divorce does not revoke an existing nomination. So, it is actually right here in the first two lines of the notes attached to the CPF nomination form. But I take her point that we will continue to do more to raise awareness. We provide comprehensive information on CPF Board's website and members can also call CPF Board's hotline or visit the service centres to find out more. In fact, we also advise CPF members when they wish to make a nomination to do it at our customer service centre where the customer service executives will clarify any questions they may have and also inform them about the implications of CPF nomination.
Allow me now to conclude. Through our CET and CPF system, and what we do to support the employment of PMEs and older workers, we aim to encourage and facilitate Singaporeans to take charge of their learning, employability and retirement needs. And we will actively intervene to provide additional assistance to segments of the population that require more help.
At the start of my speech, I quoted one of our OSC participants, who said, \"Lifelong learning is about how you create value for yourself.\" Indeed, as a government, we want to empower all Singaporeans to create value for themselves throughout their lives.
This culture of constant and continuous improvement will help us be more responsive, relevant and resilient. It will enable us to weather future storms and seize the opportunities that come our way, to earn a better wage, in a better job, for a better life.
Ms Foo Mee Har: Madam, I have spoken in Parliament many times on the subject of flexi work. Unfortunately, we have made very little progress on this front.
In an attempt to boost flexi work, MOM launched a new scheme last year, WorkPro. So far, this has resulted in approvals for fewer than 10 companies per
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month for the Work-Life Grant offered under the scheme, despite doubling the amount of funding available, as compared to the previous WoW! Fund scheme.
Flexi-work continues to be an unfulfilled hope for many Singaporeans. At the same time, businesses continue to miss the significant opportunities that flexible work offers to enhance their business performance and engage their employees.
Singapore can take learnings from UK on their flexi-work journey. The UK already has provisions in place that give employees with care-giving responsibilities the right to ask for flexi-work and have those requests considered seriously by their employers. About 96% of UK companies already offer some degree of \"flexi-work\".
But what is really interesting is last year, a group of 22 of Britain's most successful companies decided to take flexi-work to yet another level because they have experienced significant and tangible financial results that flexible working brought to their businesses.
They experienced benefits equivalent to savings of 3% to 13% of workforce costs and, in some instances, sales uplifts of 11% when implemented successfully by business leaders. This group of companies collectively hire half a million people across the UK, and their track record shows that flexi-work is not so much an employee welfare benefit as it is a strategic advantage for their businesses.
So, this group, who calls themselves the \"Agile Future Forum\" (AFF) pledged to share their experience and knowledge with other companies with the view to revolutionise traditional work practices and boost the UK economy. In fact, this group was formed in response to the UK Deputy Prime Minister's call to shake UK working practices up, to boost employment and workforce efficiency.
Madam, I hope MOM will critically review our experience on flexi-work and put in place a different and bolder strategy to accelerate the adoption of flexi-work in Singapore.
We must help companies dispel the myth that flexi-work is a luxury that employers can ill-afford in today's tight labour market. Instead, flexi-work should be our response to the modern economy, where workforce agility can generate significant economic benefits and be a means to attract and retain
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talent, and get the workforce engaged to boost the competitiveness of companies.
Ms Lee Li Lian: We have talked extensively about the need to institutionalise work-life balance at the workplace. While we have existing policies to encourage employers to implement flexible work, it seems that more needs to be done.
A recent global survey by Randstad this year revealed that only 20% of companies in Singapore intend to hire more people on flexible working arrangements. Fifty-five percent of employers admit that their organisations' efforts to create flexible work options are average or poor. The main reason for this is, business leaders are not convinced that this will be beneficial to their organisations, particularly in terms of employee productivity. There are countless studies, including one by MOM, that debunk this myth and prove, in fact, that flexible work practices can boost productivity. By creating a better work culture that engages and addresses employees' needs, companies can retain talent and improve productivity. Flexible work does not just improve employee morale, but ensures that employees are set up to work remotely which reduces service gaps and business continuity.
The Deputy Prime Minister had outlined the ICT for Productivity and Growth (IPG) programme to accelerate the adoption of ICT solutions. This encourages the adoption of ICT to address productivity concerns. The Government has committed to channelling companies towards more flexible working arrangements to support families in Singapore. As such, it is important that the Government leads the way in shifting mindsets that flexible work arrangements hamper productivity. Solutions that can drive productivity and enable flexible working should be promoted. Further reward should be offered to those who can implement flexible work policies successfully upon adoption of that technology. There is no better time than now for companies to make these ICT investments to enable flexi-work, and for the Government to steer them in this direction through a number of existing measures such as this.
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Ms Mary Liew: Madam, it is really encouraging to hear from the Senior Minister of State that the WorkPro is making some progress. However, more can be done. As I have already covered quite a few points during my main Budget speech, I will not repeat them here.
I would like to touch on the Work-Life Grant Component which is a step in the right direction to help workers to have a more balanced work life. Here are some of the areas of concern to be improved, so that both employers and employees can benefit from this programme.
Firstly, under the Developmental Grant for Workplace Improvement and Job-Redesign, there is a one-time grant of up to $40,000 to defray the cost of implementing work-life strategies. However, the guidelines are currently rigid, according to the feedback given by companies, and that companies need to introduce two new FWAs. Enhancements to existing FWAs are only considered where presented on a case-to-case basis. Would the Minister consider recognising all forms of enhancement by reviewing the guidelines and to offer additional grants?
This grant also co-funds up to 30% of the expenditure on IT infrastructure but capped at $10,000. For companies with genuine IT needs who allow their employees to work from home, $10,000 may not be enough to set up or upgrade servers to allow remote access for work. Will the Minister consider funding a certain percentage of the IT system, or can the cap be raised?
Madam, mothers who return to the workforce after maternity leave are sometimes faced with the problem of proper facilities at their workplace. I would like to call upon the Minister to extend funding of lactation facilities to building owners, so that employees of tenants can benefit as building in economies of scale is a cost-efficient solution that will benefit many workers.
Secondly, it is difficult for companies to meet the minimum 30% utilisation rate, required to enjoy FWA's incentives, especially for companies with a large workforce. Would the Minister consider recognising companies who have made efforts in providing incremental FWA utilisation rather than having them meet a certain specified percentage? For example, if a company with a workforce of 1,000 employees decides to offer FWAs to 100 of their staff, they would not be
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able to benefit as they did not meet the minimum 30% utilisation rate. However, 100 employees on board FWA is still a significant effort and we should be supporting companies for such initiatives.
In terms of administration, onerous tracking needs to be done as companies have to keep records of each employee's utilisation of FWAs for at least six months, before they are eligible to submit their claims. For big companies, this is a tedious process if there are a lot of employees. For SMEs, it can only pose a problem as they may not have automated IT systems to capture all the data and so it has to be done manually. Can the Minister look into easing this administration process to make it more friendly?
Moving ahead, the current WorkPro scheme should serve only as a guideline and companies should be allowed the flexibility to introduce their own policies and processes to meet their needs and still benefit from the grant. There is no \"one size fits all\" solution as every company's situation is different. Therefore, I would like to urge all parties to consider having a grant which is more outcome-based.
Companies recognised for their efforts in FWAs could even be certified, similar to the People Developer certification, given to organisations which excel in people development. This certification will further help workers identify companies who offer FWAs and can even be a form of recruitment and retention tool when jobseekers apply for jobs. This is especially important when we want more women to return to the workforce.
Mdm Chair, we may not have reached the FWA standards of many developed countries, but I am confident that with further improvements and with the Government and its Ministries' support, more companies will adopt FWAs in their workplace.
Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef (Marine Parade): Madam, our population is ageing rapidly. Our family size is getting smaller. We encourage our seniors to be cared for within their homes and the community. We also want families and extended families to look after their seniors. Our seniors have various needs to be tended to. Many need to be sent and fetched to and from their medical check-up and appointments, and others need to be sent to rehabilitation facilities. When these seniors sustain any emergencies and crises, it may throw the family
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members and caregivers' schedules off balance, especially if they are working.
Thus, the call for formal recognition and legislation of senior-care leave, preferably by both the public and private sector employers. Legislating this will send a strong signal to employers on pro-family practices. A suggested period of up to one week annually per worker would be a good number to start off with. The senior-care leave will send a strong signal that we especially place a strong emphasis in our Asian Society which is a strong proponent of filial piety and positive family values.
Ms Ellen Lee (Sembawang): Madam, the PAP Women's Wing presented its Position Paper at its annual Conference in February 2014 on \"Seniors in Singapore\". Of great concern to the Women's Wing activists is the growing number of sandwiched Singaporeans who feel overwhelmed trying to balance their career aspirations and their sense of duty towards aged parents who require assistance, both physical and financial, to go for health screenings, regular follow-ups and attend to other health-related matters. Given the need to wait for hours at polyclinics and hospitals, the stress that they feel is aggravated by employers and co-workers who are not always pro-senior in their attitudes.
To support Singaporeans who want to play an active part in taking care of their aged parents or relatives and to uphold respect for our elders and filial piety, would MOM agree to mandate paid eldercare leave in the same way that childcare leave for young children is mandated?
Ms Lee Li Lian: Singapore's rapidly ageing population requires a holistic approach to the many challenges involved. As our parents and grandparents age, they will require not only medical attention, but also regular care and support from their children who may be working adults. These working adults may need to leave work from time to time to care for the elderly. As it stands, it is not mandatory for employers in the private sector to provide for parent-care leave.
The Civil Service introduced parent leave in late 2011 whereby civil servants are entitled to two days of eldercare leave, without the need to show medical
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certificate. This is a good start but two days are not enough.
According to an MOM survey in 2010, only 10.6% of private companies offered parent care leave to their employees. Furthermore, the survey noted that only large companies with 200 or more employees did so. This is, again, plainly insufficient.
Calls for mandatory parental leave have also been heard in this House. On 12 November 2013, at the Second Reading of the Employment, Parental Leave and Other Measures Bill, Members of the House asked the Government to consider making eldercare leave mandatory across the board.
In response, Acting Minister Tan Chuan-Jin said that while he encouraged support for elderly parents, the Ministry was \"mindful that we should allow businesses to adjust and we do not have plans to legislate any family leave schemes at this present stage.\"
Making such leave mandatory is reasonable since many of our elderly parents visit the hospitals or clinics very often for check-ups. Hence, I would like to urge the Ministry to make it mandatory for all private companies to offer Singaporean employees parent-care leave. In order to prevent abuse, supporting materials, such as hospital receipts and letters from doctors or physiotherapists, may be submitted to employers.
Ms Mary Liew: Madam, the enhanced Marriage and Parenthood Package aims to help working couples balance work and family commitments. It encourages shared parental responsibility, with fathers playing a more active role in raising children. A recent NTUC U Family Happiness Poll showed that only 50% of the respondents agreed that their companies have been implementing more family-friendly workplace measures in the last two years. Can we take further steps to ensure this percentage increases significantly in another two years' time?
The poll also shows the difference in attitudes of working mothers and fathers. For example, working mothers prefer access to flexible work arrangements, family-friendly workplace culture and access to family leave scheme, while working dads prefer workplaces with career progression, family-friendly workplace culture and job security. Moving forward, the differences
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must be taken into account.
Businesses should be encouraged to provide holistic support for working caregivers with elderly and special needs dependants. This means providing a four-tiered framework that consists of: firstly, provision for flexible work arrangements; secondly, access to family care leave; thirdly, provision for family support schemes and/or facilities; and fourthly, non-discrimination of career progression for working caregivers.
Can the tripartite partners come to an agreement on how we can take a concerted effort to ensure and help working caregivers to stay in and/or return to employment?
Lastly, can the Government and trade associations play a role in issuing family-friendly policies for their members so that family-friendly workplaces become pervasive?
Mrs Lina Chiam: Mdm Chair, it was reported that there were 30 cases of attacks, manslaughter and murder involving foreign domestic workers. Two new cases were reported this year, one in January 2014 and the other one just three days ago. During the trials, they were said to have been mentally unstable, have low IQ and incapable of rational thought. Many of these cases are preventable, if employers could be given pre-warning and even to the extent of not employing domestic workers with tendencies of abnormal behaviour.
Recently, The Straits Times reported that the Indonesian Embassy is in an ongoing discussion with their government to introduce basic psychological tests for new domestic workers coming to Singapore after the recent high-profile murder cases involving Indonesian domestic workers. It is important to have psychology tests for domestic workers as they spend long hours as caregivers of vulnerable members of the family, the young and the elderly, including babies which require them to have extreme patience and rationality.
Madam, this issue was addressed in Parliament previously. I would again like to ask whether the Government is willing to make compulsory some form of mandatory psychology tests for new domestic workers as part of the work permit application. This is to ensure the new maid does not have unnecessary violence and homicidal tendencies that may turn out disastrous for the family. The test will also give peace of mind to the family and the maid as a whole.
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Would the Government also consider subsidising part of this cost of the test from the domestic worker levy collected from employers?
Mr Yeo Guat Kwang: Mdm Chair, in light of the recent increase in the number of worksite related incidents, I would like to repeat my earlier message to our tripartite partners that behind every worker is a family waiting for them to return home sound and safe at the end of every work day.
To achieve the WSH 2018 vision of an accident-free workplace for Singapore, MOM must send a stronger and clearer signal to employers that workplace safety must never be compromised. What are MOM's plans to influence a breakthrough in the WSH outcome and performance in our workplaces?
I would like MOM to also review the WSH Act and put in place a stronger deterrent framework that empowers MOM to enforce stronger proactive prevention and remedial actions on recalcitrant employers who had actually wilfully and blatantly breached work safety guidelines. At the same time, MOM must continue to strengthen the working relationship with employers by rolling out structured initiatives and programmes to help them be WSH-ready. For SMEs particularly, there is a need to provide them with the \"how\" and the \"what\" of the WSH system that they could actually be able to adapt very easily to be WSH-ready and identify the risks at all workplaces.
Madam, one way to define whether workplaces are WSH-ready is to determine whether they have carried out appropriate WSH Risk Assessment and at the same time find recommendations on how to close all these \"gaps\".
For sectors which were \"low WSH awareness, relatively higher risks\" like hospitality, transport and logistics, education, and cleaning industry, we hope that the Ministry could provide more support and resources, and work with tripartite partners to customise WSH programmes that are targeted at all these areas to also address the issue of the risks identified.
MOM can also support the labour movement in its Union Safety Agenda for Everyone at Work (U-SAFE) initiatives by providing WSH expertise in its industrial cluster effort. For example, the aerospace and aviation cluster work group involving the management and union members has already come up
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with a plan to see how they can address the issues of lightning. Together, the group has managed to identify some areas of concern and at the same time come up with practical solutions and recommendations and make the workplace significantly safer.
I urge MOM to provide more resources and support to such sectoral initiatives at the workplaces. Besides providing expertise, MOM can also help develop guidelines for WSH risks identified.
Since workers and, by extension, their family, stand to lose the most when safety lapses occur, MOM must also safeguard workers' well-being by providing them a secure channel to report such lapses. I request MOM to strengthen such a channel to have sufficient protection for workers so that they can report lapses without any fear.
Lastly, on top of the current mandatory safety orientation courses for workers, I hope that MOM could do more to help the large number of migrant workers, who come with different work practices and culture, to equip them with work safety knowledge so that they can also proactively and productively help us in identifying lapses of safety at their workplace and work safely with their local co-workers.
The Chairman: Mr Heng Chee How, you have two cuts. Please take them together.
Mr Heng Chee How: Madam, it is widely accepted that the health of a person affects his morale and ability to perform at work, regardless of age. At the same time, it is also true that Singaporean workers spend a large chunk of our waking hours at work. This means that the health of a worker affects and is affected by the workplace.
The importance of workplace safety and health, therefore, cannot be over-emphasised as they will materially affect the employment and employability of workers for better or for worse.
This is even more so with an ageing local workforce and the need to help workers extend their effective working years and for companies to be able to
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continue to tap on these workers' experience and value.
One key aspect is to minimise the loss of employability due to substandard workplace health and safety conditions, and to promote positive impact on health through workplace initiatives. In addition to general workplace health promotion, there is also scope for focused health initiatives in specific occupations with a concentration of older workers, for example, in cleaning, taxi-driving, parts of retail, in security and parts of manufacturing. Prolonged standing, sitting, lifting and repeated use of certain joints are typical aspects of work that erode the health and employability of workers, if not consciously counteracted by both workers and their companies.
I would like to ask MOM to update on how it is working with MOH and HPB to integrate and better target workplace health programmes to the older worker population in general and at occupations with a concentration of older workers in particular.
My second cut is on progressive employment practices. The Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practice (TAFEP) was set up to promote fair employment practices and to help echo discrimination at the workplace. This work is important both to register the tripartite resolve to maintain fairness in the labour scene, as well as to investigate into reported cases of discriminatory practices vis-a-vis national laws and guidelines.
I believe that we can do even better. For example, besides urging companies to stay on the right track of fairness, can TAFEP play a more proactive role in enabling companies to better manage and unleash the full potential of a more diverse workforce that comprises employees of an increasingly wide spread of ages, experiences, qualifications, nationalities and expectations?
I say this because I believe that this is key to our national drive to transform our economy and productivity performance. Progressive employment practices are no longer \"nice to have\" items on this journey of ethical management, innovation and competitiveness. Technology, technical skills and equipment aside, the critical ingredient in separating winners from the others is how they galvanise the human spirit towards unity and excellence. Doing so is easy to say but it is very hard to achieve.
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I, therefore, would like to ask for MOM's plans to enhance the work of TAFEP to include the promotion of progressive employment practices and, thereby, make a more direct contribution towards national economic and social transformation.
Mr Zaqy Mohamad: Mdm Chair, my dialogues with residents and workers often revealed concerns about job opportunities, whether there is any discrimination either by age, race or nationality. The top complaint received by TAFEP – about half in a report last year – is about employers favouring foreigners over Singaporeans. At the same time, a report by an independent Malay/Muslim panel, the Suara Musyawarah, several months ago also highlighted concerns about discriminatory practices at workplaces, with the perception that some employers prefer non-Malay employees.
We all agree that we need a vibrant business environment for Singapore's economy to prosper. Thus, we should continue to welcome employers from diverse environments and business practices, globally and locally. At the same time, we need to give employees here in Singapore the assurance that their rights as workers are protected, and while discrimination at the workplace is often hard to prove, it is all the more important to do our utmost to prevent discriminatory employment practices.
It is timely for the Ministry to put workers' rights higher on the fair employment agenda and I suggest this: by making TAFEP a full Statutory Board or a regulatory agency to govern fair employment and work practices in Singapore and enforce compliance against discrimination or unfair practices. I think TAFEP needs to be given more \"bite\" to be effective. Today, many see TAFEP as a lightweight organisation working within the framework of SNEF funded by the Ministry and moral persuasion is how TAFEP engages employers today, which some may find ineffective.
Thus, in addition, I would also urge MOM to consider introducing an Act focusing on Fair Employment covering anti-discrimination and harassment laws at the workplace. We have some other laws that are often leveraged. But as a mature economy, it may be time to give Fair Employment a stronger backing, particularly against employment discrimination. This will give TAFEP and workers greater security and assurance that we have a stronger legal backing to address employment and workplace discrimination.
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I personally do not think this will dampen our vibrant employer and business landscape here as many major economies around the world already have such laws in place. I also believe most employers will also have fair employment at the core of their HR values and practices. In fact, this may also give them greater certainty and transparency of our employment framework here.
Mr Zainudin Nordin: Madam, allow me to touch on the topic of growing expectations and standards. Our increasingly educated labour force would desire a progressive and higher standard of employment and human resource practice. The employees of these days are no longer like those of the past who keep quiet and listen obediently. The youth and workers these days are more educated, ambitious, daring, outspoken, and a clash of ideas between generations and hierarchy can result in conflicts and requires mediation. Often, strong emotions and negative attitudes can lead to unfair practices and, worse, dismissal and loss of jobs.
The tripartite efforts through TAFEP have been very effective in preventing some of the most common and standard forms of workplace unfairness. As situations become more complex, I believe we need to strengthen these efforts. Can TAFEP be further improved to manage more complex problems and grievances? May I also suggest that TAFEP enhance the outreach to other workers and less educated workers who have little knowledge about their rights? They are often the ones whom I would classify as vulnerable workers who are victims of unscrupulous employers and bad HR practices at the workplace because they do not know how and where to voice their grievances.
Madam, public communication and information about the support and relevant services by TAFEP to assist are apparently not getting to them and may be even inadequate. Some may miss the television ads or, perhaps, most may not even understand those advertisements. TAFEP can consider working with the grassroots organisations and relevant NGOs to spread the message to the elderly and less-educated workers and increase awareness of workers' rights.
The Chairman: Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi.
The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Acting Minister for Manpower (Mr Hawazi Daipi):\tMdm Chair, may I have your permission to
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display some slides on the screen during my speech?
The Chairman: Yes, please.
Mr Hawazi Daipi: Mdm Chair, I would, first, like to thank Members for their suggestions and comments. Making our workplaces better is an important part of MOM's goal of better jobs for Singaporeans. What is a good workplace? Members covered many of the key aspects of the concept of a good workplace in their speeches. At the basic level, it is one where workers are treated fairly, accorded their due protection under the law, and is safe. But a good workplace goes beyond that. I will speak on measures that MOM is undertaking to assure Singaporeans of better, more progressive workplaces. Before that, though, allow me to speak a little more on MOM's targeted initiatives to help the more vulnerable segments of our workforce. Dr Amy Khor spoke on older workers. I will now touch on measures we are undertaking to help low-income Singaporeans benefit from economic growth.
Mr Christopher de Souza highlighted the concerns of our low-wage workers. As Acting Minister for Manpower mentioned, supporting our low-wage workers continues to be a priority for MOM. We take a three-tiered approach. The first tier is about creating good jobs and growing the economic pie. The best way to help low-wage workers is to keep the labour market tight and unemployment down. Low-wage workers tend to be more severely affected when the economy takes a turn for the worse. Hence, maintaining a competitive and vibrant economy is in every Singaporean's interest, especially our low-wage workers. Having wage interventions, including a minimum wage, in the face of high unemployment is hollow. But creating good jobs and having a vibrant economy are not enough. Because in a globalised world, the income gap widens as the talented with knowledge and skills are much sought after; and the lower-skilled workers find themselves competing with the millions of lower-educated workers in other developing economies. So, we need a second tier of broad-based interventions targeted at our workers to supplement their income, encourage regular work and invest in their training so that they remain employable and productive. Workfare is key to this.
We developed the Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) scheme to incentivise work by boosting the income and retirement savings of low-wage workers who are making an effort to support themselves and their families. Last year, we enhanced the WIS quantum and expanded the coverage of the scheme. We expect over 400,000 Singaporeans to benefit from WIS for work done in 2013 and they will receive over $600 million in WIS payouts. The Workfare Training Support (WTS) scheme, which we enhanced last year, provides
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generous subsidies for workers to up-skill. To date, WTS has raised the incidence of training by more than a third.
Let me cite an example. Sixty-four-year-old Mr Abdul Latiff Bin Abdul Wahab's experience shows how training can benefit the workers. There you have on the screen Mr Abdul Latiff looking younger than his 64 years old. Previously equipped with a Signalman certification and working as a stevedore, Mr Abdul Latiff tapped on WTS' enhanced funding and training allowance for self-sponsored trainees to attend a Riggers course at WDA's Career Centre via Central Singapore CDC. With a Rigger certificate, Mr Abdul Latiff was then able to undertake a Rigger's job, earning an average monthly salary of $2,000, about a third more than his previous salary. I am happy to hear that proactive learning and career advancement do not stop with age, and strongly urge more workers and employers to tap on WTS.
As Senior Minister of State Amy Khor has mentioned, we are also in the midst of a major review of our CET Masterplan to make our CET system more relevant to our workers and businesses, and to strengthen the link between training and skills utilisation at the workplace.
At the enterprise level, we must ensure businesses are well-positioned to leverage on their workers' training to achieve productivity gains. Mr de Souza mentioned the Inclusive Growth Programme (IGP) which supports companies' productivity improvement projects. Under the IGP, the resulting gains from increased productivity are shared with workers through wage increases. About 34,000 local workers have benefited from IGP projects to date. For more than half of these workers, wages have gone up by at least 10% as a result of productivity improvements.
Such broad-based interventions at the second tier help lift the prospects for low-skilled workers who are struggling to compete in a globalised world. However, we also recognise that there are specific sectors that may need more help because they suffer from particular market failures, for example, where there is a high prevalence of cheap-sourcing. Therefore, our third-tier help consists of targeted interventions to support wages at the very low end through regulatory enforcement of the Progressive Wage Model (PWM) concept developed by NTUC.
We have started to do this in the cleaning sector. Parliament has just passed a Bill by MEWR to introduce a new licensing regime for cleaning companies under the Environment and Public Health Act. Cleaning companies have up to
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September this year to ensure that for all new cleaning contracts, they pay their resident cleaners basic wages in line with the progressive wage levels recommended by the Tripartite Cluster for Cleaners, or risk incurring penalties, including having their licences revoked. By September 2015, the PWM requirement will apply to all existing contracts as well. We will work closely with our tripartite partners to provide greater clarity to the industry on how to ensure compliance with the PWM.
Last year, we announced the formation of a Security Tripartite Cluster (STC) to develop a PWM for the security sector. The STC is currently negotiating the terms of the PWM and, when ready, the Government will apply the PWM requirement to the licensing regime that is in place for the security sector. One of the key issues the STC is deliberating on is how to also address the issue of the industry's reliance on very long overtime hours, in order to improve the working conditions of security officers.
This is an important aspect of the tripartite discussions because wages alone will not ensure that employers will be able to better attract and retain manpower to address manpower shortages in the sector.
Beyond the cleaning and security sectors, the landscape sector is the third sector where cheap-sourcing is prevalent. Basic wages for resident workers are not as low as they are in the cleaning and security sectors but they have stagnated at around $1,000 for several years.
Concurrently, we have seen little improvement in the number of local workers in the sector even though the number of jobs available has been on the rise. We will take steps to improve the wages and employment conditions of landscape workers. Like the cleaning and security sectors, we will set up a Tripartite Cluster for the Landscape Industry to study the need for mandating a Progressive Wage Model for the sector. MOM and NParks will work with the tripartite cluster to assess whether and how best to do so.
In total, we expect the third tier of targeted interventions in wages in the three sectors – cleaning, security and landscape – to impact more than 80,000 local low-wage workers.
Ms Mary Liew asked about extending the Progressive Wage Model concept to PME jobs. NTUC has been working with employers to develop progressive
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wage structures and career progression pathways in sectors, such as the hospitality and consumer business cluster. This covers not just rank-and-file workers but PMEs in these sectors as well. Mr Patrick Tay spoke about this during the Budget Debate. This is a good initiative to improve the skills and productivity of workers, thereby enabling them to command higher wages over time. It should continue to be done through negotiations between employers and unions. But I would like to stress here that beyond cleaning, security and landscaping, there is no plan to legislate the PWM in other sectors.
As I have mentioned, mandating the PWM through Government regulations is a very targeted intervention to support rank-and-file workers in sectors which suffer from cheap-sourcing. It is not appropriate for the Government to do this for all sectors and for all occupations. For most occupations, we should allow the market to determine the sustainable trajectory for wages, taking into account productivity changes over time.
I must also emphasise that the Government has not shifted from its fundamental position that raising incomes has to be based, first and foremost, on productivity improvements, to be sustainable in the long run.
A complement to our efforts to support workers is to encourage good employment practices. Good employment conditions are essential elements of a good job and can help encourage regular work. We have continued to raise standards through the Employment Act. We have also increased the penalties under the CPF Act against employers who do not make CPF contributions for their employees.
In 2012, we introduced the WorkRight initiative to step up compliance with the CPF Act and the Employment Act and increase awareness amongst low-wage workers of their basic statutory employment benefits.
Since WorkRight inspections started in November 2012, about 30,000 Singaporeans have benefited. More than half of these were low-wage workers. One example is Mr Lim Kim Siong, who was a lorry driver employed by a construction company. He was owed salary for working overtime and on public holidays, and for unutilised annual leave. Through \"WorkRight\", Mr Lim was able to recover his outstanding salary, amounting to $4,000, within a month of coming forward to MOM for help.
Madam, let me now turn to another important area in our push towards better workplaces, that is, safety and health. The Acting Minister spoke about
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the number of workplace fatalities in 2013 and the state of safety in the construction sector.
The top cause of construction site accidents, including the recent ones, continues to be \"Falls from Height\". We have been making concerted efforts in the last two years and we have seen notable progress and improvement since then. On the one hand, we have seen an increase in the number of fatalities and accidents, but on the other hand, in particular, for \"Work at Height\", we have seen improvements over the years. The number of \"Work at Height\" fatalities has fallen by more than 35% from 27 fatalities in 2009 to 17 in 2013. We will press on with efforts of the National Work-At-Height taskforce.
Mr Yeo Guat Kwang asked if MOM would put in place a stronger enforcement framework for recalcitrant employers. My Ministry plans to step up our enforcement actions against recalcitrant employers and individuals. We will press for stronger penalties, with higher fines and custodial sentences, for serious breaches of the law. We will tighten enforcement tools, such as the Stop Work Order and Business under Surveillance (BUS) programme. For example, companies will have to resolve safety lapses and conduct compulsory refresher training in the key problem areas before the Stop Work Order imposed on them can be lifted.
Regulation and enforcement are, however, only one side of the equation to bring about a safer workplace at construction sites. Ensuring that our workforce, both local and foreign, keep up with the changes in technology and equipment needed to increase productivity – through up-skilling and re-training – is equally important. Employers have to ensure that all their workers, including their foreign workers, are adequately trained.
Mr Yeo Guat Kwang also asked about MOM's plans to influence a breakthrough in workplace safety and health outcomes. We have taken stock of our WSH2018 Roadmap. In the remaining five years of the blueprint, we will intensify our efforts in four areas.
First, MOM and the WSH Council will ramp up efforts to strengthen the capabilities of WSH professionals and approved training providers, both in terms of quantity and quality. This is important as WSH professionals are our key enablers on the ground. We will broaden the ambit of the WSH profession by developing programmes and competency roadmaps for WSH professionals in a variety of fields, from occupational hygienists to workplace health professionals. This will help build up a pool of competent WSH professionals
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who can assist employers to identify, anticipate and manage not just workplace safety risks but also health risks.
Second, we will enhance the current risk management framework, which is the cornerstone of our WSH framework. The enhanced Risk Management Framework, or RM 2.0 in short, will include considerations of personal risk factors and not just workplace safety measures. In terms of on-site implementation checks, it will focus on practices rather than the documentation of the system and processes. RM 2.0 will also place greater emphasis on upstream risk control measures instead of downstream risk mitigation controls.
Several companies, in construction, for example, have already been doing this through the Design for Safety process. One such company is City Developments Limited, which works closely with its designers, builders and other stakeholders to reduce risks at source through design. For its Tree House residential development, the project team, including the landscape consultants, achieved the signature design of a 24-storey vertical green wall, while at the same time mitigating work-at-height risks. It did this by designing in access platforms and making careful plant choices for safe and sustainable maintenance.
Third, over the next five years, my Ministry and the WSH Council will collaborate with MOH and the Health Promotion Board (HPB) to integrate workplace safety and health and well-being for all employees, including older workers. This is an area that Mr Heng Chee How spoke about. An integrated approach is needed because poor safety can impact the health and well-being of workers. Conversely, ill health can also impact safety.
We call this holistic approach Total Workplace Safety and Health, in short, Total WSH. It means that while at work, the employee's safety, occupational health and well-being are holistically managed through comprehensive risk reduction by their employers. WSH Council will work with HPB and industry partners to develop practical assistance tools for companies on Total WSH. Outreach initiatives will begin in certain industries, including those with older workers. We will give more details later this year.
The fourth area we will focus on is bringing about a paradigm shift in mindsets, which must happen if we are to raise our WSH standards to the next level. The WSH Council will lead this effort to nurture a WSH culture and a \"Vision Zero mindset\". What is \"Vision Zero\"? It is a safety culture and a mindset that \"all work injuries and ill health are preventable\". The concept of Vision Zero
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is not new. Companies which have adopted and applied its principles have been able to achieve and sustain good safety records.
One such company is Jacobs. It is one of the world's largest and most diverse providers of technical, professional and construction services, with revenue of nearly $12 billion in 2013. Its goal is to take safety to BeyondZero® by preventing even one accident from happening, and putting the personal health and safety of their employees first – wherever they are. In 2012, Jacobs successfully achieved over 82 million of safe hours worked. Its BeyondZero® programme has helped the company to win industry-wide admiration and many accolades, in Singapore and its global operations. We hope to inspire more companies to adopt this Vision Zero mindset and translate it into concrete actions to reduce work injuries and ill health.
As my Ministry charts the way forward for the next phase of our WSH journey, we will continue to provide support and assistance to deserving companies, especially SMEs. We have programmes to provide cost support to SMEs and enable them to build up WSH capabilities. These include the WSH Assist and CultureSAFE programmes, and Safety Compliance Assistance Visits. Over the years, the WSH Council has also built up an online library of resources with videos, guidelines and checklists that are customised to the different industries, including hospitality, logistics and transport.
Finally, I would like to assure Mr Yeo Guat Kwang that my Ministry will work with NTUC on its U-SAFE initiatives to get the unions WSH-ready. We will share best practices, provide expertise where necessary or resources where appropriate.
Next, let me address the issue of mandating psychological health tests for new foreign domestic workers (FDWs) raised by Mrs Lina Chiam. A medical examination framework for FDWs, which includes six-monthly medical examinations, is already in place. It exists mainly to: screen for infectious diseases that are of public health concern, and, give a broad indication of the FDW's general fitness for work, including her mental state at the point of examination. It is impractical to mandate a wide-ranging set of medical tests for all employers. Individual employers with specific concerns should send their FDWs for other suitable medical tests.
Let us come back to the issue of building better workplaces. Mr Hri Kumar asked if MOM will enact laws to prevent discriminatory workplace practices. This is a point that was also raised by Mr Zaqy Mohamad. The fundamental
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issue we are trying to address here is mindsets and attitudes. To deal with this today, we rely on TAFEP, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices. TAFEP was set up in 2006 to promote fair employment practices – to educate and persuade employers to recruit employees based on merit, treat them fairly, and reward them based on ability, performance, contributions and experience.
An anti-discrimination legislation is one possible way to address workplace discrimination. We do not reject the idea entirely. But having legislation is not a silver bullet that will solve all discrimination problems. It could address the form but not necessarily the underlying substance of discrimination – that is, mindsets and attitudes.
The experiences of other countries with legislation have shown that it remains difficult for victims to prove discrimination and that they have suffered as a result. Legislation might also introduce labour market rigidity due to protracted disputes between employers and employees. These are complex issues that we need to address before we consider enacting legislation.
For now, we will continue with the promotional approach through TAFEP. To bring about change in mindsets and persuade companies to implement fair and merit-based employment practices, Mr Hri Kumar suggested a Labour Tribunal for resolving employment disputes quickly and at low cost. As Acting Minister Tan mentioned in his earlier speech, MOM is exploring an expeditious and affordable avenue for dispute resolution related to breaches of individual contract of employment. TAFEP's example has shown that promotion and education is an effective tool in influencing change in the workplace.
The number of employers who have committed to implementing fair employment practices has risen steadily over the years, from only around 200 pledge signers in 2006 to over 2,600 last year.
Mr Heng Chee How, Mr Zainudin Nordin and Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked whether MOM has plans to enhance TAFEP's work. We do. The tripartite partners have agreed that it is timely to build upon TAFEP's progress and expand its mandate beyond fair employment to include progressive employment practices. Using TAFEP's model of education and promotion, we will pay more attention to progressive workplace practices such as work-life harmony and age management.
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We believe that good and more progressive workplace practices will not only mean better jobs and quality of life for Singaporeans, but also help companies attract and retain more local employees, which is important amidst foreign manpower tightening.
Some companies, especially SMEs, may face challenges in adopting more progressive employment practices even if they are aware of its benefits and want to. To help such companies, TAFEP will operate as a one-stop centre to promote the adoption of fair and progressive employment practices, and raise employers' awareness of their statutory obligations. As Mr Zainudin Nordin pointed out, it is important that employees know their employment rights. MOM's WorkRight campaign is precisely aimed at educating employees in this area, and we will continue with our efforts on this front.
Singaporeans, including older citizens and disabled persons, are still concerned about discriminatory employment practices. Mr Zaqy Mohamad and Mr Hri Kumar also highlighted perceptions of racial discrimination at workplaces. The expanded TAFEP will therefore retain its original purpose of promoting fair employment practices, even as it takes on this expanded role. TAFEP will progressively scale up its operations to cover progressive employment practices over the next 12 months.
Madam, let me now speak more on a particular progressive employment practice – flexible work arrangements. Singaporeans have increasingly indicated a stronger desire to have a more fulfilling pace of life; more space to pursue other goals and priorities outside of work. Many have called for greater support for flexible work arrangements and more pro-family practices.
We are seeing more Singapore firms offer their employees flexible work arrangements. In 2012, 41% of firms offered their employees at least one form of flexible work arrangements. In 2007, this figure was only 25%.
We will continue to encourage employers to adopt more work-life friendly arrangements. The Work-Life Grant, under WorkPro, was set up in April 2013 precisely to encourage the adoption of flexible work arrangements by firms. Each qualifying firm can receive up to $160,000 over three years when they introduce new flexible work arrangements and encourage utilisation amongst their employees. I think it is something that may interest Ms Lee Li Lian and Ms Mary Liew. Ms Lee suggested that the Government encourage investments in Infocomm Technology (ICT) to facilitate flexible or remote working. In fact, firms can already tap on this funding to support ICT investments that enable
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employees to work more flexibly.
We have been closely monitoring the response since the grant was set up less than a year ago. As of December 2013, 84 companies and over 8,000 employees in these organisations have benefited from the Work-Life Grant. We have also started to review how we can further improve the grant, and are in the process of seeking tripartite partners' feedback. I would like to thank Ms Mary Liew for her various suggestions to enhance the Work-Life Grant, which MOM will carefully consider as part of our on-going review. We expect to complete the review and implement the enhancements by mid-2014.
Besides funding, we have also received feedback that it would be useful to provide guidance to employers on implementing flexible work arrangements as well as to employees on utilising them.
The Tripartite Committee on Work-Life Strategy, made up of MOM and its tripartite partners, has therefore begun work on a \"Tripartite Advisory on Flexible Work Arrangements\", intended to guide employers and employees on how to implement and utilise flexible work arrangements effectively.
I think this is useful, especially for smaller companies. I often hear about challenges that employers face when introducing flexible work arrangements. Allow me to cite an example. Epigram and Epigram Books decided to implement staggered hours, part-time work and telecommuting to improve employee engagement and productivity, as well as support their employees in improving their work-life fit. When rolling out flexible work options, the two companies had to overcome management and staff's mindset that employees on flexible work were less effective. At the same time, they had to learn to accommodate staff's differing work schedules and reporting times.
So, we recognise that it is not very easy for individual companies to implement Work-Life, but if they sit down and find out how it can benefit them as well as the workers, both the employees and the employers will benefit from this.
The advisory is purposed to help employers deal with such challenges, by setting out the expectations and responsibilities of employers and employees. We aim to issue it in the second half of 2014. Together with the Government's funding and enhancements to the national IT infrastructure to provide high-speed connectivity, we hope that this effort will result in greater buy-in and
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adoption of flexible work arrangements.
Assoc Prof Fatimah Lateef, Ms Ellen Lee and Ms Lee Li Lian have also called for pro-family workplace practices, specifically paid parent and eldercare leave, to be legislated. The PAP Women's Wing has suggested the same.
The Government will review the issue of legislated parent or eldercare leave, as part of the broader efforts to address the challenges of an ageing society. We are mindful that we have just implemented a series of enhanced and new leave schemes last year, as part of the Marriage and Parenthood package. We need to give businesses some time to adjust and adapt, not just to these leave requirements but also the broader effects of the economic restructuring and foreign manpower tightening. MOH will elaborate on some of their plans to step up support for caregivers.
Ms Foo Mee Har has also suggested that we consider measures, such as legislation, to accelerate the adoption of flexible work arrangements in Singapore. I know she has been talking about this for many years. We appreciate it and we will seek her views on how we can move forward in our future initiatives.
We fully agree that there is a need to foster the adoption of flexible work arrangements. But as with anti-discrimination, the fundamental issue we need to address is mindsets and attitudes.
It is important to encourage mindset shifts and positive behaviour through education and promotion. The tripartite advisory is one step forward in the right direction. That is what creates the necessary conditions for sustainable and successful work-life strategies. We agree with Ms Mary Liew that a concerted effort by the tripartite partners is necessary to change mindsets of employers and employees to address many of these issues. We encourage employers to offer their employees the necessary benefits and flexibilities which will enable them to fulfil their familial commitments. And we believe that, in the process, the employees will be more engaged, and may even be more loyal, and will stay long in the organisation.
We want to see work-life practices become a norm at the workplace. Good work-life harmony practices yield many benefits to both employees and employers. Employers have found that it leads to manifold tangible benefits, as I have said earlier – improved attraction and retention of talent, gains in
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productivity and reduced costs arising from less medical leave and absenteeism.
In this tight labour market and amidst stricter foreign manpower hiring policies, good employment practices such as flexible work arrangements will play a crucial role in incentivising Singaporeans who are economically inactive, for example, mothers, to return to work.
Mdm Chair, all the measures Acting Minister Tan Chuan-Jin, Senior Minister of State Amy Khor and I have spoken about ultimately have one simple common objective – to create a vibrant, resilient economy and workforce, good jobs and incomes, so that, ultimately, Singaporeans enjoy improvements to their lives.
The Government plays a fundamental role alongside the individual, society and the community in realising this objective. MOM will work hard to establish the necessary conditions and opportunities that will enable individual Singaporeans to secure better jobs and higher incomes for themselves and their families, and enjoy financial security in their retirement. For those particularly vulnerable to being left behind, we will step in with targeted help and stronger support.
Learning, re-learning, up-skilling to ensure that we remain relevant in the fast-evolving global economy is crucial; not just for blue collar workers, but even for highly skilled white collar ones.
Madam, our task is not easy, particularly in this time of economic restructuring. Acting Minister and Members of the House have articulated the complexities of manpower issues. MOM will press on to work with stakeholders and partners to aid improvements to the lives of Singaporeans through appropriate and sustainable manpower policies.
Madam, with your permission, may I ask the Clerk to distribute MOM's COS brief?
The Chairman: Yes, please. We have a bit of time for clarifications. Mrs Lina Chiam.
Mrs Lina Chiam: I thank the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for addressing my request for mandatory psychological test for maids. It was the same answer that he has given me last year and the previous years when my husband also asked for it. So, my husband and I have been advocating for this
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since then. And it is through feedback and experiences that I need to ask this is because it is going to be an escalating issue. It has been proven that this year, there were two cases: one in January and the latest one about four days ago. So, I think it is timely that his Ministry should consider my proposal and think carefully with an open mindset as we have been told that we always must have an open mindset. We should also think of the employers. Every time, we are always thinking of the employees, how they suffer, how we mistreat them —
The Chairman: Mrs Chiam, put your clarifications.
Mrs Lina Chiam: Okay. Please think of the employers for a change because of the levy they pay. It is timely that they should use some of this levy to pay for this psychological test for maids.
Mr Hawazi Daipi: Thank you, Mdm Chair. Mrs Chiam says we have been giving her the same answer. I remember her asking the same question. The issue remains the same: that it is not very easy to detect a potential FDW with psychological problems. We may be able to detect the worst cases. In any case, there is already the six-monthly health-screening that every FDW has to go through and the doctor may be able to detect if the FDW has some psychological problems.
On the cases that Mrs Chiam had referred to, especially the two recent cases, they are still under investigation by the Police, and I do not think we should comment on them.
Mr Zainudin Nordin: Mdm Chair, I just wanted to touch on the CET/WSQ review. I am wondering whether beyond reaching the milestone of one million trainees last year, the progressive wage system and the WSQ can be squared together. If you look at the performance of WSQ, if it is really performing and having impact on the low-wage worker, how does it square with the progressive wage that we are trying to improve for the low-wage worker? Can we get some comments on how is WSQ improving the performance of our low-wage worker?
Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan:\tI said earlier in my speech that for WSQ, based on a recent WDA study, from 2008 to 2010, lower wage workers with WSQ Statements of Attainment (SOAs) did receive wage increments of between 2.6% and 4.6%, compared to those without SOAs. That is the differential that we have found. How it squares with the Progressive Wage Model is that the Progressive
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Wage Model, which is advocated by NTUC, helps the workers get fair pay based on their productivity, ability and skills, and to upgrade them so that they can do better, have higher value jobs and get higher pay. I think that with WSQ, they will be able to attain higher skills and better pay.
Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar: Senior Minister of State Dr Amy Khor earlier mentioned about the Professional Conversion Programme for Physiotherapists. I understand that there are also programmes for other professions as well. However, in particular for eldercare professionals and social workers, it is required that mid-career entrants have either a diploma or GCE \"A\" levels and we know that these are sectors where there will be increasing demand for eldercare workers and social workers. Would the Ministry consider extending this programme to something like a certificate programme for mid-career entrants for blue-collar workers or housewives, for example?
Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: I think this will be better taken, and responded to, in MOH's COS. But in any case, indeed, for social workers, there is a requirement that there must be a minimum diploma, but we take the Member's point on converting some of these programmes into certification course. At MOH, we are also looking at whether we can have different levels, not just social workers, but different levels, just like therapy assistants and physiotherapists. So, we are looking at that at MOH.
Mr David Ong: As mentioned by the Acting Minister earlier, he said that inclusive growth and retirement adequacy are the key pillars supporting an economy for all Singaporeans. But currently we have 50% that does not reach the Minimum Sum. What can the Ministry do to have more of them be able to qualify or reach the Minimum Sum? Can we do more for those workers who are 55 years and above, looking at the employer's CPF contributions? At the same time also, can the Ministry consider schemes for responsible companies that may want to voluntarily restore senior workers' CPF in recognition for their loyalty and contributions to the company, perhaps even the corporate tax relief scheme?
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin:Mdm Chair, with regard to the Minimum Sum, we do recognise that there will be some individuals, across the different age bands, that would not be able to meet the Minimum Sum. In such cases where they do have challenges, there will be other schemes supporting them.
As I mentioned earlier, in terms of the way the Government approaches supporting individuals, from MOM's perspective, we provide one pillar and the
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CPF is one important pillar. But, importantly, we also have different schemes to support them in different ways. So, while the Minimum Sum is something that they will accumulate through their work, we recognise, especially for the older workers, for those who started work when wages were not quite as high and their contributions were not quite significant, many of them would not meet their Minimum Sum. The challenges that they face would be supplemented in different ways but not necessarily from CPF scheme itself.
As to whether some companies may be open to contributing more to their workers, in terms of rewarding them, that is something that we can look at, although I suspect that companies would contribute in different ways. But that is something we can look at, if companies are actually keen to contribute more via the CPF route.
Ms Foo Mee Har: Madam, I would like to talk about flexi-work. Members have previously spoken many times on this subject. In my view, I think Singapore can make a lot more progress. There was a question asking MOM how successful the interventions have been. With the announcement that the Senior Parliamentary Secretary just made that 160,000 grants over three years and yet we only have less than 10 —
The Chairman: Ms Foo, not a speech, please. Just put your clarification.
Ms Foo Mee Har: Okay, my clarification. I would like to ask the Government to look at quite a different approach. I understand that a lot of efforts have gone in, but I think the efforts have not been bearing the results we want. I would like to offer help to lead, say, an industry together with the Government, to see if we can do just like how the UK did it. The UK Government and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg got 22 top companies in the UK to champion this because they have seen such great results.
The Chairman: Your clarification, please, Ms Foo.
Ms Foo Mee Har: So, if I could just offer my service. Thank you.
Mr Hawazi Daipi: I thank the Member for the question. Rest assured we are watching what other countries are doing in this regard. We do want to help both the employees as well as the employers manage this because, ultimately, it would benefit both the employees and the employers.
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It is not that easy to just decide on legislating work-life balance because we do not know how the take-up will be. UK has been practising the \"right to ask\" among workers. We are watching the progress. We are also studying the practices and the experiences of other countries, like Australia, Japan and many states or many cities in the US and we will see what fits us well.
In the UK, you have 22 companies championing work-life balance; in Singapore, we have more than a hundred companies doing this, CEOs reaching out to fellow CEOs to advocate work-life balance. We recognise that. While in many companies, the CEOs may be enlightened, the rank and file, the line managers may not be equipped enough with the knowledge on how to practise work-life, how to manage workers who want to work from home, apart from finding the resources to buy the equipment which we have been supporting. We are studying this.
What we thought we would like to continue to do is to use the promotional educational approach. The work of the employer alliance led by Ms Claire Chiang has been very good because CEOs reached out to the CEOs and now another approach is to help the line managers, the HR practitioners in the companies to have the knowledge to manage work-life strategies.
It is not so much about a system where there is legislation or promotion but it is the how-to, developing their capability and the awareness of managing people, workers who need it and seeing that from among the workers and seeing how the management may be very enlightened in helping the workers.
The Chairman: Ms Irene Ng, keep it short, please.
Ms Irene Ng Phek Hoong (Tampines): Madam, many low-income workers live on a very tight budget and rely on their CPF to pay for the HDB loans and the education loans. And after they hit 55, their fund transfer goes into the Retirement Account and they find themselves finding it difficult to meet their obligations. Can I ask the Minister whether he would review the amount of the funds transfer at the age of 55 from the OA to the RA to take into account their existing loan obligations so that they would not have to be in greater hardship after they hit 55?
Mr Tan Chuan-Jin: Mdm Chair, I think this is a valid concern. I would say that, from the onset, we do advise, and this is what HDB does as well, families not to overextend themselves. Many of us as Members of Parliament would have encountered this when our residents come and ask us to appeal for a
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larger loan for them. HDB sometimes advises that they may only be eligible for slightly smaller loans.
There is a good reason for this and that is to make sure that families do not overextend. When they overextend, and sometimes when they do end up unemployed, it impacts on repayment and eventually it will come to a head when they reach age 55.
That is a real concern. But as we have mentioned before, we do take a look at every individual case and see whether we are able to support them in different ways. At present, we have no plans to review that specifically. Where there are challenges when they hit 55, that is something that we can look at on a case-by-case basis.
The Chairman: Mr Zainudin Nordin, would you like to withdraw your amendment?
Mr Zainudin Nordin: I would like to thank Acting Minister Tan, Senior Minister of State Khor and Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi for their very comprehensive response. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
[(proc text) Amendment, by leave, withdrawn. (proc text)]
[(proc text) The sum of $1,192,501,600 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates. (proc text)]
[(proc text) The sum of $53,891,200 for Head S ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates. (proc text)]
The Chairman: Order, I propose to take the break now.
[(proc text) Thereupon Mdm Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House. (proc text)]
Mdm Speaker: I suspend the Sitting and will take the Chair again at 4.30 pm.
Sitting accordingly suspended
at 4.14 pm until 4.30 pm.
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Sitting resumed at 4.30 pm
[Mdm Speaker in the Chair]
[(proc text) Debate in Committee of Supply resumed. (proc text)]
[Mdm Speaker in the Chair]
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Committee of Supply – Head K (Ministry of Education)","subTitle":null,"sectionType":"OS","content":"Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Mountbatten): Madam, I beg to move, \"That the total sum to be allocated for Head K of the Estimates be reduced by $100\".
Two months ago, I organised a dialogue to hear the views of my residents on the topic of education. During the dialogue, many parents spoke passionately on the issues which they are concerned about – stress in school due to Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) and the need to have good teachers in our schools.
One participant stood up – a Secondary 3 student from Chung Cheng High. He spoke about how his teachers taught them fundamental skills to prepare them for the future; how they constantly stressed to them the importance of having the right values in life, and how success in life should never be measured by academic grades alone. He and his classmates were taught never to allow the three-digit PSLE score to determine their future. Whatever their PSLE results, it is for them to make the best out of their Secondary education in school. Many other students at the dialogue nodded their heads in agreement.
I was happy to hear the mature response from the students. Their teachers have taught them well on the importance of education and values, and making the best of their Secondary school education. This reflects well on the hard work and effort of the many dedicated teachers within MOE's workforce. To the many school teachers who have taught your students well, and given them a strong foundation, thank you for molding our future generation. I urge MOE to continue investing in the training of good teachers, including pre-school teachers who teach our younger children.
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MOE must find more ways to retain good teachers who have that passion for teaching, and who can inspire our students. I suggest that MOE sets up a taskforce to ascertain the reasons why good teachers leave MOE to become tuition teachers, and then find ways to keep such good teachers.
Next, PSLE. My younger child took her PSLE last year. Like many parents, my wife and I were totally stressed out. We did whatever we could to equip her for PSLE. Although PSLE is supposed to be an assessment exam, which helps us to understand the strengths and weaknesses of our child, nevertheless, PSLE is perceived as a high-stake exam. Hence, many parents are anxious about the pending review of the PSLE.
Could the Minister share more about the on-going review of PSLE? How will it affect the children preparing for PSLE next year or the year after? Would there be a less stressful way to assess the students, so that they do not have to chase every mark. One feedback was that we should not push our children to take such a major exam at a young age. Would MOE consider pushing PSLE to be taken at a later age when the student is more mature to handle major exams?
Next, to ease the perception that a child's future is determined by the PSLE, I support MOE's policy to ensure that every school is a good school, and that every school is given adequate resources and allowed to develop its own niche and strength. I also support MOE's efforts to ensure that different pathways to higher education opportunities will remain open for all. Every school must continually monitor its weakest students to ensure that they receive sufficient help to improve and learn skills, which should be useful for the future.
For students who are late developers, they must be assured that they still have the opportunity to further their studies at a later stage in life. However, no matter how we promote the concept of good schools, the Government, as the country's largest employer, must also recognise that good academic grades alone are not the only way to measure a person's ability. Otherwise, all parents will only want their children to go to schools which help the students score good grades and get to University, because that is the best way to get employed.
In a recent article in TODAY, Mr Thomas Friedman, quoting Google's hiring policy said, \"Google had determined that Grade Point Averages (GPAs) are worthless as a criterion for hiring and test scores are worthless. We found that they do not predict anything. Hence, the proportion of people without any college education at Google has increased over time.\" I would not go as far as to say that educational qualifications are not relevant but I do urge MOE or
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Government agencies to review its hiring policies to consider not just a person's academic grades but other factors as well. Google says they look at general cognitive ability, emergent leadership, intellectual humility and ownership. The Government should consider likewise, so that people with different abilities are also recognised.
Although we aim to have more students in University, it is really not possible for all our students to obtain a degree. It is critical that MOE works with MOM to ensure that all our students from ITE, Polytechnic and Universities are properly prepared to meet the future needs of the various industries. The skills which our students learn in our Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) must be practical and relevant to the industries. As Google said, \"Beware. Your degree is not a proxy for your ability to do any job\".
May I ask the Minister to give us an update about the work and recommendation of the ASPIRE Committee. How can we help our ITE and Polytechnic students improve upon their cognitive and emotional skills? We should prepare the students for the future. Can we encourage more entrepreneurs amongst our future generation? Can we use more technology to teach the students to deal with the new digital world? And, very importantly, how do we ensure that our students view that they have a stake in making Singapore a better place? What else can we do to prepare our students to be future-ready when these jobs have not even been invented yet?
In many parts of the world, the youth unemployment figure is very high, even after graduation. What is Singapore doing to ensure that our youths will not end up in similar situation as that in other countries?
Finally, I welcome the Budget announcement that there will be more bursaries at the IHLs for lower and middle income families. For these families, every dollar has to be stretched. I am glad that MOT had earlier this year, in response to many Members' feedback, agreed to a reduction in public transport fares for Polytechnic students. Could the Minister share more details of these bursaries and how they can ease the financial burden on the lower and middle-income families? How else can MOE help —
The Chairman: Mr Lim, your time is up.
Mr Lim Biow Chuan: — help students facing financial hardship cope with their studies?
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Mr Inderjit Singh (Ang Mo Kio): Madam, I want to share with the House my views on how we can achieve the goal of \"Every School a Good School\".
First, elitism in education. In recent years, the Ministry has put in a lot of effort to promote every school as a good school, and it is the right thing for our education system. For example, MOE has stopped announcing the PSLE top scorers in an effort to curb elitism perception of schools.
I was, however, disturbed to hear about the resourcing plans by the Ministry some weeks ago where The Straits Times reported funding cuts for some top Secondary schools. Unfortunately, the report seemed to indicate that, all along, the Ministry gives preferential treatment to what we called \"elite schools\" and this is particularly damaging to the Ministry's earlier slogan that \"Every School a Good School\". It generated and reinforced the impression that elite schools are better than others, in that elite schools received more funding, support and recognition from MOE itself; and, second, elite schools had more funding, better facilities, better teacher-to-student ratio, better study environment and the students are likely to do better and succeed in life.
One would have thought that we should have put in more resources and funding to non-elite schools to help level up the playing field but the impression we now have is that we are giving more to the schools that do not really need more, and not giving enough to the schools that actually need the additional support and resources, even though I note that students in our elite independent schools pay much higher fees than other schools. Even so, one can expect even more stress in our education system where parents will try to get their kids into a perceived elite school.
Another issue which I believe creates the impression of elitism is the existence of the Gifted Education Programme (GEP) in certain schools. I believe that the GEP has run its useful course and we should do away with this programme where we gather students who pass an entrance exam together in just a few schools. Instead, we could have some part of the curriculum of the GEP as an enrichment programme to support the core syllabus, for some students in all schools where for most part of their school time, the students spend time with students of different abilities doing the standard subjects and those capable of a higher level of challenge be allowed to do a special enrichment programme.
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Also, the \"Gifted\" labelling does great disservice to students who may not be academically talented but who are also talented in sports, music, the arts or in other areas. Are we saying that they are not gifted? The Gifted Programme is obsolete and the enrichment model, which builds on students' respective strengths around a core group of subjects, is more suitable in my opinion. This is better than segregation, which brings me to my next topic, which is streaming and segregation in schools.
Since I entered Parliament, I have been speaking against streaming in schools. I was glad, therefore, that after many years of debates in this House, like many other Members too, some years ago, MOE eliminated the official streaming of EM1 to EM3 after the Primary 4 level.
Most of us would agree that education is a great leveller and helps improve the mobility within society. Unfortunately, in Singapore, the segregation, which is still existent in our education system, may be counter-productive in this regard. In Primary schools, students are already being streamed based on their academic standing since Primary 2. As different students bloom at different pace, I think this may not be the right thing to do as it unnecessarily stigmatises the students at such a young age.
Moreover, with such high level of competition built into the education system at such an early age, parents and students both face the pressure to outdo one another, and it is very common to see some parents spend large sums of money on private tuition for their children. This may turn into a vicious circle, as the parents from the lower-income families may struggle to keep up with such spending, so they could lose out in this race. In this way, education will fail in its objective to be a social leveller and may, in fact, help widen the gap.
We already have Special Assistance Plan (SAP) schools and recently MOE announced the setting up of Normal (Technical) schools. I do not think that such segregation would be useful as it will not allow us to achieve our goals of fully integrating our society at an age we should be doing so.
One possible solution is to start the clustering of schools. I believe that students can benefit greatly by interacting with pupils of different abilities and backgrounds. In future, in my opinion, diversity will be more useful than uniformity. I would like to suggest, therefore, that we work on clustering of schools where two or three schools within the same locality be clustered into one mega school system, where we can have a mixture of our top schools with
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what people label as neighbourhood schools as one cluster.
We could ensure that there is a rotation of teachers and principals within the cluster, so that all schools benefit from high calibre staff instead of the current practice of only a few well regarded or so-called elite schools being given the best resources to make them better.
For such clusters, CCAs can be jointly conducted and interaction during these non-academic sessions will help us create better understanding among children of different academic abilities and backgrounds. Implemented in this way, we will see greater support of teachers and staff among one another which I think will benefit all, including the so-called elite schools.
The schools can also be vertically integrated, putting Primary and Secondary schools together, as this will help them pool together resources. It will also remove more competition from the system as you will encourage students to continue in the high schools out of convenience rather than to choose schools based on grades alone. This, I feel, ties with the aim of removing some of the pressure from our PSLE system.
If we can adopt some of these measures that I have proposed, I am confident that most of our schools will be regarded as good schools in line with MOE's objective of Every School a Good School.
Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar (Ang Mo Kio): Madam, when the Minister for Education first talked about Every School being a Good School in 2012, many conversations and discussions ensued among students, educators, parents, critics and just about everybody else who is interested in our education system. \"Every School a Good School\" sounds catchy but few actually believe that it is true or that it can be true.
To many of us, Every School a Good School seems to mean that every school that we see or know of should be like Raffles Institution or Hwa Chong Institution, or like Rosyth School or Ai Tong School. To me, many of us probably equate a good school to being a popular school or being a school that has many students who do well academically in high-stakes examinations.
If we go back to what Minister Heng said about Every School a Good School, we see that a \"good\" school, first of all, nurtures engaged learners; enables
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teachers to be caring educators; and, third, fosters supportive partnership with parents and the community. The Minister also mentioned that \"each of our schools is good in its own way\". There was and still is no mention of a \"good\" school being one that has many students with stellar academic results or being in the likes of schools that have long been perceived to be \"good\".
Hence, I am deeply concerned when many of us – parents and our own school teachers and school leaders themselves – still have the wrong perception of what a Good School is.
As I see it, well-known schools such as Raffles Institution (RI) or Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) have had a strong tradition of excellence in the academics and are likely to continue in this area. This is an area of excellence that we have traditionally associated with being intelligent, being successful in one's education, and which is a determinant to being successful later on in life.
However, this is only one peak of excellence that we have in our education system for our children to pursue their interest or ability in. I see other peaks of excellence forming. Schools, such as South View Primary School and Edgefield Primary School, come under the peak of excellence in Dance and Performing Arts. Schools, such as New Town Secondary School and Unity Secondary School, come under the peak of excellence in Uniformed Groups. We must continue to recognise these different peaks of excellence and accord the same amount of respect and admiration as we have traditionally done for academic excellence.
As Howard Gardner expounds, human intelligences are varied in different frames of what our interests and propensities fall into, and involve both skills as well as potential. Human intelligences extend beyond linguistic and logical-mathematical abilities, and sometimes spatial-visual ability, that traditional high-stakes examinations usually assess, and which we have traditionally valued to equate to one's level of intellectual capacity and potential to succeed in future. This is a very narrow perception of intelligence, ability, or potential future success, and I am certainly glad that MOE has made significant strides in making changes to the education system to recognise a broader spectrum of intelligences and abilities in different domains.
In the same vein, once again, I would like to call for the Ministry to abolish academic streams at the Secondary school level, just as has been done at the
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Primary school level. The abolition of academic streams will help reinforce the Ministry's commitment to recognising and providing for diverse abilities in different domains, and that we develop at different rates.
For the Ministry, the challenge remains in changing the mindsets of parents, school teachers and school leaders, and the general public to embrace this paradigm shift. Employers have a significant role to play in this as well, and I hope that the Ministry will work closely with prospective employers to recognise abilities beyond just linguistic, logical-mathematical and visual-spatial for a start. I would also urge the Ministry to continue explaining and describing the intents and goals of Every School a Good School, as well as explicitly detailing what has been done to make this a reality – not just with parents, but teachers and school leaders as well – because misperceptions and cynicism still exist with regard to Every School a Good School.
But more importantly, parents, teachers and our society in general must be convinced that being a \"good\" child or \"good\" student or \"good\" employee is not about producing expected results consistently or not ever making mistakes. There is nothing wrong with making mistakes or having failed, as long as one learns from it and is able to \"fail forward\", or do better the next time around. It is the very fear of failure that prevents us from trying out new ways of doing things, daring to take the less trodden, non-linear or longer path, or being able to seize opportunities wherever they may be – locally or globally.
A number of young people I have met and spoken to, seem to have very similar perceptions that having a first degree will increase their chances in finding a \"good\" job, and having a post-graduate degree will increase their chances of being promoted thereafter. There is a need to help our young realise and see for themselves that the well-trodden, linear path is not all there is to doing well or being successful; many roads lead to the same destination, and there is nothing wrong in taking a longer route, making U-turns, or taking a longer time in getting there.
On a related note, I applaud the formation of the Applied Study in Polytechnic and ITE Review or ASPIRE Committee. This is a testament of the Ministry's commitment to ensure many different pathways to success and in helping our students realise their potential in different domains. Working closely with prospective employers is important in ensuring that our polytechnic and ITE students are given opportunities, through internships or apprenticeships, to gain work experience in different industries and develop work-ready skills even before graduating from their respective post-Secondary programmes. It is my hope that through this close collaboration between our
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post-Secondary institutions and prospective employers, we can sufficiently show that a uUiversity degree is not necessarily a pre-requisite to getting a good job, doing well in one's career or being successful in life.
Being deemed as \"good\" or having attained success ought to be seen from a broader perspective beyond academic excellence and consistent expected results. May I end with a quote from Winston Churchill: \"Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.\"
Mrs Lina Chiam (Non-Constituency Member): Recently, it was reported that funding for top independent schools in Singapore was cut. Sources from alumni estimated that cuts on the Integrated Programme portion were between 4% and 8%. Additionally, according to MOE, Government development expenditure on education decreased by 82%, from $353 million to $83 million.
We agree that the immediate action is to narrow the gap between neighbourhood and elite schools. However, this should not be achieved by reducing the competitiveness of our top schools. We should, instead, spend more on neighbourhood schools so that the overall education standards will increase.
On the same note, Cedar Girls' Secondary School had their running track taken away. Would it be possible for the Government to construct shared sports facility in different regions that cater only for students? We note that some schools may have their track and other land intensive facilities taken away as we prioritise the use of land in Singapore. Investing in shared sports facility will increase the overall standards of all-rounded education.
Mr Hri Kumar Nair (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mdm Chair, I accept that MOE has a difficult task in Secondary school admissions. So long as some schools have more applicants than places, some would be disappointed and may question the fairness and logic of the system. The only solution is to have a fair, logical and transparent system which you can defend and also fulfil the objectives of a good education. On that, I have two points.
First, I wish to ask whether students should be admitted under DSA on their academic achievements. Because if a student is strong academically, should he
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not just rely on his PSLE results like everyone else? I would like to also ask how DSA is, in fact, assessed. While the Minister has previously stated that the students accepted into the Gifted Education Programme (GEP) is not in itself sufficient criteria for admission by a DSA, statistics show that GEP students make up 15% of the students admitted to Secondary schools via DSA.
This gives rise to two issues. First, GEP students enjoy an advantage because they have two bites of the cherry, when it comes to admission to a Secondary school; and second, because of that advantage, it increases the impetus and, therefore, pressure on students to get into GEP at Primary 4. This gives rise to a more fundamental question on the relevance of the GEP. It is founded on the assumption that some children are naturally more clever or talented and that we can through testing identify who they are when they are nine years old. But there are growing numbers of studies which challenge this talent meet and show success is more a function of good instruction, purposeful practice and hard work. Indeed, there are also studies that telling children that they are naturally intelligent may harm them rather than help their development. Could the Minister please explain the rationale for having the system?
Second, I ask the Minister to offer different pathways to Secondary schools. The PSLE and DSA may be important to decide who goes to more popular Secondary schools, but do we need to put everyone through that system? Much time is now spent preparing the child for the PSLE from Primary 4 to Primary 6. I ask whether that time could be better time used giving them real teaching, real learning.
I accept that academic rigour is important and I am not suggesting doing away with testing or giving anyone an easy ride. But if we have a through-train or affiliated school programme which is prepared to take students based on their regular work and assessments, that will be a more accurate reflection of their abilities and would do away with the need for an all or nothing high-stakes examination. Time will be freed to do more meaningful work. For those who want to compete for places in more popular schools, they can sit for the PSLE but that would be their choice.
Mr Low Thia Khiang (Aljunied): Mdm Chair, many parents and teachers I have spoken to are getting anxious about the broader review of the education system that the Minister mentioned with regard to the review of the PSLE in
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October last year.
The Minister had said then that the Ministry would engage parents in the coming months to obtain feedback. Few details about the broader review or the feedback have been made known to the public, and sudden changes to the PSLE system announced each year in the past two years just before the release of the results, though minor, have worsened public anxiety.
For the benefit of the public, would the Minister kindly share with us the scope of the broader review of the education system he had in mind and the specific areas that would be looked at? Would the Minister share with the public the engagement and consultation framework that the Ministry is adopting for this review?
The education system is the bedrock of our economy. It is not only a subject of great anxieties for Singaporean families but also a subject central to the national interest. As such, I propose that the Ministry consider adopting a phased consultative process involving the release of topical papers leading to the tabling of a White Paper for parliamentary debate, much like the one we had for population policy. Though there is no guarantee that the outcome would satisfy the public, at least the process will make the review transparent and clear to relieve parents and teachers of their anxiety of uncertainty.
Madam, the Workers' Party welcomes a broader review of the education system. However, the review should proceed cautiously. I am concerned with two things related to the broadening of the assessment and admission systems.
One, the use of Direct School Admission tests and other discretionary admission instruments should not disadvantage students from neighbourhood schools from entering top and special niche Secondary schools.
Two, it is important that the broadening of the assessment system does not result in the dilution of bilingual education. Acquisition of good language skills, both English and Mother Tongue, is crucial to our humanistic and cultural life. It should be treated as equally important as academic and technical skills. In particular, Mother Tongue language education should not be sacrificed.
Mr Ang Wei Neng (Jurong): Madam, the Direct School Admissions or DSA scheme has allowed students to be admitted to the schools of their choice
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without using their PSLE scores. The DSA scheme helps to ease the pressure off the high-stakes examination but it also has its unintended consequences.
For example, many students who are good at sports but are academically weaker are not choosing to go to the Sports School. Instead, some of them opt to attend schools that offer integrated programmes which are supposed to cater to the academically stronger students, designed to prepare them for a University education without going through the GCE \"O\" level examinations.
MOE had recently revealed that of the students admitted to top Secondary schools through DSA sports in 2013, 10% had PSLE scores that were 30 or more points below the school's PSLE cut-off point. The question is whether the top schools that admit the academically weaker students through DSA sports have been taking good care of these weaker students.
Has MOE done an empirical study to track the progress of these academically weaker sport students? How many of them have fallen through the cracks and failed to pass their GCE \"A\" level examinations eventually?
On a separate note, MOE has earlier revealed its intention to review or expand the DSA scheme with a special emphasis on admitting students from challenging family background. Could MOE share with us on the progress of the review?
Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng (Moulmein-Kallang): Madam, I would like to repeat the call for a pilot for a cluster of 10-year through-train schools from Primary to Secondary school levels.
The PSLE is an important Primary school end-goal for most students, their parents and the schools. PSLE results determine whether a student joins the normal or express streams in Secondary 1. Doing well also gives more options of one's choice of Secondary schools. It is, hence, common for some schools and tutors to use much of the Primary 5 and 6 years to prepare their students well in their academics for this high-stakes examination.
Contrary to the perception of some, removing a high-stakes examination like the PSLE, will not lead to falling academic standards. Designed and executed well, the time taken to hot-house students for the PSLE can instead be used to master their academics even better. There is more time to develop
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special talents in either the academics, IT or music, arts or sports which the busy PSLE students have little time for. Problems relating to Secondary school choice and admission would also become irrelevant by removing the PSLE.
My proposal for the pilot programme goes beyond the mere removal of the PSLE. The vision for this pilot incorporates other key features, such as:
(a) No streaming, and offering of a mix of core and elective subjects at either the foundation, standard or advanced or gifted level according to one's abilities and strengths;
(b) A good mix of both formative and summative assessments to locate one's mastery level;
(c) Incorporation of what is already excellent in the current system such as character building, citizenship and socio-emotional development;
(d) Service to others as part of daily school life;
(e) Daily living skills training at four levels – self, family, community and nation;
(f) Learning support for those who have learning disabilities; and
(g) Stronger support for those who are disadvantaged.
This is at least the sixth time I have given inputs to MOE regarding the issues of the high-stakes PSLE and/or through-train schools in this House; not counting the other discussions I have had with MOE leaders. I seek an update from Minister on his thoughts on what the next steps might be.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong (Non-Constituency Member): Madam, I have spoken about piloting Primary through Secondary integrated schools every year since I have entered this House. I am glad that other hon Members like Mr Laurence Lien and Ms Denise Phua have also been making similar calls.
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Singaporean children must study in public schools unless they are granted permission by MOE to be schooled at home or in international schools. They have to go through the PSLE which is, in effect, a sorting test to determine academic streams and Secondary school admission. Even with the ongoing review, the PSLE will still be used to sort students. The stress of an early high-stakes test will still be there.
Madam, I understand that some parents will want a competitive system and for their children to enter into what they believe as the best schools. There are, however, parents like myself who would rather have our children go through Primary and Secondary education in the same school without PSLE.
The brands of schools have not mattered to me. Such an integrated system is available in many countries, including those that have fared well in international education benchmarks. The choice is not available here. I urge MOE to study the feasibility to pilot such integrated schools. We can leave out the top schools in the pilot so that this will not become a back door. We have years of holistic assessment experience and capable educators. We can use these strengths to make such schools as good schools, too.
Ms Irene Ng Phek Hoong (Tampines): It is said that those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. In Singapore, we have our own history from which we can draw many lessons, but I am not certain that we are taking full advantage of this.
Just recently, Singapore reacted strongly to the Indonesian naming of its warship KRI Usman Harun after the two marines responsible for the MacDonald House bombing during Konfrontasi. The bombing was part of a spate of attacks that also included hits on schools and other civil institutions. For those living through that period, it was a vivid and painful lesson on how vulnerable Singapore was; a small state bullied by a belligerent bigger neighbour and on how vulnerable it remains.
But the powerful lessons of this period in history and the relevance of it seem to have escaped much of our young, which have led to some wondering what the big fuss was about. Their lack of historical perspective worries me.
Madam, we should ensure that our young people learn the lessons of our history well. History not only helps us to understand our past, but also the
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values and principles that shape our nation. It plays an essential role in developing a sense of national identity among our young. While the history syllabus covers our history, we need to ensure that the teaching is effective in conveying the deeper significance of events and their relevance.
I appreciate that it is not easy to teach and engage our students on our historical past and our teachers have a challenging task. And the amount of time dedicated to the subjects is also limited. Inevitably, teachers are likely to choose topics that are well-resourced with materials appropriate to their pupils' ages. We need to resource them better.
More focus should also be given to the professional development of history teachers, especially those who teach in Secondary 1 and Secondary 2. These two years in Secondary school where history is compulsory are crucial, as after that history becomes an option and many students abandon it. Not many Secondary schools teach \"O\" level History. In fact, only about 20% offer it.
Besides teaching our history well, we should also equip our young with the resilience that they will need to persevere in the fact of future challenges. Unlike the parents and grandparents, many of them have not had to struggle for what they need. We should expose our students to challenge and let them learn how to handle obstacles and to learn from mistakes, without shaming failure.
Schools should tie up with the community on projects outside their comfort zone and also work with parents whose instincts are to protect their kids from setbacks. But as Singapore's history teaches us, a setback may not be the end of the world. It can spur us to greater heights and make us stronger.
I would like to ask the Minister for his assessment of the effectiveness of our Character and Citizenship Education and its efforts to develop in our young a sense of national identity and values.
Ms Janice Koh (Nominated Member):Mdm Chair, I am encouraged by the Ministry's efforts to place more focus on the softer, but critical elements of education in our schools, while easing the emphasis on exam results. Much more than grades, critical thinking, creativity and Emotional Quotient (EQ) skills are what will advantage our young in an increasingly competitive world.
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Yet, assessing outcomes when imparting non-examinable skills is tricky. Common benchmarks, such as standardised tests – PISA, TIMSS, and PIRLS – may not fully capture how well an education system teaches \"soft skills\". In fact, a number of international studies suggest that systems with high test-scores tend to produce \"high-testing, low ability\" individuals, who are less adept at being creative and entrepreneurial. This is a concern in societies, such as Japan, South Korea and China, which also perform well on standardised tests like PISA. I think it is something Singapore should also be concerned about.
The OSC survey last year indicated that Singaporeans place lower value on creativity, risk-taking and entrepreneurship. This is evidenced by feedback from employers who say that young Singaporeans tend to lack the confidence, the drive, and the willingness to try new things – qualities necessary for leadership in today's context.
Madam, my question to the Ministry is, given the weight of test scores to education benchmarking in Singapore, how will the Ministry mitigate the risk of producing too many \"high testing, low ability\" individuals through our school system? And does the Ministry intend to broaden benchmarking practices to reflect the changes in the system as we seek more holistic educational outcomes?
The 21st century competencies put forth by MOE are attributes not easily attainable or even teachable through textbooks or testing. They present different teaching challenges compared to preparing students for exams. Imparting these abilities require mentorship, closer guidance, greater student engagement and a more personal connection with students that may call for more intimate classroom settings.
Madam, on this, I have two questions: how does the Ministry intend to impart \"soft skills\" systematically and effectively to our students, and how does it plan to assess its effectiveness, if at all? Also, could the Minister share how MOE determines its current approach to class-size management, and will this focus on nurturing \"soft skills\" require a rethink of class-size management?
Mrs Lina Chiam: Madam, MOE should consider improving the quality of job scope for teachers in Singapore. We understand that in some schools, teachers report to work before 7.00 am and leave school only after 4.00 pm, after covering co-curricular activities. I understand the need for teachers to set
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a good example by attending flag-raising, but I question the need for all teachers to be present during every ceremony.
It is public knowledge that school has to start earlier than work time – 8.30 am to 9.30 am generally – in order to facilitate parents fetching their children to school. However, it is not entirely logical to regulate teacher's presence the same way as students. As part of resource deployment, I propose a solution to employ retired teachers and professional workers or use the help of volunteers to participate in flag-rising ceremonies in order to keep the school operations running between 6.30 am and 8.30 am. Some teachers can be stationed to be in charge of the ceremony on a rotational basis.
Additionally, we may need to increase the salary of teachers to compensate for the lack of relevant skill sets for the private sector, aside from the education sector. Unlike an oil and gas project manager who can easily be employed in another manufacturing company, a middle-aged English teacher may find it difficult to move into most of the private sector industries in Singapore. Given that we require teachers to commit their best years to our students, there is also a corresponding need for us to ensure teachers can be remunerated competitively.
Ms Tan Su Shan (Nominated Member): Mdm Chair, I applaud the various measures announced in the Budget to give students from all backgrounds a chance to advance through education. My speech today, however, will evolve around the ethos and philosophy by which we think about our education system.
Social mobility can be achieved but not just by the right educational qualifications. Why? The world has evolved to such a point today – you do not need to have a degree to succeed in life because digitalisation and Internet has become the great social leveller. Anyone with a laptop or a smartphone has access to education and information outside of physical schools and universities. Some top universities are even conducting free courses online. Hence, to take Singapore to the next stage of evolution, we may need to rethink and refresh our principles behind what constitutes a successful education system.
Recent changes announced by MOE are all moves in the right direction, reducing the emphasis on exam grades, changing the admission to top schools
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and so on are all progressive. But the point to make here is, you can still get a great education without going to school. So, then, how do we keep our schools relevant in creating this social mobility?
Mdm Chair, I believe more needs to be done at schools to make our students more curious, more collaborative, more flexible and, sometimes, more humble. With so much education available, schools need to play a part to encourage students to take ownership of their own education to be intellectually curious and open to lifelong learning. Education will, therefore, be less about memorising facts and figures, all of which are available on the Internet, and more about becoming a person of right values, the desire to be a value to society. Here are four suggestions.
First, encourage a positive mindset and learning the importance of failure. Stanford University psychologist Carol Dwight believes in the value of creating the right mindset. I quote: \"Fixed mindset is belief that success and failure are genetically programmed into us, so the child believes himself to be unintelligent who will never be able to succeed academically. Worse still, teachers with a fixed mindset will transfer their own pre-conception onto the students. In contrast, a growth mindset allows us to believe our intelligence is a fluid entity and we have great controls over our abilities. Those with a growth mindset use failure as a temporary stop on the way to success.\"
Bloomberg, too, had an article which said, \"go ahead, let your kids fail\". Why? Kids who have failed before understand how to learn from failures or their mistakes.
The new economy we live in needs more people with intellectual humility. Google, for example, does not care about hiring top college graduates because they have never experienced failure. Instead, the Head of People Operations looks for the ability to step back and embrace other people's ideas when they are better. This is intellectual humility. Without humility, you are unable to learn. Failure has its benefits – psychologists have talked about it – how it can engender compassion, humility, wisdom and courage.
Second, creativity and flexibility. More can be done at schools to encourage students to try new things. This can either come at CCA level or within the curriculum. Currently, many of our schools place too much emphasis on winning school medals and less on allowing all students to try out new sports, new musical instruments or new creative activities, even if you are not good at it. Inculcating this desire to continue to learn or experiment will come in handy
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in life and at work as innovation and digitalisation will continue to change the way we live, work and we need to evolve to stay ahead.
Third, encouraging collaboration and connectivity at the Primary school level. In my Budget speech in 2012, I introduced to the House the collage method of teaching which is piloted at Nanyang Primary School. It is about collaborative teaching and the learning and intertwining of different disciplines to demonstrate to children the relevance of what they are learning. The key here is to encourage innovative thinking and collaborative skills at a young age. More importantly, the kids develop a love for lifelong learning. At the University level, we could consider how to accelerate our Universities' transformation from teaching to research universities. Basically, we should consider how our Universities can help us grow our own state of research-intensive SMEs and outsource research labs.
The Government may have to play a more active role in getting more cooperation between Universities and businesses or Statutory Boards. For example, NUS has a formalised programme for students to work with firms on consulting projects. Other tertiary institutes can encourage more of such apprenticeships or collaborations.
Last, but not least, values, a higher purpose. Imbuing in our students a desire and the ability to create value for others, or a greater good, will help us achieve a higher purpose in our society. For example, during Total Defence Day, we used to teach our students the importance of frugality, prudence and discipline, when we had food rationing in schools. Why not continue this practice and do more work to encourage students to take more proactive steps in playing their part to make our society a better place.
Give our students a shared vision, a mission of what we want Singapore to do; and where we want to go; and what we can achieve if we are a connected society. That way, we can perhaps turn a generation of potential online complainers into a generation of active crusaders for the common good.
Mdm Chair, while I am a big admirer of the Singapore education system, I think it is time for us to take stock, rethink some of our old principles and turn our schools into greater enablers for a better Singapore.
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Mr Ang Wei Neng: Mdm Chair, the tuition fees at the Institutes of Higher Learning or IHLs, such as Polytechnic and University, have increased significantly over the past few years. For example, the tuition fee for business undergraduate degree course at NUS has increased by 37% between 2008 and 2013, much higher than the inflation rate and the increase in the median household income over the same period time. Thus, the increased in the bursary quantum for students studying at IHLs will be a relief to many households.
However, I hope that the increased in quantum is not a one-off exercise. Otherwise, its effect would be negated or eroded with successive rounds of tuition fee hikes and inflation over the years. Perhaps, MOE could consider having a formula to peg the bursary quantum to a percentage of the latest student's tuition fee.
At the same time, I also applaud the initiative to ease the per capita household income criteria for bursaries which will benefit two-thirds of all Singaporean households. Nonetheless, I hope that the lower income families will receive higher bursary quantum to help their children move up the social ladder.
Last but not least, I hope that MOE could find ways to impress upon the bursary recipients that the bursary is not an entitlement. I find it very disturbing when some tertiary bursary recipients refused to attend the cheque presentation ceremony or expect the cheque to be mailed to them directly. Perhaps, MOE could consider requesting the bursary recipients to perform some form of community service during their vacation as a way of giving back to the society.
Mr Png Eng Huat (Hougang): Mdm Chair, every year, international students receive about $12,000 to $75,000 each to study at our Institutions of Higher Learning. In total, the Government dispenses about $210 million in tuition grants per year to these students. This is not a small sum of money and the only requirement the Government asks of these international students is to work for a Singapore-based company for a period of three years upon their
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graduation with no other strings attached.
The grant application is so easy that even the sureties required to complete the application need not be Singaporeans nor reside here. And to fulfil the three-year employment obligation agreement, the foreign student can work full-time or part-time, locally or overseas, give tuition at a tuition centre, and even be self-employed.
If the same student wishes to pursue a full-time undergraduate programme at our local tertiary institutions, he can defer his existing grant obligation, get another subsidy with another three-year grant obligation and serve both his obligations concurrently upon getting the undergraduate degree.
After pulling out all the stops for these foreign students, how many of them took advantage of our generosity and left Singapore without serving a single day of their three-year grant obligation?
MOE is currently unable to provide a definitive answer to this question. Even among the current group of international students who had not started work upon graduation and/or who had not sought permission to do so, MOE did not want to reveal the number of defaulters in this group. I understand the Ministry is tightening its tracking and enforcement efforts for bond fulfilment and I hope we will have a clear answer one day.
Madam, the Tuition Grant Scheme was started in 1980. The Government would have dished out billions of dollars in tuition grants to tens of thousands of international students to date. It is hard to fathom that we do not know for sure how many foreign students took the liberty to ignore their obligations the past 34 years.
We even roll out the red carpet for these foreign students that if they become citizens, they will be released from serving the grant obligation. For that, I would like to ask the Minister, how many of them had done so to date?
MOE cannot tighten the tracking and enforcement efforts without first tightening the terms and conditions of the Tuition Grant Scheme. Allowing an international student to have sureties living overseas is as good as having no sureties at all because we all know how hard it is to enforce our contracts beyond the shores of Singapore.
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Our Government dishes out all kinds of grants to Singaporeans. In public housing, there are strict rules governing the disbursement of grants and some grants must be paid back with interest with no exception. It is certainly not acceptable for some international students to work our system, take our grants and make a mockery out of our generosity.
Mr Alvin Yeo (Chua Chu Kang): Mdm Chair, we have a globally-ranked education system that we are right to be proud of – our students are ranked at or near the top in Mathematics and Science, the high level of their bilingual ability is the envy of others, and the extremely low level of school drop-outs is testament to the many pathways, from ITE to Polytechnic to University, that are in place to suit each student's ability. But the question always is: can we do better? There are, after all, several aspects of the education system that are perhaps less admirable.
There is the widespread tuition culture, which cannot all be blamed on \"kiasu\" Singapore parents. There is the relatively lower priority accorded to the arts and literature, and to sports, which mean our students are less outstanding internationally where the subjects are not Mathematics or Science. There is the perception of our students being stronger on content but less innovative. And it is correct that despite our legions of students who obtained straight \"A\"s at schools and First Class Honours at University, we have yet to produce any Nobel Prize winners and are not readily known for ground-breaking inventions. Finally, there is the heavy pressure that our children come under in our results-oriented system, which even extends to the parents taking leave to coach their 12-year-old children for the PSLE.
MOE has been taking steps to address these concerns, including doing away with the banding of schools and the move away from T-scores in the PSLE examination as the means of admission into Secondary schools. These are steps in the right direction.
Allow me to raise one further vision for consideration. Borrowing on the concept of private schools in England and the United States, I would like to see our students move to a whole-day single session of schooling from morning till the late afternoon. These extended hours of school are not intended to impose greater pressure on our students, but rather the opposite, and to ensure a healthier, well-rounded approach in education.
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The morning hours could be devoted to lessons not unlike our current system, but with a longer duration for subject periods to allow for more time for teachers to teach concepts rather than over-stressing content. Class sizes should be smaller than what they are now – in private schools in the West, they are typically not more than 20 – and it is to be hoped that we will move gradually closer to that number from the current high 30s to 40s. The lower teacher-to-student ratio will permit the teacher to devote greater attention to each student, which will reduce the need for tuition to make up for what the students are missing in class.
After lunch provided in school, which would also ensure that all students had proper nutrition for their growing bodies, the afternoon would be spent on CCA like art, music, various societies and sport. This could then be followed by a study period for students to do their revision and work assignments. The time spent on sport and the arts would make sure that children have the physical exercise and the outdoor and out of class activities that help in building healthy minds. Setting aside time for revision and work assignments in school, which can be supplemented by extra teaching on Saturday mornings for weaker or gifted students, is meant to do away with the need for extra tuition and to allow a child to spend sufficient, but not over-extensive, time on his school work.
At the end of the school day, the children would go home to the parents and this, in turn, reduces the need for expensive student care facilities. The children would then be free to spend the evenings with their families and enjoy their growing-up years, as they ought to do. There is, of course, the risk that some parents would make their children go for tuition at night or over the entire weekend. There is no way to legislate against such behaviour, but I believe many parents would rather not subject their children to many hours of tuition, if they believe that their children are getting sufficient instruction and that other parents would not behave the same way.
All these would require considerable expenditure, as beyond the physical infrastructure, MOE would have to hire many more teachers. In terms of physical infrastructure, our schools have been moving to a single session system anyway. As for teachers, we have a growing percentage of each cohort of Singaporeans entering University each year. The current projection is for that to go up 40% for each cohort. What better way to provide employment for the increasing number of graduates entering the job market than to employ them as teachers.
Perhaps, school fees may have to increase by a small amount, but many households pay much more than that for private tuition and enrichment classes
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for their children anyway. Poorer households should, of course, be spared the need to pay more and should continue to receive subsidies to allow their children to avail themselves fully of these educational opportunities.
At the end of the day, we all recognise that there are aspects of our education system we can improve, in particular the heavy pressure on our students, the over-reliance on tuition and the lower priority accorded to more creative pursuits, the arts and sport. We should be prepared to make the necessary investment to create a more conducive environment to allow our students to obtain a truly holistic education. This will better equip our children with the life-skills to meet tomorrow's challenges, and, ultimately, reap the best sort of dividends in our people.
Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar: With the Government's plan to add 20,000 more childcare places by 2017, the need for sufficient qualified preschool teachers becomes more acute. Setting up the physical space for a childcare centre or preschool is the easy part. Getting well-trained preschool teachers with the desired set of skills, passion, personality and commitment to the profession is a different matter altogether.
Currently, preschool teacher training is done at several of our local Polytechnics and various other private education institutions. While bodies, such as the Pre-school Qualification Accreditation Committee and the Workforce Development Agency, are there to regulate preschool teacher training, the processes in place are often merely procedural and do not quite look into the training curriculum, contents and pedagogy in depth to ensure consistent standards and quality.
There have been claims that while the private education institutions which run such preschool teacher training have structures that satisfy Government requirements, the standard and quality of preschool teacher training differs from one private education institution to another. This results in rather distinct differences among our preschool teachers in terms of knowledge, skills and classroom experience, depending on which institution they did their preschool teacher training in.
I have spoken about this before and I hope the Ministry will take the lead in centralising the training of preschool teachers, just as our school teachers are all centrally trained in the National Institute of Education before they are
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deployed to teach in our mainstream schools, so as to ensure consistent standards and quality.
Hence, regardless of whether our centrally trained preschool teachers end up teaching in an Anchor Operator preschool or otherwise, our preschool children can look forward to being taught by teachers of equivalent training background, knowledge and skill levels, and parents will have greater confidence in placing their children in preschools run by the Anchor Operators or in our MOE Kindergartens, rather than worrying about whether they are able to secure a place in a brand-name preschool or be able to afford the fees at such places.
On a related note, I would also like to request the Ministry to look into setting up more school-based Student Care Centres. I understand there are currently 80 such school-based Student Care Centres. I hope the Ministry can set up more, possibly one in each Primary school.
Such school-based Student Care Centres are important, especially in supporting working parents and young families. Parents would have greater peace of mind when they know that their Primary-school going children have a place to go to after school, and in school, without the need to travel on their own whether back home or to another venue for after-school care. In addition, having responsible adults taking care of their children in a safe environment, which is in the school itself, will also be assuring to working parents.
I hope the Ministry will seriously consider both recommendations – that is, to have centralised training for pre-school teachers and to set up more school-based Student Care Centres soon.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong: Madam, there are now 80 school-based Student Care Centres (SSCs). While this is an increase since 2011, SSCs are available in just over 40% of Primary schools here.
The number of student care places outside of SSCs will continue to fall as operators find it commercially unattractive to run these due to high rental cost. Operators prefer to offer childcare services which are better funded by the Government or run tuition centres. The demand for student care services has increased, just as it did for childcare services. The best place to run such centres is in the schools, where students need not move out of the school and the
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operators can best coordinate with the teachers to follow up on homework and learning. Schools' facilities in single-session schools are not fully ultilised after school hours. If facilities are offered at token rents to operators, MOE can negotiate for lower fees and higher quality programmes. It will also reduce the need for tuition, benefiting students from disadvantaged families.
MOE did not provide figures for my PQ on the waitlist in SSCs. So, I did a random check on 12 SSCs, both in new and in mature estates. I found that all have no vacancies, with one having over 50 children on the waitlist! The demand is very strong. I would like to see MOE aim for 100% of all Primary schools to have SSCs as soon as possible. Existing operators that run community-based centres will likely be interested to move their operations into schools to avoid high rents and can pass the savings on to parents. I hope MOE and MSF can make this into an urgent priority.
Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: Madam, the support for students with special needs in schools has grown from strength to strength. There is, of course, more to be done, but we must give credit where credit is due.
In special schools, MOE has clearly moved from being a reluctant arms-length funder a decade ago to an active leader and partner. The Special Education Branch has done a commendable job and much has happened:
(a) Improved funding for special school operations;
(b) Financial assistance and even breakfast meals for the needy;
(c) Annual student recognition awards;
(d) Development of curriculum frameworks; and
(e) Strengthening of vocational training.
In mainstream schools, there are now Allied Educators in every Primary school and in half of the Secondary schools to support those with milder special education needs. Recently, school-based support for those with dyslexia – the
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biggest group of students with learning challenges.
And also at institutions of higher learning (IHLs), such as the ITEs, Polytechnics and the Universities, where MOE's presence has historically not been strong, Minister of State Sim Ann and her team had been diligent in identifying the education support gaps in this space through a series of consultations with the undergraduates, the graduates, VWOs and some caregivers. I believe MOE is now considering these rich inputs from the ground.
Upon this good foundation, I would like to give two key recommendations for the next lap.
One, on consolidation in the sector. At the macro level, it is timely for MOE to think about connecting the dots to increase (a) the depth of expertise; and (b) the breadth of impact in the special-needs education landscape.
I recommend that MOE and its key partners conduct a strategic visioning of what the landscape can be in the mid and long term. MOE should start consolidating the sector and consider identifying and nurturing anchor operators in the key disability areas – not-for-profit players who have positive track records in delivering student outcomes and management bench strength. These anchor operators can then be partners in three areas:
(a) Create competence frameworks and solutions to help train and equip stakeholders, such as teachers, specialists, allied educators, caregivers and even shadow teachers, a group which, up to now, is run by private operators and usually accessible to only those who can afford;
(b) Fill the gaps in the current missing areas, such as online or blended lesson packages, to teach core subjects, such as daily living skills, literacy and numeracy; and
(c) Consolidate current specialist and management expertise and scale faster so that a continuum of education support and inclusion models can be applied in all schools, mainstream or special.
With passionate, nimble and competent anchor operators, the special education sector will stand a higher chance to move faster, be more future-ready and more relevant in the 21st century.
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Next, the next \"C\" – continuum. Madam, I am very heartened by the good developments for special-needs students who are younger. However, for the older ones who are able to move on to further studies at the IHLs, I want to again advocate that a continuum of support be extended to these students. I recommend:
(a) Funding for MOE to set up Disability Support Offices within these IHLs to serve as a first port of call for registration and for help for them; and
(b) Funding for these students to have access to needed services, such as note-taking, sign interpreters, exam accommodations, note-sharing and other forms of learning support.
These special students have crossed many hurdles in their young lives to reach the doors of the IHLs. Let us give them a further leg up to cross that next hurdle.
Finally, I want to thank the Minister, the Minister of State and other members of the MOE team for the hope they have given to the special ones who learn differently in our country and for the good things they have taken to raise them. I seek MOE's serious and favourable consideration of my inputs.
The Minister for Education (Mr Heng Swee Keat): Mdm Chair, with your permission, may I display some slides and photos on the screen?
The Chairman: Yes, please.
Mr Heng Swee Keat:Thank you. I thank Mr Lim Biow Chuan and Members for your views and suggestions, and I am happy to hear of Mr Lim's positive experience interacting with our students. I am very much encouraged by your support for education and for many of our policies. Members' comments add to the rich and diverse views we heard at the year-long Singapore Conversation.
Mr Low Thia Khiang mentioned earlier on about a broader review of education. Let me clarify that MOE has been reviewing our policies on an ongoing basis and, in fact, many significant improvements have taken place. Members will see that both our Deputy Prime Ministers are here and they were both Ministers for Education and made many important changes along the way. If not for all those continual changes, our system will not be where it is today with that strength and that world-class system that Deputy Prime Minister
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Tharman mentioned in his Budget Round-up Speech.
Members have raised a wide-ranging set of issues. I may not be able to address every point, but I will address the key themes.
The key goal of my Ministry is to bring out the best in every child, in every domain of learning, in every school, at every stage of the learning journey, whatever the starting point, to create a better future together.
By bringing out the best in every child, we give hope and opportunity to enable every child to succeed, and build a better future for all Singaporeans, together.
[Deputy Speaker (Mr Charles Chong) in the Chair]
Our schools provide the common space and the common experiences for our children to build a sense of cohesion as one people, committed to Singapore and to fellow Singaporeans.
What do we mean by bringing out the best in every child in every domain of learning? Ms Tan Su Shan spoke about preparing for the information age and about the changes that are going on. Both Ms Tan and Mr Lim Biow Chuan also quoted practices in Google, and indeed, the future environment will be more volatile, unpredictable and complex. The terrain our children will have to navigate will be more unfamiliar, with more unknowns. We need to equip our students, not with a map with well-marked paths; rather, we need to equip them with a compass and navigation skills.
A compass so that each child has a sense of direction, a sense of right and wrong; it is about character and values, it is about how well they master themselves, it is about resilience and perseverance, and having the empathy, leadership and social skills to work with others, and the heart to contribute to our community and our nation.
This is the heart of our Character and Citizenship Education.
Navigation skills so that they can analyse situations, apply what they know to solve problems, imagine and invent new possibilities, chart their own paths. This means a strong foundation in core subjects, in numeracy and in literacy, including bilingual literacy. This foundation is necessary for navigating
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changing landscapes, but not sufficient. In recent years, we have emphasised higher order thinking skills, collaborative and cross-cultural skills to thrive in a globalised information age.
I thank Ms Irene Ng for reminding us of the importance of history. I agree with Ms Ng, an appreciation of the past helps us navigate the future. And, indeed, our Character and Citizenship Education, with a strong focus on Values-in-Action and on understanding our past, is progressing well. But we need the support of the community, and I want to thank Ms Ng for her personal effort in helping our students understand our Pledge.
Equipping our students with the inner compass and the navigation skills is a labour of love. To do so, we seek to bring out the best in every child in every domain, not just in the academic subjects, but also in CCA, in arts, in music, in sports and in Values-in-Action projects.
This is holistic education, it is about developing the whole child.
Holistic education involves infusing and integrating the learning in different domains, and the development of values and skills in every part of school life, both in and outside of the classroom.
So, let me share briefly how our teachers are taking an integrative, immersive approach in holistic education. At West Spring Secondary School, students use newspaper articles to discuss social issues. Students gather information, meet with community partners and generate ideas and possible solutions. One group took the initiative to raise funds for a group of elders to have lunch at an eatery which Dignity Kitchen runs and worked with the staff to put up a performance. Dignity Kitchen, by the way, is a hawker training school for the disabled and disadvantaged.
At Kranji Secondary School, Secondary 2 students work on interdisciplinary projects in town planning, supported by the URA. Students have to bring together what they have learnt in Geography, English, and Design and Technology. By working with their peers, they build collaboration and communication skills. They also develop creativity and build analytical and organisational skills as they plan together in teams.
So, you see, we are starting with all these skills very early on. In fact, many of these projects are also done in our Primary schools.
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Our students have done well in international benchmarking tests, such as PISA. Ms Janice Koh pointed out that test scores alone are not enough. I agree. I have looked at the sample questions in PISA and also at our own examination papers. Boy! They do challenge our students – to apply knowledge and skills to solve unfamiliar real-life problems and to use incomplete information, explore indirect relationships, find solutions using unstructured data. So, if Members have an interest to take these tests, I can arrange.
Neither should we fall into the trap of \"either-or\" thinking – that is, either knowledge or skills. In fact, all over the world, there are fierce debates on this issue and I have been following the debates very closely.
If creativity is about connecting the dots, you need to have solid dots in the first place or you will have nothing to connect. So, a grasp of the basics is necessary. I am not suggesting that we have a perfect system, but I do hope that we take pride in our students' achievements and have the confidence to build on that.
Mr Alvin Yeo mentioned that we are not so good in the creative field – in the arts. I think it is important for us not to over generalise. I am sure that we are all proud of our film-makers, Anthony Chen and Royston Tan, to just name two of them. So, by bringing out the best in every child in every domain, we enable our students to integrate values, knowledge and skills in new and powerful ways, and to go on to navigate changes, solve problems and invent new possibilities.
Let me now touch on how we are bringing out the best in every child in every school. Mr Lim Biow Chuan, Dr Intan and several Members have spoken about every school a good school.
Let me first share a story. I met Dr Leonard Tan last year, as Members can see it on the slide. [A slide was shown to hon Members.] Leonard came from a low-income family and could not afford music lessons as a child. He joined the school band in Princess Elizabeth Primary School and then Bukit Panjang Government High where he learnt to play the tuba. This early exposure piqued his interest in music. In Secondary 3, he saved up $98 for a violin and taught himself how to play the instrument. In less than two years, he obtained a Grade 6 in violin. He went on to pursue his passion in music, first at a Junior College in a music elective programme where he met some inspiring teachers, then because of family circumstances, he had to work, then he went on to LaSalle and NAFA, before getting a scholarship from our National Institute of Education
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to do his PhD in the US. Leonard is now an Asst Prof at the National Institute of Education working to develop the next generation of music teachers.
Now, think about it – if not for the school band, Leonard might not have had the opportunity to learn to read music scores or to learn the tuba, and then to discover his strength and his passion. And Leonard is now contributing back to education and to our society.
By bringing out the best in every child, our society progresses. Leonard's story illustrates that good schools can be places of discovery and nurture for our students, and can bring out the best in them – good Primary schools, good Secondary schools and beyond.
Like Dr Intan, I have heard some cynics say: how can every school be a good school when it does not produce the same number of students who have perfect scores compared to the other one?
To put things into perspective, let me share with you my discussions with parents.
I have met many parents who shared with me how different each of their children is – in interests, in temperaments, in aptitudes. One is motivated; another requires prodding. One thrives under intense competition; another blossoms in a nurturing environment. One is theoretical; another is hands-on. One is outgoing; another is introverted. I am sure Members of this House can resonate with that. Same parents! Same upbringing! Completely different temperaments, interests and aptitudes. Different outcomes.
But every parent wants to be a good parent, to bring out the best in each of their children. But this does not mean achieving identical outcomes. Rather, nurturing parents seek to help each of their children discover his or her strengths and interests, help each of them build on these, to succeed and to lead a happy, meaningful life.
If a good parent with just two or three children cannot turn out identical outcomes, nor is judged whether he or she is a good parent on the basis that each of their children turn out the same way, or turn out with equal academic scores, is it right to judge a school with over 1,000 students, as \"good\" or \"not good\", on the basis of whether it can produce identical academic grades as
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another school?
Every school a good school does not mean Every School the Same School, but it does mean Every School Good in its Own Way, seeking to bring out the Best in Every Child.
In our 2012 Committee of Supply debate on MOE, I set out what Every School a Good School means. And this Every School a Good School has energised our schools, and helped change parents' perception. I am deeply committed to this, so, therefore, let me repeat what I said then.
First and foremost, a good school is one that cares for its students. Therefore, it is one that studies and knows the needs, interests and strengths of its students and motivates them to learn and grow. A good school ensures all students acquire strong fundamentals of literacy and numeracy and develops them holistically, in character, knowledge and critical competencies. A good school creates a positive school experience for each student, making him a confident and lifelong learner. A good school has caring and competent teachers who are steadfast in their mission to impact lives. A good school has the support of parents and the community, working together to bring out the best in our children. A good school cares for and provides opportunities to all students, regardless of family circumstances.
I am pleased that many parents are now checking out the schools in our neighbourhood. I am pleased to read in this issue of Young Parents which says, \"Branded schools? No thanks. A neighbourhood Primary school could be the better choice\" – on how parents are choosing schools in their neighbourhood that suit their children, raving about their neighbourhood schools. I applaud these parents. Indeed, I fully agree with a comment in the article that it is odd that we call these \"neighbourhood schools\" – after all, are not all schools in the neighbourhood? I want to assure you that I am fully committed, together with my team, to making Every School a Good School, and working with you to bring out the best in your child.
As Dr Intan pointed out, we have many peaks of excellence – peaks built on high bases. So, let us develop more of such peaks, multiply and spread good practices, grow good schools across a range of domains, to better meet the different needs of our children.
If you survey the school landscape today, we see a more colourful landscape. There are specialised schools in arts, music, sports, science,
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mathematics, for applied learning and hands-on learning. To add more colour to this landscape and enrich the learning environment, six months ago, I announced that we will have Applied Learning Programmes and Learning for Life Programmes in all our Secondary schools. Our schools can get up to $100,000 for these programmes.
As an example, Greendale Secondary School has a Design, Technology and Engineering Applied Learning Programme. Students learn cross-disciplinary design thinking skills and to make a difference to others. You can see on the slide here that the students have done a project because they noticed that the elderly have difficulties taking public transport. So, they invented an \"EZ Card Holder\", attached to walking sticks. This made it easier for the elderly to just tap their EZ-Link cards. The unit has sensors which activate a buzzer when walking stick falls over, to alert passers-by to provide help immediately. They tested a prototype and were encouraged by the level of interest from the public. But it is not just what they invent, but what they learn in the process. Student Nursarah shared that she was able to improve her communication, collaboration and problem solving skills – the skills that Ms Tan Su Shan and Ms Janice Koh both mentioned.
As you can see from the slides, our Secondary schools have a variety of programmes in visual and performing arts, physical education and sports science, community and youth leadership, and many others.
Mr Inderjit Singh and Mrs Lina Chiam spoke about resourcing of schools. Mrs Chiam mentioned about cuts to independent school funding. I have clarified in this House that we are not cutting independent school funding per se. Rather, as a result of the review, six independent schools actually got more funds and four had their funds reduced as part of a rationalisation exercise. Mrs Chiam also cited reduced funding. Let me clarify that that is on certain projects and that is because a great deal of upgrading projects have been completed. But our operating expenditure has been increasing.
One way to make Every School a Good School a reality is by resourcing our schools based on their needs. Every school gets baseline funding and good infrastructure. We are rolling out indoor sports halls in every school, synthetic fields for every school that needs it, PERI facilities as a result of the review earlier on – music rooms, dance studios, student care centres and so on.
Where appropriate, we will build specialised infrastructure fit-for-purpose. If we need a commercial-scale teaching kitchen like at Crest Secondary, we will
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invest. And, in fact, I have seen that lovely kitchen that is used to teach our students. If we need a laboratory for applied learning – we will invest.
But let me emphasise that it is not just about facilities and resources. The more I interact with educators and our specialists, the more I appreciate that teaching and learning are complex and intricate processes. It is not one specific subject, lesson, or way of doing things. It is not about smaller class size per se. It is about inspiring teachers who lead, care and inspire. It is about teachers who weave together curriculum, co-curricular activities, Values-In-Action programmes into teachable moments. They create an integrative and immersive environment, to create the opportunities for success, to encourage students to strive to learn. Just like what the schools had done for Dr Leonard Tan.
Our key strength in our national school system is in having a core of good teachers and principals across all our schools, committed to making Every School a Good School and bringing out the best in every child. These dedicated educators also constantly strive to look for innovative ideas to bring out the best in every child. So, we also appreciate good ideas that are surfaced to us.
Mr Inderjit has been raising the issue of streaming for many years, including in previous Parliaments. In the last Parliament, Ms Denise Phua expressed concerns about high-stakes PSLE examinations and pushed for changes.
MOE takes a systematic approach to making changes. We already have subject-based banding in Primary schools to prepare students for standard and foundational subjects at PSLE. Starting this year, Normal (Academic) and Normal (Technical) students in 12 Secondary schools will be allowed to take some subjects at a higher level starting from Secondary 1.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong and Ms Denise Phua spoke about integrated schools. In fact, Ms Phua also presented a detailed proposal on Primary to Secondary integrated school in Parliament in January, the key elements which she repeated today and which in the earlier session I responded to. I appreciate that Ms Phua is a hands-on practitioner who understands the complexity of education. She has pioneered many innovative and effective practices in Pathlight and Eden Schools for children with autism. So, I would like to assure Ms Phua again that we will give her proposal serious consideration. It will take us some time to evaluate Members' ideas – whether it is cluster schools or broader development of talent, or through-train, because there are really a
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range of ideas that we can all explore. We can always do more for our schools, teachers and students, in order to bring out the best in every child.
We will expand the mix of programmes across our schools, and create a landscape with more distinctive schools. In doing so, we will not just have a handful of good schools, but every school is a good school.
But let me mention a very important initiative that we have just embarked on. We are currently expanding the range of programmes and the mix of programmes across our schools and creating a more colourful landscape with more distinctive schools. This is part of our effort of making every school a good school. Each will be good in its own ways, with its peaks of excellence, as Dr Intan pointed out, well-resourced with good teachers, and with varied programmes.
Even as we continue our efforts across our schools, we are also bringing out the best in every child at every stage of the learning journey.
Education is not a timed obstacle race, to collect qualifications in the fastest possible time; rather, our children's education is a journey of discovering their strengths, building their compass and their navigation skills.
This journey has many stages and is a lifelong one. It never ends!
At each stage, a child learns what is appropriate for that age, and builds the basics for the next stage. To make learning meaningful, each stage needs to be rigorous, well-designed and appropriate for the development of the child.
At preschool, our children develop socio-emotional skills through play and acquire the basics of numeracy and bilingual literacy.
We build on this foundation in Primary school. Queenstown Primary was the first school I visited on my first day of work when I joined MOE as Minister and I recently visited it again. I am very glad they have made so much progress in just two-odd years. Their students are now exposed to a rich variety of stimulus – in reading, writing, mathematics, arts, music, physical education and social interaction. They enjoy quality interaction with their form teachers, in dedicated Form Teacher Guidance Periods. I saw how deeply engaged our young students were on that day. And this is not just in Queenstown Primary.
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It is happening across all our Primary schools.
In Secondary schools, we help our students to pursue and deepen their strengths and interests, and further develop higher order skills. In the post-Secondary years, our students can make the best use of our wide range of pathways to progress.
It is remarkable that today, 96% of each cohort already progress to post-Secondary education – almost universal – up from just 88% a decade ago. I should add that not many countries have been able to achieve this.
Over the years, we have made these distinct pathways more interconnected to allow students to progress at different stages of their development. We have introduced the Polytechnic Foundation Programme, Direct Entry Scheme to Polytechnic Programme and the Enhanced NITEC Foundation Programme. All this is about creating more opportunities for our students.
We can be proud of our post-Secondary students' achievements. Now, this is Miss Catherine Boey [A slide was shown to hon Members]. She is the world's best in beauty therapy! Catherine won the Gold Medal for the Beauty Therapy Skill Area at the WorldSkills Competition in 2013 – the WorldSkills competition is hailed as the Olympics of Skills. Catherine is now at ITE. This has been a long Budget session. If Members need some rejuvenation and beauty therapy from the world's best, I will make the arrangements. Gentlemen could be included, too.
I met Catherine, together with many of our winners at the biennial WorldSkills Competition. This is a very intense competition and you can hear the drama that they go through. I am proud that our ITE and Polytechnic students outshone those from more advanced economies, from economies that have a longer history of skills-based training. It is a testament to the hard work of these students and the quality and standing of our ITE and our Polytechnics.
Catherine credits ITE and WorldSkills for providing her the opportunity to hone her skills; building her confidence in handling stressful situations; and learning how to work and interact with people from all over the world. She takes pride in her skills and I am very happy that she wants to pass it on to others. She is currently a Teaching Associate at ITE and will be pursuing further studies on an ITE Scholarship this year and then return to ITE as a lecturer after her
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studies. She hopes to be a role model to inspire her students to believe in themselves and achieve their dreams. Catherine is just one example of how we are bringing out the best in each child at every stage of the learning journey.
Deputy Prime Minister Tharman in his round-up speech for the Budget debate affirmed this Government's commitment to invest in every talent, not just in schools, but in lifelong learning. Indeed, to enable our young to seize opportunities, we must make a major shift in our mindsets, to go beyond qualifications, to build deep skills and expertise in every student. Mr Lim Biow Chuan spoke earlier on importance of skills to ensure that our young can continue to access opportunities.
We need to embrace the idea of craftsmanship and professionalism seriously, and encourage our students to pursue their areas of strengths. In doing so, we will develop a culture of mastery on the job, seeking not just competence but excellence. This starts with the basics. Film artist, Nor Azman Mohammed Rohman, has a job which many young people dream of. He is in Lucasfilm, and had worked on blockbusters like \"Star Trek: Into Darkness\" and \"Pacific Rim\". He said, \"You have to have the patience to learn the basics properly and to get the fundamentals right.\"
Beyond getting the basics right, it must continue with a habit of lifelong learning to develop one's talent. The learning has to take place, day-in, day-out, on the job, and through professional upgrading. Only then can the virtues of craftsmanship and professionalism be built and deepened; taking pride in one's work and developing a culture of excellence.
I have met many Polytechnic and ITE students, and I enjoy our interactions. Their energy and drive to do well, and their passion for certain fields are infectious. I am proud of them, and I want to do more for them. That is why we set up the ASPIRE Committee chaired by Senior Minister of State Indranee. We will be working in close partnership with various industries to pioneer new pathways to develop the professionalism and craftsmanship of our young. So, I thank Mr Lim Biow Chuan and Dr Intan for speaking on ASPIRE earlier.
For two years now, I have officiated at the Singapore-Industry Scholarship (SgIS) Award Ceremony. We identified companies which are serious about developing a strong core of Singaporeans with deep skills and expertise to anchor strategic industries. Close to 200 scholarships have been given. It is not just the scholarships, it is the commitment to developing talent that we look
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forward in these companies and there are some big ones and some SMEs.
We are also expanding degree places, with distinctive applied degree pathways to be offered by SIT and UniSIM. Many Singaporean students will benefit. This, together with ASPIRE and Government-industry collaborations like the Singapore Industry Scholarship, is part of a larger effort to move beyond qualifications to a stronger focus on skills and expertise, on developing one's professional depth on the job, on developing craftsmanship, and on developing the instincts to pull together different strands of knowledge to solve real-world problems and to invent new possibilities. It is a very exciting development and a very major effort. Senior Minister of State Indranee will speak more about ASPIRE later.
By now, I hope Members appreciate the important shifts that we are making to continue to bring out the best in every child at every stage of their learning journey. If we see education as a long journey, then Primary school is just one stage of this journey. It is within this context that we are reviewing PSLE scoring and Direct School Admissions (DSA), as the Prime Minister mentioned during National Day Rally speech last year.
Changes to PSLE scoring will support a more holistic education for our students: PSLE will provide the assessment to help each child decide on the next step of his education journey that is best given his pace of development. Mr Lim Biow Chuan spoke about this earlier that the PSLE score should not determine the student's future, and that whatever it is, it is for students to make the best out of their Secondary education in school. I fully agree.
Mr Low Thia Khiang spoke about the need to be careful about the changes and I agree with Mr Low; that is why we are calibrating our changes carefully.
The PSLE is a long-standing assessment in our education system. In fact, I have been listening to the feedback at many sessions of Our Singapore Conversation last year – both the broader ones as well as MOE-focused ones – and at other platforms. I fully appreciate the concerns voiced over timing and the posting criteria for admissions to Secondary schools. It is still some time before we implement. I want to assure parents that there will be no sudden changes. We will give parents, teachers and schools sufficient time to adjust.
Right now, we are focused on working with parents so that they may better understand the variegated landscape of our schools and indeed meet the interests of their children and, therefore, how to make the best use of the many
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pathways available to bring out the best in their children – not in terms of their PSLE scores but in every domain. It is to prepare our students for the future, as several Members had spoken earlier about. We will release more details on the PSLE in due course.
Mr Ang Wei Neng and Mr Hri Kumar spoke about the DSA or the Direct School Admission. DSA recognises a broader range of abilities. It helps students enter schools with programmes that can develop their strengths and interests. We will be broadening the DSA to consider personal qualities of students, such as character, resilience, drive and leadership. In fact, some Secondary schools already consider these qualities through interviews, selection camps, feedback from Primary schools and so on.
We will make a small but important change by making this practice consistent in all schools with DSA, to emphasise importance of personal qualities. Let me emphasise that we are not adding a new DSA category. We are not increasing the total number of DSA places. As parents have told me, \"Don't create new sources of pressure for students.\" So, parents need not worry that they have to send their children for enrichment classes or tuition classes to prepare for this.
The reason is this. Primary schools can identify the small handful of children with exceptional personal qualities. This is most obvious when a child thrives despite adversity brought about by life's inevitable difficulties. I have met quite a number of these students myself. Primary schools will look out for suitable programmes in Secondary schools based on the strengths of the child. Secondary schools taking in these students will consider them holistically in DSA selection. The rest of the DSA process remains largely unchanged.
Now, some parents and teachers have warned that it is difficult to quantify personal qualities. And indeed, we fully appreciate this. These are qualitative aspects, best observed through daily interactions over a sustained period of time in school.
In short, let me summarise what I have said: our children's education is a long journey. PSLE should be an important checkpoint so as to better support our children in their learning journey. DSA provides a pathway for students to develop areas of interest and strength.
The changes that we are making are important, but do see it as part of a broader effort to support the holistic development of each child and to bring
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out the best in every child, so as to prepare our children better for the future. I want to emphasise that there are many interconnected pathways to success, and at every stage of the journey. Let us equip them with a strong inner compass and navigation skills to excel in the future.
I have just spoken on how we are bringing out the best in every child at every stage of the learning journey. But some worry that there are children who cannot access the opportunities at various stages.
Let me now touch on how we bring out the best in every child, in every domain, in every school, at every stage of the learning journey, whatever the child's starting point. Making this happen is close to the hearts of many of us who work in education. We must strive for our education system to be open and inclusive. Children have different needs: learning needs, special needs and financial needs. MOE is committed to do more to support these students at all levels. Our approach is comprehensive: levelling-up programmes for literacy and numeracy; pastoral and student-care support; special needs support; and financial support.
Let us follow a child's learning journey through the various stages and how we will support them.
Entering preschool, if our child is weak in his ABCs, he can benefit from Focused Language Assistance in Reading or the FLAiR programme. Going into Primary school, what if our child is not strong enough with reading and numbers? I announced the expansion of our Learning Support Programmes and other levelling up programmes for English and Mathematics in Parliament last year. These programmes provide support for the weaker 15% of each cohort throughout the Primary school years and, if necessary, right through for the rest of the 10 years of basic education.
We already invest up to 20% more on these students over the course of their Primary education, compared to the average, and this will increase to 40% by 2017 as we expand these programmes. I would like to assure Mr Singh that we are very mindful of the importance of these programmes to bring out the best in every child. We are developing a critical mass of expert teachers to support this effort.
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After Primary school, in addition to school-based assistance, we also adopt a whole-school approach for some. Members are aware of the good outcomes of NorthLight School (NLS) and Assumption Pathway School (APS) in developing students who fail the PSLE. Before these schools were established, attrition rates were as high as 60% for this group of students. We have managed to lower this to 10% to 15% in a few short years. This is remarkable success. What it means is that many lives are transformed, many lives are changed for the better, and some children really blossom in these schools and discover the best in themselves. Many more are progressing to ITE and transiting to meaningful employment.
So, building on this success, we started Crest Secondary School (CSS) and Spectra Secondary School (SSS). This provides an alternative pathway for Normal (Technical) students. And, again, the response has been very encouraging. I have spoken to some of the parents myself. Attendance rates are close to 100%. More importantly, the students are engaged. These are all significant interventions. Whatever a child's starting point in terms of learning, there is support to help to bring out the best in him.
Mr Inderjit Singh expressed concerns that we are labelling students. Let me assure the Member that this is not the intention. As one of the board members of these schools once told me, and I quote, \"The best antidote to stigma is success.\" He can speak on this with authority because having been once a student who struggled in a regular school, and I quote, \"Between stigma and an opportunity to excel, I would choose opportunity to excel, rather than slowly see your interest dwindle away.\"
Learning is not just about ABCs and 123s. I am also a firm believer in the importance of socio-emotional learning. Beyond academic support, we are strengthening socio-emotional support through a number of programmes, including the expansion of school-based Student Care Centres (SCCs). Dr Intan and Mr Yee Jenn Jong both spoke on this. And I agree with Dr Intan that, indeed, Student Care Centres provide a conducive environment for learning, especially for those from less advantaged backgrounds. We have significantly expanded in the past few years. Just three years ago, we had fewer than 40; now we have 80 school-based Student Care Centres in our Primary schools.
I have visited many of our Student Care Centres and it is a joy to see happy, engaged children. I am happy to announce that over the next two years, we will increase the number of school-based Student Care Centres by 50%, or 40 more. That means, by the end next year, almost two-thirds of our Primary schools will have Student Care Centres. I look forward to more innovative care programmes
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and even more happy and engaged children. Mr Alvin Yeo spoke about full-day schools. Let us start by having really good Student Care Centres in our schools.
I spoke about bringing out the best in every child, whatever his starting point in terms of learning needs. What about special needs? Now, Ms Denise Phua has been a passionate advocate for us to do more to support the needs of students with special needs. We have significantly enhanced support for children with special needs in schools and in our IHLs. We continue to work closely with VWO-run special education (SPED) schools to improve their curriculum and enhance our support for them. Many of us, including Minister of State Sim Ann and myself, have visited many of these schools and they are doing very good work.
I have also met many students with dyslexia, and know many successful adults who have dyslexia. With intervention, they can learn to overcome difficulties and build a good foundation in literacy. Our pilot programmes have been very helpful for children with dyslexia. From this year, we have expanded school-based dyslexia remediation to 20 more schools – making it a total of 62 such schools, spread across the island.
Before I go on, let me share a reflection on Singaporeans with special needs. I had the privilege of working with Ms Chia Yong Yong, President of the Society for the Physically Disabled, in Our Singapore Conversation Committee, and now with Dr Yeo Sze Ling, research scientist at A*STAR in our Singapore50 Committee. Yong Yong has a muscular disorder and Sze Ling lost her sight at age four. They show great tenacity and have come a long way. They are cheerful and optimistic. They embody that \"can do\" spirit. They made a success of their own lives and go on to contribute to others.
Members would have read in the papers when the \"A\" levels results were released, of Ms Amanda Chong, a Pioneer JC student who suffered glaucoma at the age of three and her vision at end of her Junior College Year 1. Her studies suffered, especially in Economics and Mathematics, which are graphics-heavy. Despite that, she went on to do extremely well in her \"A\" levels. I am not lauding her just for her grades, but rather for her remarkable spirit. As one of our educators shared with me, and I quote, \"While the world became pitch dark to her, the darkness did not consume her. Instead, she continued to see beauty in her life and brought light, hope and inspiration to the people around her.\" It is truly, truly inspiring.
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Each year, about 1% of our students who enter the ITE, Polytechnics or publicly-funded Universities have some form of special education needs. I agree with Ms Denise Phua that we must do more to support our children, so that needs do not mean limits, and that we can bring out their very best so that we have many more Yong Yongs, Sze Lings and Amandas.
Ms Phua would be very happy that we will be setting up Disability Support Offices in ITEs, all Polytechnics and publicly-funded Universities. A Special Education Needs Fund will also be set aside to alleviate the cost of assistive technology devices and support services. I feel strongly that these enhancements will make a significant difference to the students. Minister of State Sim Ann will speak more on this later.
I have covered learning needs, special educational needs. I would like to now touch on financial needs. Let me first acknowledge our Singapore parents. An admirable trait of our parents is that whatever their financial circumstances, they put their children's education first and foremost. I am sure all of us have met these parents, and I have met many of them myself. I want to help parents succeed in bringing out the best in every of their children. Financial circumstances should not be the limiting factor.
Starting from pre-school, on top of the generous Child Care subsidies, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman announced the Kindergarten Fee Assistance Scheme (KiFAS). The Minister for Social and Family Development will provide details later, but I am happy to add that for MOE kindergartens, this could mean paying as low as $1.50 a month.
We have also significantly enhanced coverage of financial support in schools over the years. In 2012, we expanded the MOE Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) for students. This year, bursaries for students at Independent Schools were enhanced. More than 68,000 students benefited last year. This is more than a four-fold increase from a decade ago.
We have also provided more funds for our schools this year for school-based financial assistance so that schools can act flexibly on the ground. Schools with more needy students will get more funds. We also have the Opportunity Fund to ensure students from less advantaged backgrounds are not denied learning opportunities in school. From pre-school to 10 years of basic education, there is good support for bringing out the best in every child, whatever his financial starting point.
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Higher education in Singapore is already highly subsidised and MOE is committed to making higher education even more accessible to our students. This is a very important phase for bringing out their best. From academic year 2014, students from lower and middle-income families in our Institutes of Higher Learning will receive more substantial financial support. We will make higher education more accessible for lower- and middle-income groups in two ways: by raising the income thresholds for bursaries and by raising bursary amounts. This means more Singaporean students will qualify for bursaries and they will each get more. In all, 120,000 Singaporean students stand to benefit – again, a very substantial increase.
Now, if you look at this chart [A slide was shown to hon Members. Please refer to Annex 1.] for ITE students, if you are enrolled in ITE, the bursaries will not only fully cover the fees – which is about $310 – but also provide for living allowances of about $50 to $70 a month. If they are in Polytechnics, 80% of the fees for the lower income students will be covered. The bursary of $2,000 will cover about 80% of their fees. University students in lower-income families will have about 45% of their fees covered – almost half. Students from the middle-income households will also benefit from a sizeable increase in the bursary quantum. These changes, together the recent concessions on transport fares for Polytechnic students, will reduce the financial burden of many students [Slides were shown to hon Members. Please refer to Annex 2 and Annex 3.]
I should reiterate that these bursaries come on top of the very high level of subsidies which all our students in our Institutes of Higher Learning already enjoy, which all students enjoy regardless of family income.
By ensuring access to high-quality education opportunities, we aim to bring out the best in every child, whatever his financial starting point, learning needs or special education needs.
I have said that we want to bring out the best in every child, in every domain, in every school, at every stage of the learning journey, whatever the starting point. To achieve this, we have to do it in partnership – in partnership with the community. As the old adage goes: it takes a village to raise a child. We are not just raising a child, but bringing out his best. It is not just any village, but one that really cares and is fully committed to this mission.
When a child can reach his best, the whole village rejoices and benefits, as my story of Dr Leonard Tan illustrates, and that of Ms Catherine Boey and all
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the students who have gone on to achieve their best.
There are many excellent teachers, allied educators, counsellors and psychologists in our school system. I have met many myself.
Last month, at the Pioneer Generation Tribute Event, I met teachers who, together, have accumulated thousands of years of experience between them. Some are still teaching, some passing on their experiences to younger teachers. They have brought out the best in their students and seen for themselves their students reaching their best. Younger teachers who met them that day were inspired. There is a long and deep tradition of care in our teaching service.
Last month, I gave out National Day awards to over 280 teachers who made the difference to many students, and in the room you could feel their dedication and their passion for their students – it is remarkable.
In November 2012, I attended the Singapore International Science Teachers Conference. This was held during the school holidays. Every one of the 500 participants had signed up voluntarily and all had this passion to improve their skills in order to teach our children better. So, they are learning to teach and I hope that they also teach to learn.
Mrs Chiam raised the issue of teachers' well-being. And, indeed, this is very much at the heart of our concern. Over the last few years alone, we have significantly increased the number of teachers, allied educators that support our teachers in teaching and learning and in behavioural support as well as our executive and administrative staff in our schools. I want to assure Mrs Chiam and Ms Janice Koh that if you look at the international comparisons of the number of teachers to the number of students in our school system, we can hold our head high. As I have said, it is not just about numbers; it is really about the heart; in getting the right people with the heart for teaching. Our school leaders are very caring leaders and, in many instances, I have heard of so many stories of how they provide flexibility for teachers.
When we want to bring out the best in our children, we need to help our teachers reach their personal and professional best, too. I am committed to enabling our teachers to continue to grow. I applaud the culture of dedication, sharing and professional-led excellence. Our teachers are lifelong students.
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In the coming years, the Academy of Singapore Teachers (AST) and our specialised teachers' academies will do even more to lead and inspire the continuing professional development of our teachers. Many teachers are also forming spontaneous networks of learning communities to share effective practices. For example, teachers in the Normal (Technical) Professional Focus Group come together to share and learn one another's best practices that can bring out the best in their students. When the teachers themselves grow and feel fulfilled, motivated and supported, the students under them can blossom.
Let me now say a few words about parents. Parents are a child's first, and most important, teachers. We are fortunate to have a culture where parents want an active role in the child's learning. We respect and appreciate that. We must work together with parents to bring out the best in their children. Over the last few years, schools have stepped up their efforts to work hand-in-hand with parents. I heartily support this and hope to see even more.
MOE has seeded funding through the Parent Support Group (PSG) Fund. To keep up the good partnership, we will provide an annual top-up of up to $2,500 per school to fund our schools' parent engagement efforts. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Hawazi and Minister of State Sim Ann will talk about how our parents and the community have enabled our children to have richer learning experiences – be it in bilingualism or learning about our region.
Sir, Singapore is a young country, but we have a wealth of wisdom in our pioneers and a wealth of spirit in our young. As we approach our 50th year of Independence, let us honour the efforts of our forefathers, particularly educators in the Pioneer Generation who built up the education system to what it is today. With very little, they achieved a lot.
I met Mrs Niva Dutt at the Pioneer Generation event. She was the former Principal of Cedar Girls. She had brought her grandson along. She told me and I quote, \"I want him to learn from this Pioneer Generation, about hard work and sacrifice, and to remember to respect them\". What was most touching was that the young man was most enthusiastic to speak with the teachers who were there and to learn from them.
My hope is that each child can reach his best and go on to be a pioneer in his own way, inspiring others and passing on the best to generations to come, like our pioneers have done. To do this, our children need to have strong skills, character and values, a strong commitment to Singapore and fellow Singaporeans, and a strong conviction that they have all of our fullest support
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and love.
I hope Members can see how we are seeking to Bring Out the Best in Every Child, in Every Domain of Learning, in Every School, at Every Stage of the Learning Journey, whatever the Starting Point, to Create a Better Future – Together.
Assoc Prof Tan Kheng Boon Eugene (Nominated Member): Sir, I would like to urge the Education Ministry to strengthen its efforts in promoting interest, awareness, knowledge, and the study of Asia in our schools, especially in the institutions of higher learning.
There is, I am afraid, a worrying level of ignorance and perhaps even condescension among some of our students towards Asia. This attitude is partly reflected in how study trips and university exchange programmes in Asia rank lowly with our students, and pales in comparison with those in Europe and North America.
But beyond that, it is also the fact that they do not see Asia as being important. Part of the problem lies, I think, in the lack of knowledge, compounded by stereotypes of Asian societies, cultures, histories and politics.
This knowledge and empathy gap is worrying because we are an integral part of Asia. The economic centre of gravity is likely to shift indefinitely to Asia within the next decade or two. Most Singaporeans can also trace their cultural roots to Asia as well.
Asia is vast. Even within countries like China and India, there is tremendous diversity. I am concerned that the combination of relative ignorance of and the lack of empathy and appreciation towards Asia will work against our larger interests.
We urgently need to instill a sense of realism, improve knowledge levels, acquire a nuanced understanding and a holistic appreciation of Asia, a region that is of central importance to us politically, economically and culturally.
We need to inculcate in our young an open mind, an enquiring attitude and an appreciation of the strengths, weaknesses and diversity towards the world
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at large, but especially towards Asia.
More can be done to ensure that younger generations of Singaporeans better appreciate our place in Asia, in particular, Southeast Asia.
Mrs Lina Chiam: Sir, we face the difficult task of equipping students to succeed in a competitive global economy, a knowledge-based society, and a hyper-connected, digital age. Today, our students are worried about job availability. Our PMETs are constantly displaced by cheaper foreign hires, and our older age seniors can no longer withdraw CPF in lump sum.
Without the ingenuity to land and compete for jobs, our young people will be subject to unemployment like their PMET seniors – those born after 1965. Already, the Government is finding the task difficult to keep middle-aged PMETs employed. I see this as a warning for our younger generation as well. Work must start now. We need a curriculum with a blend of academic, technical and critical thinking skills. Our students need to learn collaboration and communication, not from textbooks, but from life projects.
I urge the Minister for Education to consider international exposure for our students, where up to 20% of our students can be sent for overseas exchange funded by Government. This works both ways as we also receive 20% of international students in our schools.
I propose that in the medium term, international schools in Singapore should not merely serve the needs of our expatriates, but to serve as an additional source of supply for education services for Singaporeans, to be subsidised by the Government. The intention is to ensure a portion of our student remains globally connected. If left to market forces, the lower and medium income families will not be able to afford such services.
One of the key reasons why our parents are not keen to give birth is the cost of educating a child. We should commit to supporting the full cost of education until the child is 16.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong: Sir, I have taken interns in my companies for the last 13 years, from Secondary to tertiary students. I made it a point to expose them
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to real-life work, as relevant as possible to their training, skills and interests.
Internship is an important part of tertiary training, as the Minister has just said. This will be even more so when we run practice-based Universities. Even research universities need to develop meaningful internships to allow their students to keep abreast of industry needs. Countries like Germany have strong internship programmes. Often, graduates continue to work for the companies they interned in. Research know-how from German universities has also strengthened the technical capabilities of companies, through internship and apprenticeship links.
Sir, there may develop a gap between the number of interns and the availability of meaningful internship places as we increase our University intake. From my experience, I also found differing intensity of engagement by education institutions and their supervisors with companies like mine.
Internship can be an effort beyond the institutions. It can be at the country level. We can identify technical skills needed in priority sectors and help inject these capabilities into local companies to make them global players. The Government can work with larger companies to identify those prepared to commit a minimum number of internship places with real-world projects and support companies by funding an internship manager. This manager can mentor interns and even guide them while they work part-time from their schools on projects initiated during internship. This will allow companies to assign longer and realistic internship projects and tap on academic supervisors to guide students in research.
By building deeper engagement, it will raise the bar for internship across the country and foster closer links between the industry and research done in tertiary institutions.
Assoc Prof Tan Kheng Boon Eugene: Sir, I declare my interest as an academic at the Singapore Management University.
In our worthy quest to have world-class universities, the irony is that one casualty is scholarship on Singapore. The incentives for performance bonuses, tenure and promotion mean that academics are often driven to be \"strategic\" in their research, publications and teaching.
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Put simply, top-tier, peer-reviewed academic journals in the social sciences and humanities, in particular, are not typically enamoured with top-rate scholarship on Singapore compared with other topics. Why is this so? It is a function of our small size and our unique political development. Scholarship on Singapore is deemed to be of very limited applicability in academia.
The harsh reality is that Singapore studies are not regarded as being relevant or appealing enough to most journals' readership. One such area is the study of Singapore government and politics. Another area is Singapore law.
The then Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong in a 2007 speech described the situation I just outlined as a \"tension between the need to write on Singapore law for local consumption and the need to write for international recognition\".
Singapore's history and development and our unique set of political, social, economic, cultural policies, and institutions are seen as exceptions or even oddities to the Western audience. Perversely enough, to increase the odds of publishing well in the field of social sciences and the humanities on Singapore topics, one probably has to be unfairly critical, almost polemical, in analysing and admonishing of Singapore. There are academics overseas who have created a lucrative academic industry of caricaturizing Singapore. Put bluntly, bashing Singapore pays.
In MOE's 2012 Committee of Supply, I argued that it is important to develop Singaporean talent in the various disciplines, particularly in areas that are important or perhaps even of strategic interest to Singapore. In these areas, it is crucial to have Singaporean talent and expertise grounded in a firm commitment to Singapore and with a subtle and nuanced understanding of the Singapore context.
Then Chief Justice Chan in the same speech urged law academics to \"strike a proper balance between personal and national interests\". Can there be more recognition given to our academics who work on Singapore? We urgently need to go beyond lip service. MOE should take the lead if the Autonomous Universities are not willing to do so.
Ms Faizah Jamal (Nominated Member): Sir, I declare my interest as an environment educator. In the 2012 Committee of Supply, I had asked why environment education has not been given emphasis in adventure education
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programmes for schools. The basis for my question is that for a holistic outdoor education, it is not enough that students experience only the physically and mentally challenging team-bonding and personal reflection of adventure education. There has to be a component of environment education as well, so that students are eco-literate. Personal reflection should include a sound understanding, awareness and consciousness of human impact on the environment, not only through the outdoor activities, but also in daily life as well so that students are guided and supported to make responsible life-affirming choices.
Last year, I had asked how much emphasis would be given to environment education and preschools in the present environment awareness or \"Discover Your World\" preschool curriculum. For this year's COS, I would like an update and I have four related questions.
Firstly, beyond environment education, through local field trips that were mentioned by the Senior Parliamentary Secretary Mr Hawazi Daipi today, how far have schools included the environment education component in their schools' adventure education and camping trips, both local and overseas? For example, when students hiked up Bukit Timah or Gotong Ladang as part of their school camp, is there also a component and facilitation session where they also learn about, say, the unique biodiversity of the area or issues relating to deforestation and climate change? Second, in general, are teachers in charge of the environment component at all schools given specialised training in the facilitation of such programmes? And with regard to early childhood educators, are they also given specialised training as well? Lastly, what is the range of courses available in our Polytechnics and Universities which offer environment-related modules?
Mr Yee Jenn Jong:Sir, last year, NUS announced a three-month online plus three-month campus learning programme for incoming undergraduates who have completed National Service. The programme qualifies for academic credits.
Last month, NTU went one up. Its online courses allow anyone to earn credits and transfer these to NTU if they enrol as an undergraduate later.
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MINDEF has initiated a Committee to Strengthen National Service (CSNS). Amongst other things, it is looking at how skills picked up during NS could be recognised in civilian life. An example is the Swiss allowing the transfer of skills or leadership positions in the military into credits in universities.
Online learning is now widely used everywhere. We can marry the ideas started by the universities and what MINDEF is looking at, by having more programmes to engage NSFs in continuous learning.
A Straits Times article last year highlighted that more NSFs are studying part-time, but with private providers. NSFs will have varying degrees of free time. Online can let them pace themselves and learn even whilst in camp.
Our schools can look at courses that can expand on what NSFs are learning in their vocations. MINDEF has gone high-tech. Universities can offer courses, such as computing, telecommunications and engineering, that explore the technology behind the weapons and tools that NSFs use. Management schools can engage them in leadership and soft skills.
Assoc Prof Tan Kheng Boon Eugene: Sir, in a written reply to a Parliamentary Question I filed last month, the Education Ministry stated that in the past five years, students admitted under the Autonomous Universities' Discretionary Admission Scheme (DAS) accounted for between 1% and 10% of each intake.
In my view, this range is too wide, and a figure of 10% of a cohort admitted under DAS is too high. With a conservative ballpark figure of 12,000 University places per admission cohort in our AUs in the last five years, it means that there was, at least in one year, where 1,200 undergraduates were admitted under the DAS.
Just as I support the Direct School Admission in our national schools, there is a place for the DAS in our AUs. DAS students, with their special strengths and talents, can meaningfully add to the educational experience of their peers and enrich university life.
But, in my view, undergraduates admitted under DAS should not exceed 3% to 5% of each admission cohort. As I understand it, many DAS cases are students who qualified for local University admission but who would not have
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been admitted based on their academic results alone.
Admission to our Universities is very competitive. Every place for a DAS student means a place denied to a student who would otherwise have been admitted based on academic merit. I urge the Ministry to exert greater oversight of the DAS in our Autonomous Universities.
Ms Janice Koh: Sir, the education landscape today is still largely focused on the accumulation of knowledge. Given the competitive testing environment, the pedagogy is based on a banking system of learning, that is, accumulating knowledge in the hope that one day, in the future, it will be useful when one needs it. In the past, Confucius would have said that the pursuit of knowledge is about \"learning to ask\" or \"学问\". Today, however, the pursuit of knowledge is one of “学了方可就业”, that is, \"learning so that one can get a job\".
But the world, as we know, is changing at an unprecedented pace. Just as Deputy Prime Minister Tharman has highlighted in his Budget round-up speech, we do not even know what jobs might look like in the future.
Sir, it is time for us to go back to “学问” and learn how to ask. Only by asking, one starts to understand and prepare for the future, and find out what the world needs and appreciate how one might contribute meaningfully to it. Our children need the capacity to question the status quo, to look at information with a critical and an inquisitive mind, and to respond creatively and imaginatively to it.
I believe that what is needed now is an education system that reflects the priorities of a creative age. We must consider a more balanced, a more multidisciplinary approach, one that places the arts on equal footing with the sciences, so that our students have the opportunity to learn how to use multiple intelligences and tap into the imaginative thinking that leads to discovery and invention.
I know MOE recognises the need for a more holistic outlook on education. Under its new Framework for 21st Century Competencies, the Ministry has plans to strengthen the teaching of physical, art and music education in schools. It is a great start.
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However, I would like to question the continued focus on music and visual art as the only art components in the core curriculum. The focus on Music and Art prevent teachers from actively tapping into a wide range of arts pedagogies available. In Australia, for instance, dance, drama, media arts, music and visual arts are defined as the five art forms in their curriculum. Finland, which consistently performs well in PISA, is even more forward-looking, and specifies nine art forms, including architecture, circus and craft.
Sir, I would like to suggest, for a start, that the Ministry consider introducing drama as an art form and as a recognised pedagogical tool in our core curriculum at Primary and Secondary school. I recommend this for three reasons.
First, the benefits of drama are manifold. The dialogical processes of improvisation and character-building invite students to ask questions about human behaviour, to observe, listen and build empathy towards others, and to think and express themselves on their feet. Students learn to conceive original ideas, and are taught the creative process, which is an important way to help them understand how ideas are realised and implemented, and how to work with others to make them succeed.
Second, drama is already being used to teach core curriculum subjects in more than 180 Primary and Secondary schools, which is more than 70% of all the Primary and Secondary schools. A recent NIE study shows that a majority of schools employ drama to teach English, Literature and Mother Tongue, with a smaller number using it to teach Mathematics, Science, Social Studies and the Humanities.
Thirdly, despite the increased demand to incorporate drama into the classroom, what is disturbing is that it is not accompanied by the requisite increase in teacher-training. The same study shows that less than 30% of teachers currently using drama have a strong background in the art form. Many teachers have voiced their inadequacy for this task, given their lack of understanding and exposure.
There is clearly a need for more teacher-training and support in this area. Sir, as the Education Minister has described earlier, these are teachers who are also desiring to learn to teach. These are teachers who have the heart to train. Can we support them in this journey? Would the Ministry increase opportunities for teachers to learn drama pedagogy, at both pre-service and in-service levels? One way would be for NIE to provide a foundational drama module for pre-
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service teachers so that they all have a basic understanding of drama before even trying to use it in the classroom. Similarly, the Singapore Teachers Academy for the Arts (STAR) could also provide workshops and advice to in-service teachers on how to design drama curricula as an on-going resource.
MOE could also work collaboratively with specialist arts educators on the ground to develop partnership programmes that would support teachers and schools who are keen to do this. The \"Teaching Through the Arts\" programme, helmed by the National Arts Council, is a good example. Teachers tap into the expertise of arts educators, who mentor them on how to integrate art pedagogies in the teaching of Mathematics and Science. I understand it has been very well-received at Haig Girls' School. The girls are enjoying Mathematics so much more now that they are asking their arts educator, \"Are you coming back again?\" This programme is only in place at eight or nine schools, but there should be more and they should be formally integrated into the learning environment.
Sir, the formal integration of drama would encourage schools to support teachers with the necessary resources and time to develop good drama curricula for our students. The rebalancing of our system to bring the arts on an equal footing with the sciences is not about producing artists. It is about producing individuals, schooled in both the arts and sciences, who are confident, broad-minded, able to ask questions, and able to look at the world in all its beauty and complexity.
The Senior Minister of State for Education and Law (Ms Indranee Rajah): Mr Chairman, what is the ultimate purpose of education? As Minister Heng indicated, it is to bring out the best in every child, to prepare them for the future – not only for jobs but also for life. All the initiatives and steps that we have taken are with these goals in mind.
Minister has given a macro overview. I will deal with two specific areas – tertiary and pre-school. We have, step by step, been transforming the tertiary education landscape. Prior to 2000, we had two Universities – NUS and NTU. In 2000, SMU was established. It introduced the US-style university, complementing the other two older universities modelled along British lines. In 2009, SUTD was established, with a focus on design, engineering training and research. And in 2010, the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) was set up, providing an additional upgrading pathway for Poly graduates.
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In August 2012, the Committee for the University Education Pathways Beyond 2015 (CUEP), chaired by then Senior Minister of State for Education and Information Mr Lawrence Wong, made several key recommendations in its report.
One, to increase the cohort participation in our publicly-funded Universities. And two, to have a new applied degree pathway. I want to spend some time explaining this idea of an applied pathway because I am not sure if it is well understood across the board, but it is very important.
The applied pathway focuses on the practical application of specialised knowledge and prepares students for specific professions with a strong nexus to the industry and economy. SIT and UniSIM were identified as the two new applied Universities, the other Universities being research universities. The report also recommended Continuing Education and Training for lifelong learning and financial assistance for mature students taking part-time degrees at UniSIM.
You can see from this, how step by step but with gathering momentum, we have been diversifying the University landscape and increasing the opportunities for young Singaporeans.
With that part underway, we are now focusing on the Polytechnics and ITE. And this brings me to ASPIRE. In November 2013, the Prime Minister announced the formation of the committee for the Applied Study in Polytechnics and ITE Review (ASPIRE), which I am chairing.
Members have made reference to this. Mr Lim Biow Chuan asked for an update of the committee's work, Mr Yee Jenn Jong spoke about internships, and Mrs Lina Chiam spoke about international exposure for students and the promotion of entrepreneurship. These are the issues which ASPIRE is looking at. Before I go into the details of ASPIRE, let me first explain the driving considerations behind its work.
Mr Chairman, with your permission, may I ask the Clerks to distribute the handouts and display a slide on the LED screens regarding youth unemployment rates around the world?
The Chairman: Yes, Please. [A slide was shown to hon Members. Please refer to Annex 4.]
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Ms Indranee Rajah: This chart shows the state of youth unemployment based on figures from a 2012 OECD report. You will see right at the top, 51% youth unemployment, Greece and Spain. Portugal and Italy, with 36% youth unemployment. These are understandably due to economic conditions.
However, in the US, according to their Bureau of Statistics, there are 3.8 million job openings while approximately 11.8 million are unemployed. This suggests that one reason for part of their unemployment rate is a mismatch between skills and qualifications in demand and the skills and qualifications their people have.
The Finnish and Korean figures, 19.4% and 9.5% respectively, also tell us that a degree qualification is not a guarantee of a job. There must be alignment between skills supply and job demand.
Germany and Switzerland on the other hand have low youth unemployment rates, 7.9% and 7.5% respectively – and one of the key reasons is their strong vocational education and training through apprenticeships, which ensure that many students leave their system with skills relevant to available jobs. So, that is the first thing – aligning skills and demand.
The second is equipping Singaporeans for the future. Deputy Prime Minister Tharman a few days ago highlighted the unpredictability of the future workplace and how digitalisation is transforming not just businesses but jobs.
When I first started work as a lawyer 26 years ago, we had what was considered the forefront of technology at that time: the electronic typewriter with a two-line screen that was used by the secretary; a telex machine that was used by the telex operator; a fax machine that was operated by the fax operator; and the phone was routed through the switchboard which was operated by the phone operator.
Four different machines, handled by four different people, four different jobs. Today, we have the iPhone. All of those functions and everything that those four people did can be done by this. These jobs are gone, except possibly for the secretaries who will probably always be needed. This one single device has disrupted jobs and changed the economic scene.
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Today, you can have a job as an app designer. This job not only did not exist 26 years ago, but the possibility of its existence was not even in anyone's contemplation back then. And what has happened before will happen again. So, the question is, how can our education system help prepare our students for life and a career, now and in the future?
These are the goals of ASPIRE:
(a) Ensuring that our Polytechnic and ITE students are highly employable, with highly sought-after skills, we want them to have different options to progress upwards;
(b) We want to give them the skills to navigate the VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) environment. We want them to have resilience, leadership, adaptability, problem solving, communication skills; and
(c) We also want to lay the foundations for them to become entrepreneurs, innovators and business owners.
We hope to achieve this by strengthening applied learning in the Polytechnics and ITEs because applied learning, by its very nature, promotes these outcomes.
I led a trip to Switzerland and Germany last month to study their applied education model. It was a good learning experience. But as each country is unique, we cannot simply replicate what they have. At the same time though, we saw many familiar elements which assured us that we are on the right track. We have in place many of the pieces that have led to their success – strong vocational training institutions, industry-relevant training and industry partnerships. However, there are also takeaways and ideas from which we can learn. For example, this [A slide was shown to hon Members], we went to a company and, in that company, they had set up another company and the students were the MD, Accountant, CFO and the guys who have to take the orders. They basically had this subsidiary which they ran as a company but putting the students in there so that the students would get corporate experience and have to make the kind of decisions that you would have to do in real life.
So, the things that ASPIRE is currently considering include:
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One, enhanced internships and the value of applied learning through enhanced internships which are as follows: aligning skills to industry demand, so that our students can be assured of a job; combining theory and practice; making sure the real-life environment facilitates the learning of the life skills I mentioned earlier; and also providing a strong base for them to be skilled workers, business owners or entrepreneurs.
This is Mr James Tan [A slide was shown to hon Members], who is currently a Duty Terminal Manager with Changi Airport Group (CAG). James did his internship at Changi Airport and he was awarded the \"Extra Mile Award\" by CAG for his performance. Due to his outstanding contribution during his internship, he was the first intern to be recruited to become a Duty Terminal Manager since the commencement of CAG's Changi Youth Ambassador Programme.
Two, we are also considering (a) progression pathways and opportunities where promotions and progress are based on competency and skills; and (b) the use of skills frameworks or professional industry certifications to achieve this and we would like to pilot them in suitable sectors.
We also want to have enhanced career guidance to get a better matching of student strengths to the courses that they take. We are also looking at support for students who have difficulties and who are not meeting their full potential, especially those at risk of dropping out. So, you can see, graduating from Polytechnic or ITE is also not an end in itself, but it is a wonderful beginning.
We are looking at Continuing Education and Training for the Polytechnic and ITE students so that they can continue to learn and progress even after they graduate from Polytechnic and ITE. We want them to have options to work immediately after graduation; pursue further studies after graduation; work first and then continue with education or get professional or technical certifications; get further training after getting valuable working experience; or become business owners or entrepreneurs.
I had a case in my Meet-the-People Session. An ITE student came to see me for an appeal. He wanted to pursue a technical diploma in automotive engineering as he wanted to have his own automotive business. He wants to be a boss, not an employee, and he is pursuing his dream through the ITE route.
ASPIRE is also reviewing how to strengthen and deepen Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) in Polytechnics and ITEs. Not many people
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realise this, but our Polytechnics and ITEs are centres of Research, Innovation and Enterprise.
Can I invite Members to have a look at this on the screen [A slide was shown to hon Members] and guess what it is? It is actually an edible nutrient sheet developed by Singapore Poly's Food Innovation and Resource Centre in collaboration with industry. So, you can see the green part is broccoli, the orange part is carrot mash, the red part which forms the car is beetroot, the wheels are spinach, and the ground is ground-up mushrooms. And this is ideal for getting young children to eat their vegetables. It is also very good for transportation because you can have the nutrients available. And I asked them whether there were preservatives, they said, \"No\". So, that was a good thing. And what you do is you put it over warm rice, and then it softens, and you can eat it.
The second one is that of a device [A slide was shown to hon Members\t]. You can see this device attached to the kidney area and if you feel a twinge as you look at it, there is a reason for that. This is called a Percutaneous Access to Kidney Assist Device. But, basically, what it does is to help the surgeon to hold steady when locating a kidney stone so that his hand does not shake. It is thus much easier when you conduct a surgery. It was developed by ITE's Technology Development Centre with NUS and NUH. So, this hands-on, practice-oriented, problem-solving nature of applied learning in the Polytechnics and ITE, as well as the research, innovation and enterprise project work that the students do, is uniquely suited to developing young entrepreneurs.
One such entrepreneur is Mr Darran Nathan. He is a Ngee Ann Poly graduate and a technopreneur. He developed a useful base of skills in Polytechnic, and after National Service, with support from his Polytechnic and SPRING, he commercialised the research that he did at Ngee Ann Polytechnic and co-founded Progeniq, which provides high performance computing solutions, helping digital animators to speed up production of visual effects in Hollywood and Bollywood films.
But ASPIRE's work is not without challenges. As we saw in Europe, a critical enabler is strong industry ownership of vocational training. Over there, it is the companies who are responsible for taking on apprentices and they provide the training. They help apprentices to find schools to provide the theoretical education. Employers see themselves as co-developers of talent and invest heavily in training and teaching employees. But they derive a benefit in terms
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of access to skilled employees and a recruitment pipeline.
Here, employers regard career education as the task of the educational institutions, rather than as a joint endeavour. In order for us to achieve the outcomes outlined earlier, there will have to be a much deeper collaboration and co-ownership between industry and the IHLs. And this will require a mindset shift.
However, I am cheered by the interest that has been expressed by industries so far and we are working with them to develop a viable model that suits Singapore's circumstances.
Another challenge is how we view vocational training and jobs. Right now, it is still a paper chase. We have to see each job as something valuable in its own right, and place value on professionalism, technical skills and craftsmanship. As has been said: \"It's not what you know; it's what you can do with what you know.\"
As you can see, ASPIRE's work is multi-faceted. We will not be able to achieve what we hope to unless all the stakeholders are on board. So, for the composition of the ASPIRE Committee, we have private sector representatives, people from the industries, and Government agencies – not just MOE, but people from the Polytechnics, ITEs, Universities and representatives from EDB, SPRING and WDA. We are also actively engaging all the stakeholders – the students, the alumni, the parents, the teachers and the industry players.
In conclusion, on this topic, let me introduce, or launch, the ASPIRE logo. We wanted a logo to reflect what ASPIRE stands for, and initially MOE embarked on doing it in-house. Then we realised – no, this is for the students, so the logo should come from them because they are the best people to express what they think and feel about it. So, we had an open competition across all the Polytechnics and ITE. There were close to 400 entries. The winner, Loh Jun Jie, a third-year student doing a diploma in Visual Communications at NYP, produced this [A slide was shown to hon Members]. This is his winning entry, and you can see it is very professionally done. It is a reflection of the creativity and artistic talent of our Polytechnic students and it is an example of the promise and potential that they have. We want to bring out the best in each and every one of them, and give them as many opportunities as possible to succeed. This is what ASPIRE aspires to do.
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I move on now to preschool education.
Bringing out the best in every child at every stage of the learning journey and that journey begins at preschool. Much of a child's development is influenced by their learning, exposure and experiences in their early years. This is why we put a lot of effort and resources to uplift the quality of preschool education, including the quality of preschool teachers, the preschool curriculum and the preschool pedagogy.
Even as we improve the quality, we are mindful that preschool education should continue to be accessible and affordable to all. And that is why MOE set up the MOE Kindergartens (MKs). The first five pilot MKs started their first batch of K1 classes in January 2014. All of them are progressing well.
I visited the MK in Punggol View Primary School. Although it only started in January this year, the teachers and children at the school have already initiated collaborations with the kindergarten children and teachers. For the Lunar New Year celebrations, the Primary 2 students and kindergarten children worked together to make greeting cards for the community. Through that interaction, the older students learn values, such as responsibility and care for their younger peers, while the kindergarten children learnt teamwork through the activity. The children then gave the cards to the homes in the neighbourhood, which helped them to start thinking in terms of being part of a community.
As announced last week, five more MKs will commence operations in 2015. Four of them are located in Primary schools, so that we can have a diversity of sites which allows us to try different things and compare pros and cons, one of them will be located within the community site in Yishun. These five kindergartens will also have care services because we understand the needs of working parents, and we will continue to pilot innovative approaches to teaching and learning. We will also continue to reserve a third of the places for low-income families and provide subsidies. So, every child in preschool will have access to the opportunities afforded through education, irrespective of their financial background.
On preschool curriculum, the curriculum, teaching and learning resources in MKs are based on the belief and principles reflected in the refreshed Nurturing Early Learners (NEL) Framework for a quality kindergarten curriculum.
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MOE's underlying philosophy is about teaching children to learn and to discover the joy of learning. The MKs offer a curriculum with a distinct Singapore flavour to allow children to learn in an authentic context.
For example, the HI-Light Programme supports holistic development of children in six learning areas: aesthetics and creative expression; discovery of the world; language and literacy; motor skills development; numeracy; and social and emotional development. Children explore, discover and make sense of the world around them through these themes. The themes include topics which are familiar to children, allowing them to explore and learn about themselves, their friends and people and places around them.
Dr Intan asked about centralisation of training for preschool teachers. Raising the quality of teaching at preschool centre is something that MOE remains committed to.
ECDA was formed to integrate the Government's approach towards early childhood care and education in Singapore. We have raised the minimum qualifications for kindergarten-level teachers over the years. For existing teachers, ECDA will provide more professional development opportunities as part of the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Masterplan launched last year.
We have stepped up efforts to ensure consistency in the quality of such training with the enhancement of the accreditation system and standards that training providers must adhere to. Our immediate priority is to strengthen the Polytechnic training pipeline by increasing intake numbers to meet the increased manpower demands. As these are the more immediate needs, we will focus on them first. We will study the feasibility of centralising pre-service training when manpower demand has stabilised.
Ms Faizah Jamal asked about eco-literacy in our schools. Our children are exposed to eco-literacy throughout their education from pre-school, all the way up to the IHLs. Pre-school children are exposed through the \"Discovery of the World\" mentioned earlier. In our Primary and Secondary schools, eco-literacy is taught in two ways. It can be infused as part of other subjects, for example, Character and Citizenship Education, Social Studies, Science and Geography. In some schools, it is taught as a distinctive programme with partners, such as the Science Centre Singapore. One such example is Balestier Hill Secondary,
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which has a programme titled \"Man and the Environment: Developing 21st Century Competencies through Environmental Education\". Many schools also promote environmental education through co-curricular activities or school programmes, for example, Environmental Clubs or school-wide recycling efforts.
Ms Janice Koh asked about using drama as pedagogy. There are many pedagogies that teachers can use in their teaching, including drama. The choice of pedagogy depends on whether the subject lends itself to being taught in a particular way. I would like to assure her that MOE is supportive of this, not just for drama, but for music as well. We have training support in drama through the Programme for Active Learning (PAL); its increased recruitment of art and music teachers; there is a dedicated academy for arts teachers; there is funding for art and music instructor scheme; and an art and music equipment grant for Primary schools.
Also, from 2014, the Singapore Teachers' Academy of the aRts (STAR) will be providing professional learning opportunities for drama teachers through two schemes: the Artist-Mentor Scheme and the Arts Pedagogical Research Fund. Drama teachers will also be able to work with established drama practitioners as mentors to enhance the teaching and learning of drama.
Assoc Prof Eugene Tan asked about efforts to promote the study of Asia. Today, there is already a significant focus on the study of our immediate regional environment in our schools at all levels. It is done through subjects like History and Social Studies.
The history and culture of China, India and Southeast Asian countries and the development of ASEAN are covered in Social Studies for Primary; History and Social Studies for Secondary; and History at pre-University level. In our Polytechnics and ITEs, there are numerous avenues to deepen understanding of Asia. There is China studies, with an attachment in China, or world issues modules. And our Autonomous Universities (AUs) also have undergraduate programmes which give students a better understanding of the region. For example, NUS has an undergraduate programme in Southeast Asian Studies, and offers modules which look at regional politics. MOE also provides support to schools through the Trips for International Experience grant, allowing schools to organise meaningful overseas learning journeys in the region.
Mr Png Eng Huat asked about the tuition grants for international students. The hon Member has raised this topic before in Parliamentary Questions. And
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as the Minister had explained, eight out of 10 start serving the bond promptly, or have been granted approval by MOE to defer their service obligations to pursue further studies. The remaining ones are not necessarily automatically in default – some are overseas for further studies, but omitted to get approval and some are seeking employment. It is not necessary for me to go into details, as the Minister had answered that in the Parliamentary Questions previously. But one thing I can assure Mr Png of is, if it comes to MOE's attention that there is a deliberate default, then enforcement action will be taken.
In response to Assoc Prof Eugene Tan, I would like to assure him that we are investing heavily in promoting scholarship in Singapore and there is no lack of financial support for scholarship projects on Singapore. The amount of funding available is actually in excess of the number of quality projects submitted. I believe his concern is whether or not people will submit such projects. But we are of course happy to encourage the submission of projects with research on Singapore.
Assoc Prof Eugene Tan also asked about the Discretionary Admission Scheme (DAS) to Autonomous Universities (AUs). He felt that 10% was too high. This was actually in response to a call for some flexibility and being autonomous, the AUs are responsible for admissions into their institutions. They are expected, however, to maintain high standards in its admissions process and they are also accountable to their Boards.
Mr Yee Jenn Jong suggested that we could provide our NSmen with greater support for tertiary studies. Our Universities have already been supporting their transition from NS back into their studies at a comfortable pace. At NUS, NTU and SMU, NSmen can choose to undergo a Special Term to take modules one semester earlier. If they complete sufficient modules during the Special Term, these students will be able to graduate a semester early.
NUS is also piloting an online course for NSmen to start their lessons prior to matriculation. Our NSmen also have other options for further education, such as the specialist and advanced diploma programmes offered by our Polytechnics. To the extent that his suggestion was for them to do part time studies in the course of NS, I think it is important that they should, during the course of NS, focus and give all their energies and time to National Service as it is very important. But if there are other things that can be done in the course of NS, then perhaps those suggestions can be referred to MINDEF.
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In conclusion, Mr Chairman, let me say that the efforts that we take are all designed to bring out the best in our children. We want the best for them because Singaporeans have great potential. MOE's task is to make sure that that potential is realised.
Mr Laurence Lien (Nominated Member): Sir, children are all different. They all learn differently. They have different interests, strengths and challenges. I am glad to hear Minister Heng talk about building an open and inclusive system. But we now have a system that still tends to be more curriculum-centric than child-centric. This is often unavoidable because the class size is large. Schools may be varied but, in the classroom, the teacher would typically use one type of teaching pedagogy.
The downside then is that the system is too one-size-fits-all and does not fit the learning styles of many children. As we know, auditory learners would like to talk things through, visual learners would like to write things down or see graphs and charts, and kinaesthetic learners learn best through moving, doing and touching. If teaching methods only cater to one type of student, the learning of other students may get compromised. Some may even be disadvantaged for their entire school-life.
In addition, there seems to be increasingly more children who are diagnosed with a form of learning disability or disorder, like dyslexia, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), sensory integration disorder and so on. The increase in incidence could be because of more testing and better understanding of the various difficulties. Most of these children continue to be in mainstream schools. And quite a few may not do badly, because they have other compensatory factors, like having a higher than average IQ. These students, hence, fly under the radar of the educators. But many of their parents would tell you that they wished the system could cater to their kids better. They know that their kids could do so much better with more child-centric teaching and classroom management that was better tailored for their child.
While there have been great efforts to create different pathways and more school niches, teaching pedagogy can still be too homogeneous. Are we able to evolve our system to cater to differences and to truly achieve inclusiveness?
Can schools develop more inclusive practice and curriculum? This means teaching programmes designed to fit the needs of all children, rather than
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having the children adjusting to the programme. This also means more differentiated teaching in the classroom such that as many children as possible are learning in an optimal way, bringing out the best in every child, as the Minister said just now.
Educators should try to understand children as individual human beings. There should be proper and continuous dialogue between educators and the student so that there is better awareness about the unique personality, identity, strengths and challenges of each child.
Perhaps, schools can have access to roving multi-disciplinary teams, like educational psychologists and therapists, who can train teachers and parents to detect and intervene, both in the school and home settings. Parents with resources can pay for help to enable their kids to cope better. But not many people have this sort of resources.
There could also be better partnership between the teachers and parents. Parents are the first educators of the child. Teachers should dialogue with parents more often as parents often know a lot more about the special circumstances that their child face and may be able to make the teacher aware of important facts about the child, and provide good suggestions on more optimal interventions in the classroom to help that child cope. Educators can be trained to be empathetic and respectful of these parents' needs and challenges. Some teachers are already doing this; but on the whole, I think we can do better.
To be fair, not all schools also have the same approach towards students who are different. Some schools do a better job. For example, some may have more experimental curriculum and a few may even deploy shadow teachers.
But it is still quite common to hear of parents having very contrasting experiences with each of their children in the school system, even if they go to the same school. Same family, same school, but one may thrive and soar, while another would struggle and under-fulfil his or her potential. It can be quite heart-breaking for the parent who knows this but feels helpless to do anything.
So, overall, I hope MOE can clarify its stand on how it expects schools to cater to kids with different needs in mainstream schools.
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Mr Teo Siong Seng (Nominated Member) (In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] The centrepiece of this year's Budget is on the Pioneer Generation Package, to pay due respect to the seniors for their contributions to nation-building and to look after their needs in their twilight years. This reminds me of a saying of Mencius: \"Honour the aged of other families as we honour our own; care for the children of other families as we care for our own.\" This embodies the traditional Asian core values that Singapore adheres to.
However, in a very business-dominated society, in a rapidly evolving digital age where new media reigns supreme and which is dominated by computer games and fast food, how can we ensure that traditional Asian values can continue their legacy?
Four years ago, I raised the fact that although our students' Chinese examination results are fairly good, the application of the language is on the decline. Listening, conversation, reading and writing fall short of standards required by business. Four years have come and gone, and there is still no improvement. In fact, the disparity has become even more salient. Two years ago, there was even the incident where the students burned their Chinese textbooks after the examinations. I was quite disconcerted and saddened when I found out. Just how much hatred could drive the students to make a bonfire out of their Chinese textbooks? This is not a rare occurrence, but evidently the students do not care for the Chinese language at all.
Chinese education is important for two reasons. First is to fulfil society's needs for talent and second is the responsibility of transmitting morals and values. Last month, I read a piece of news where a Swiss ski resort was specially recruiting Chinese ski instructors to look after their Chinese tourists; the Swiss Tourism Board's official website also provided a Chinese version. Actually, from a few years ago, retailers from many European countries had already started hiring Chinese-speaking service staff.
Whenever I come across such related news, a strong sense of crisis would come over me. How much longer can we preserve the bilingual proficiency we are so proud of? Previously, we used to declare that learning of Chinese language and Mandarin is necessary if we are keen on expanding into China, but some students may feel that they do not need to venture into China and would remain in Singapore where they can speak English. They would not need to learn Chinese. However, the tables have turned. It is no longer a matter of whether we want to go to China. It is because we can no longer avoid having to
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deal with more Mandarin-speaking customers. We have been encouraging Chinese enterprises to use Singapore as an international hub, and to use Singapore as a springboard to the world. China customers have, indeed, flocked to our shores. If we cannot get our students interested in Chinese language and Mandarin, and we cannot groom sufficient Chinese talent, then we may not only lose the China market, but our business at home may be at risk.
In learning any language, the motivation comes from within. In the recent years, Korean dramas have grown very popular in Singapore, and many young people who are infatuated with Korean dramas have gone ahead to learn Korean and travel to Korea. Learning a language relies on frequent usage and frequent practice. The Chamber has a few council members who are English-educated. But after joining the Chamber, and being in an environment where Chinese is being used all the time, they have become increasingly conversant in Mandarin, and even began to read and understand the Chinese council reports. This proves that if there is a desire to learn, coupled with the right environment, the mastery of Chinese language and Mandarin is not difficult.
In this year's Budget, the Government has introduced the Kindergarten Fee Assistance Scheme (KiFAS), which benefits all kindergarten children from anchor operators and MOE Kindergartens. Apart from the funding support, I am even more concerned about what these preschoolers will learn in the kindergartens. How do we help them identify with the Chinese language and Mandarin? What method could be used to inculcate traditional values?
I am very happy to see that the Bilingual Workgroup led by Minister of State Sim Ann has added four other committee members, making it 12 altogether. They come from diverse backgrounds and are talented people from different fields. This has demonstrated that the Government places great emphasis on the grooming of bilingual and bi-cultural talent. I hope the Bilingual Workgroup would explore how to establish a good foundation for the learning of Chinese language and Mandarin in kindergartens, strengthen civic education and transmit cores values. There are all kinds of multi-media teaching methods, and they are all effective tools to stir up children's interest. At the same time, we need to make sure that the teaching materials are localised, so that the children would find it more interesting and appealing. It takes 10 years for a tree to grow, but 100 years to cultivate a learned generation. Some things do not come easily, but as long as we persevere and work indefatigably, we would eventually see results.
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The Chairman: Mr Dhinakaran, you have two cuts. Four minutes in total.
Mr R Dhinakaran (Nominated Member): Sir, I will speak in Tamil.
(In Tamil): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Mr Chairman, due to the Government's consistent bilingual education policy, Tamil language continues to be a living language in Singapore. Dedicated Tamil teachers in Primary, Secondary and Junior Colleges teach our students in Tamil language. As a student studies Tamil for 12 years, he becomes proficient in the language.
However, it has been a disadvantage for a long time that Tamil language is not being taught in all the schools during curriculum time. Tamil language centres were set up to overcome this setback.
Today, we have about 13 Tamil language centres throughout the island. About 10% of our Tamil students learn Tamil at these centres. Though these centres give these students the opportunity to learn Tamil language, these centres do, in fact, put them at a disadvantage.
Mr Chairman, we do know that all Secondary schools finish their sessions between 1.30 pm and 2.00 pm. Tamil-speaking students, like all others, learn all their English lessons from morning till afternoon. Tamil-speaking students are not able to attend, like other students, the science and mathematics remedial classes and other ECA activities that are held later in the afternoon, the reason being that they have to travel to the Tamil language centre to attend one of the classes held between 2.45 pm and 6.30pm.
As a result of this arrangement, the overall educational performance of the Tamil students is affected. They are not able to attend the science and mathematics remedial classes which they really need. Unlike other students, they are required to be in the Tamil classrooms until 6.30 pm and that makes them become mentally exhausted.
Therefore, in order to assist as many of these Tamil students as possible, it would be indeed better if Tamil lessons are held in their own schools within their curriculum time. Both the students and parents would not only benefit but would also be happy about this. For historical reasons, the Umar Pular Tamil
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Language Centre could continue to function.
(In English): Sir, I declare my interest as one of the trustees of the SIM University Education Fund and Chairman of SIM University Audit Committee. Mr Chairman, let me continue in Tamil.
(In Tamil): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] To overcome the shortcoming of not having a Tamil Language Department at the National University of Singapore, a BA degree in Tamil Language and Literature was introduced at UniSIM.
This degree programme became a boon to those who only studied Tamil language under the old Tamil medium schools and to those who, for one reason or another, were unable to continue their higher studies and had to work. This particularly was of great help to those Tamil teachers who would otherwise have to travel to Tamil Nadu and spend thousands of dollars to obtain a degree.
Though Tamil teachers form, more or less, the majority in number among those who study at UniSIM, others who are passionate about the language also pursue their studies there. Since this degree course is conducted in collaboration with the Kamaraj Tamil University in Tamil Nadu, its standard is at par with other reputable universities.
Mr Chairman, may I suggest that priority be given to these UniSIM graduates to be employed as Tamil teachers? By doing so, we can avoid the situation of continuing to bring Tamil teachers from Tamil Nadu. In addition, non-graduate teachers, who graduate from UniSIM, should be emplaced on the graduate scale. By doing so, we can raise the standard of Tamil language in Singapore.
The Minister of State for Education (Ms Sim Ann): Sir, I begin with an update on bilingualism. The learning of our official Mother Tongue Languages (MTLs) remains the cornerstone of our education system. MOE continues to promote bilingualism in schools and works with partners to promote our MTLs in the community. Sir, a few words in Mandarin, please.
(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] I would like to thank Mr Teo Siong Seng for his support for the Bicultural Taskforce. Mr Teo raised the point that we should build a strong foundation for the learning of the Mother
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Tongue Languages from preschool. We fully agree. Studies have shown that helping young children build a strong foundation in listening comprehension and oral communication can enhance their language acquisition abilities. We should help them to embark on the journey of bilingualism as early as possible, and this is why the Ministry of Education places great emphasis on, and fully supports, bilingual education at the preschool level.
Last November, we launched the Nurturing Early Learners (NEL) Framework for Mother Tongue Languages. This framework articulates a broad set of vision, objectives, learning goals and guiding principles that are appropriate for the teaching and learning of all three Mother Tongue Languages. It also taps on research findings on the cognitive benefits of being bilingual, and the greater ease of learning another language before the age of eight. The teaching and learning resources under the NEL Framework are currently being piloted in our MOE Kindergartens for K1 children.
In addition, we established the Lee Kuan Yew Bilingualism Fund in 2011 to further complement the teaching and learning of English and the Mother Tongue Language, particularly in the area of preschool education. So far, the Fund has supported 17 proposals from various corporations, organisations and individuals, to develop more resources set in the local context, and to support events and research.
Furthermore, the Committee to Promote Chinese Language Learning, which I chair, would be happy to work with the private sector to help increase our students' awareness of the career opportunities that a good grasp of the Chinese language can provide, and to also better understand the linguistic demands of industry. I hope that Mr Teo will give us his full support and encourage companies to work with us.
(In English): Sir, I will now continue in English. As part of our bilingualism policy, MOE provides our students with as high a level of access to official MTL instruction as feasible, and we continue to show strong support for the teaching and learning of the Tamil Language. I do apologise that I am not able to reciprocate Mr Dhinakaran's cut by replying in Tamil. Mr Dhinakaran asked about Tamil Language (TL) provision in our Secondary schools.
At the Secondary level, about 95% of Tamil Language students are able to study the language in their schools during curriculum time. The remaining students attend Tamil lessons outside curriculum time at one of the 12 geographically-distributed MOE Tamil Language centres. We will work with
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schools to ensure that students who travel for their Tamil Language lessons do not miss out on support programmes offered to their peers outside of curriculum time. We will also continue to regularly review the provision of Tamil Language instruction.
Most of our Tamil Language teachers are locally-trained. We assure Mr Dhinakaran that we give due regard to the UniSIM BA degree in Tamil Language, which is one of our key sources of prospective Tamil Language teachers. In fact, MOE actively reaches out to recruit UniSIM BA (TL) graduates who have displayed interest to teach the Tamil Language. Generally, UniSIM BA (TL) degree holders are eligible for placement on the salary scale for graduates.
MOE also works closely with the community to promote the official MTLs in and beyond our schools. As I have mentioned just now briefly in Mandarin, we would be very happy to work with partners, such as the companies, such as our businesses, in exposing our young students to the needs of enterprises in terms of recruiting students with a high command of the Mother Tongue Language.
Sir, another way which we work with the community to support the MTLs is through the Mother Tongue Language Learning Promotion Committees (MTLLPCs). And these committees engage and harness the wisdom of our community stakeholders to organise programmes and activities that develop talent, and spark interest, in our Mother Tongue Languages, beyond classroom learning. An example is the national Malay debate competition (Bahas 4PM), organised by 4PM or the Malay Youth Literary Association and funded by the Malay Language Learning Promotion Committee.
Sir, I hope to have given some assurance to our stakeholders of all three Mother Tongue Languages. MOE is, indeed, very much committed to work together with the community to raise our students' interest in the Mother Tongue Languages.
I will now talk about our commitment to develop an inclusive education system that helps each child to be the best that he or she can be – to achieve success in different ways, at different paces, and in different domains.
Although Mr Laurence Lien did not appear to have been in the Chamber just now when Minister Heng delivered his vision for bringing out the best in every child, it appears that he nevertheless understands the message very clearly, which I am very glad about. Minister Heng talked about bringing out the
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best in every child, in every domain, in every school, at every stage of the learning journey, whatever their starting point.
Our education system indeed over the years, Sir, has not stood still. We have come a long way in our efforts to diversify how we teach and what we teach our students and also in the additional support that we provide students with more specific needs, such as learning needs. Even as we acknowledge that more can be done in various areas, please allow me to take stock of what has been introduced to our education system in a relatively short period of time.
We have different pathways and niche programmes catering to various types of talents and interests. Some take the form of elective programmes, such as for art, language and music. For others, we take a whole-school approach, such as the Singapore Sports School and School of the Arts. All these provide avenues to develop the diverse talents of our students.
The introduction of Applied Learning Programmes and Lifelong Learning Programmes in our Secondary schools also provides more opportunities for our students to excel in niche areas.
To meet specific learning needs of students who need more support, we have set up the Northlight School, Assumption Pathway School, Crest Secondary School and Spectra Secondary School. We have also rolled out levelling up programmes in our Primary schools to build a strong foundation in literacy and numeracy in all our students.
At the school and classroom level, our teachers have been trained to adjust their pedagogy to fit the profile and learning needs of their students and, indeed, we continue to do more each year.
To support low-progress learners better, MOE has established our Educational Support Branch to help teachers identify, adapt and share teaching strategies to cater to the needs of this group of students, including using specific pedagogical strategies that help to build the learners' self-belief and self-esteem.
For students with special needs, since 2005, all teachers learn about basic support for special needs during their pre-service training. On top of that, we have trained more than 3,000 teachers as \"Teachers trained in Special Needs\" (TSNs), who have a deeper understanding of special needs. We will continue to train even more TSNs, who can share their expertise and support their
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colleagues in school.
Furthermore, we have recruited almost 400 Allied Educators specialising in Learning and Behavioural Support (AED(LBS)) for our Primary and Secondary schools and we will increase those numbers. All Primary schools now have at least one AED(LBS) who provides more specialised support for students with dyslexia, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and mild autism.
MOE also provides assistive learning devices for students with sensory and physical impairment, and these devices include FM equipment, Braille notebooks, computer systems and more. Our schools are further supported by MOE psychologists who provide consultation and advice to school personnel on identification and support for students with special needs. At the same time, we value our VWO partners who have deep expertise in special needs, and who work with us to provide school-based itinerant support for students with physical and sensory impairment.
We thank the Member for his valuable feedback. I think what he has shared in terms of observations and feedback by parents echoes much of the feedback that we have heard through the Our Singapore Conversation (OSC) sessions organised nationally and also organised by MOE. What we have heard over the months has triggered ideas as well as internal reviews within MOE and we will continue to work to improve our system to support all types of special needs, together with our committed stakeholders.
I have updated on the support that our mainstream schools provide for our students with special needs, as requested by Ms Denise Phua during her cut just now. I hope it is clear, in response to the points made by both Ms Phua as well as Mr Lien, that our system has made significant moves towards supporting students with diverse needs and that our pedagogies have become more varied. We will continue on this journey to bring out the best in every child.
Let me now share more about what we intend to do for students with dyslexia. Students with dyslexia form the largest group of students in our mainstream schools with special education needs. They have a very good chance of catching up if intervention occurs early. This is why MOE has piloted the school-based Dyslexia Remediation (SDR) Programme since 2012.
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The school-based Dyslexia Remediation (SDR) Programme is a two-year specialised intervention programme for Primary 3 and Primary 4 students, conducted in small groups by trained school personnel, including AED(LBS) and TSNs. The remediation curriculum and strategies are designed by MOE reading specialists, and also include a home support component so that parents can play a role in consolidating the support provided by our schools.
One heartening success story of the SDR Programme is Muhammad Firdaus from Yio Chu Kang Primary School. Firdaus used to get upset and cry when he realised that his reading and spelling competencies were not on par with his peers. Thankfully, the SDR programme introduced Firdaus to various intervention strategies. After being on the programme for a year, his Allied Educator, Ms Siti Adliana, noticed that his reading speed increased significantly from 20 to 100 words per minute. Beyond improving his reading and language competencies, the SDR programme boosted Firdaus' self-confidence. Today, the once demoralised boy organises study groups to help and encourage his peers.
Having seen how the programme has helped students to learn to read and grow in confidence, MOE has expanded the SDR programme to another 20 schools this year, bringing the total number of schools with the programme to one-third of our Primary schools. This brings the total number of students benefiting from the programme to close to 1,000.
We are committed to providing more support to our students with dyslexia and aim to roll the programme out to more schools in the near term. At the same time, we need to build the capacity to train, monitor and support school staff who deliver the programme so that the quality of the programme is kept consistently high.
Over the years, more of our students, both those from mainstream schools as well as those from Special Education (SPED) schools, have progressed to our institutes of higher learning (IHLs). Their success in gaining admissions to the IHLs should be celebrated. The next step we are taking is to provide students with special needs with more structured support in their education journey in the IHLs. Some Members, particularly Mr Ang Wei Neng and Ms Denise Phua, have spoken about this at previous COS debates, too. We have heard you.
Ms Denise Phua asked for an update on the setting up of Disability Support Offices in our IHLs and we will give a more comprehensive update today. Before that, I want to thank Ms Phua for her unstinting support for our work in this
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sector. With her advice and support, we have been reaching out to students with special needs in the IHLs, and this has been very helpful in clarifying our thinking and in helping us identify what needs to be done.
Our stakeholders have come together to create the overarching vision for students with special needs in our IHLs, which is: to develop an inclusive community that promotes a culture of openness, understanding and mutual support in our IHLs, so that students with special education needs can have a holistic education experience, attain independent living skills and be equipped to access meaningful employment upon graduation.
As part of this broader IHL vision for special needs support, we have two specific initiatives that will start this year. Through dialogue sessions, we have affirmed our students' and other stakeholders' desire for a one-stop office that provides disability support.
An illustration of how such an office might work is the Learning Accessibility Office (LAO), located within Student Care Centres in the ITE colleges. This is a one-stop office for ITE students with physical, learning and behavioural disabilities to seek advice and assistance. The ITE set-up not only ensures that the students with special needs have a point of contact from admission to graduation, they also provide pre-admission help by ensuring the school report forms of these students are obtained from their Secondary schools to ensure a smooth transition to ITE. This helps to provide special needs support in a more structured, systematic and sustainable manner.
Starting this year, therefore, each publicly-funded University, Polytechnic, ITE college and the arts institutions – in other words, NAFA and LASALLE – will set up a Disability Support Office on campus to provide one-stop support for students with special education needs. They will also set up a disability support website to provide information on the special needs support available in their institutions.
These offices will coordinate training on special needs support for their staff and work with course managers to ensure that necessary adjustments are made for students with special needs so that they are able to access lessons, tests and examinations. Assistive devices, such as FM devices, text-to-speech software; and support services, such as signing interpretation services, are essential to help students with special needs gain equal access to their institutions' programmes so that they can participate fully in and benefit from their school
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experience.
Chia Hong Sen is currently a first-year student in Temasek Polytechnic. Despite his visual impairment, he is able to participate fully in his Diploma in Information Technology course. His notes are provided in softcopy format so that he can access them via the text-to-speech Smart Reader. During the examination period, he is allowed to use a laptop equipped with text-to-speech software so that he can hear the questions and type his answers in. Being a positive and hardworking student, and with the help of assistive devices and support services, Hong Sen has overcome many challenges and adapted well in his Polytechnic.
To benefit more students like Hong Sen, MOE will set up a dedicated Special Education Needs (SEN) Fund for Polytechnic and ITE students with physical or sensory-related impairment. The Disability Support Offices will administer requests for financial support from this new SEN fund. Under this fund, students can receive up to $5,000 to purchase assistive devices to alleviate physical impairment, such as word prediction equipment, voice recognition technology, computer pointing devices and so on. Up to $25,000 per student will be made available for those who require supporting services, such as interpretation in sign language. This means that seamless financial support for assistive technology will be available to students with special needs from the schools through to ITE and the Polytechnics. The Universities and arts institutions are also committed to ensuring that the same support is provided to their students.
In my speech last year, I spoke about the Government's continued commitment in uplifting the quality, accessibility and affordability of our Special Education (SPED) sector and some of the initiatives from the last few years have helped to contribute in raising the quality of education. For example, SPED schools have been able to tap on the $4.5 million Tote Board ICT Fund for innovative infusion of ICT in their teaching. Other initiatives, such as the SPED curriculum framework and the formation of professional learning teams in all schools have helped to uplift the quality of what is taught in SPED schools.
The enhanced Opportunity Fund announced last year has also helped to enrich the learning of SPED students from lower income backgrounds.
Ms Denise Phua has asked the Government to consider having features of the Anchor Operator (AOP) scheme in the special education sector.
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Sir, the AOP scheme was introduced for pre-school operators to provide funding support to eligible operators to scale up the provision of good quality and affordable early childhood care and education services.
As I have mentioned, quality and affordability are also two key areas of focus for MOE's work in the SPED sector. Currently, our 20 VWO-run SPED schools are funded by MOE and NCSS. Our funding to SPED schools has also increased over time. This tripartite partnership between VWOs, MOE and NCSS recognises the VWOs' long history, community links, capability and expertise that allow them to customise their programmes and services to meet the needs of SPED students and to help these students with their post-school transitions.
We continue to work closely together, focusing on the quality and affordability of SPED, and to ensure sufficient capacity in the sector.
Sir, although the AOP scheme was set up in quite a different context from SPED, I find the Member's proposal intriguing, seeing as it is underpinned by her concerns for student outcomes and quality education which MOE shares. We will study the Member's proposal.
Sir, the Government has been doing more to ensure that we continue to be a society that gives hope and assurance to all. The Deputy Prime Minister recently announced transport subsidies to help persons with disabilities gain access to essential services like care, work and education. We are glad that our students with special needs will also benefit. MSF will also provide a fuller report on the related initiatives for persons with disabilities under the Enabling Masterplan 2.
The Government cannot do it all. I wish to thank the community, businesses, our educators and all who have worked hard to build an inclusive society. MOE will continue to work with MSF, NCSS, our VWOs and many other partners to embrace people with special needs as full and integral members of Singapore society.
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","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Committee of Supply Reporting Progress","subTitle":null,"sectionType":"OS","content":"Mr Heng Swee Keat: Sir, may I seek your consent to move that progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again on Monday, 10 March 2014?
The Chairman: I give my consent.
[(proc text) Resolved, \"That progress be reported now and leave be asked to sit again on Monday, 10 March 2014.\" – [Mr Heng Swee Keat]. (proc text)]
[(proc text) Thereupon Mr Deputy Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House. (proc text)]
Mr Heng Swee Keat: Mr Deputy Speaker, Sir, I beg to report that the Committee of Supply has made further progress on the Estimates of Expenditure for the financial year 2014/2015, and ask leave to sit again on Monday, 10 March 2014.
Mr Deputy Speaker: So be it.
","clarificationText":null,"clarificationTitle":null,"clarificationSubTitle":null,"reportType":null,"questionCount":null,"footNotes":null,"footNoteQuestions":null,"questionNo":null},{"startPgNo":0,"endPgNo":0,"title":"Adjournment","subTitle":null,"sectionType":"OS","content":"[(proc text) Resolved, \"That Parliament do now adjourn to Monday, 10 March 2014.\" – [Mr Gan Kim Yong]. (proc text)]
Adjourned accordingly at \t7.57 pm.
\tPage: 195
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