SINGAPORE: Minster of State for Manpower and
National Development Tan Chuan-Jin said the move to increase the
maximum employment period of unskilled foreign workers is not meant
to ease Singapore's labour crunch.
Mr Tan said the extension makes more effective use
of labour within the time period allotted.
On Monday, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said from
1 July, unskilled work permit holders from non-traditional sources
can be employed up to 10 years, up from the current six
years.
Workers from non-traditional sources are those from Bangladesh,
India, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand, and
China.
Many companies have been asking for an extension to the period of
employment of unskilled foreign workers.
This is to help them keep workers who are trained, experienced, and
thus more productive. It is hoped these workers can also improve on
their skills and qualifications.
"It's not so much easing the labour crunch. I think what it does is
that it allows employers to hold their staff for a little bit
longer so the numbers don't change because they still operate
within the dependency ratio ceiling," Mr Tan said.
"They have been here a while. They have become socialised to the
norms so that is also important not in terms of assimilation but in
terms of adjusting to the society as opposed to, say, bringing in
another new worker.
"This means another whole round of adjustments needs to take place.
And from a safety perspective, it's also important because they
become seasoned to the practices here.
"They understand the different measures put in place, so they are
also more attuned to that."
In addition, Mr Tan indicated the government would not be
considering removing the period of employment totally, so
soon.
MOM will continue to track the industry, gather feedback and take
one step at a time.
Earlier, during a visit to Caliberlink, Mr Tan launched several
initiatives from the Workforce Development Agency (WDA) targeted at
professionals, managers and executives.
To meet the needs of individuals on-the-go, a free mobile
application called Learn SG was introduced. Job seekers can also
play Go Rush! - a mobile game designed to encourage them to upgrade
their skills.
Meanwhile, WDA has revamped its website. One new feature is the job
profiler that helps determine the occupations that best fit job
seekers.
Other features include a salary benchmark, a tool for users to find
out more about the average salaries for various occupations.
WDA chief executive Wong Hong Kuan said: "What we find is that
there are different segments of professionals that need different
help.
"Some just need some touch up in terms of their job-search skills.
Some actually need deeper training to enable them to make
significant transition into new areas of interest and to follow
their passion.
"So in that sense, our approach will be individualised to each
professional depending on what his or her needs and interests
are."
Some 400 PMEs have benefited from Caliberlink's services since it
was launched last December.
- CNA/wk
