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Oral Answer by Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Acting Minister for Manpower & Senior Minister of State, National Development, to Parliamentary Question on Training for PMEs and Mature Workers

Notice Paper No. 349 of 2012 for the Sitting on 16 Oct 2012
Question No. 722 for Oral Answer

MP: Ms Mary Liew

Question

To ask the Acting Minister for Manpower (a) whether the Government has done any study on the types of jobs available for PMEs in the next 10 years; and (b) what are the plans in place to equip our PMEs and mature workers with the relevant skills required.

Answer

  1. The PME1 jobs available in the future will really depend on the new industries that we are able to attract, our progress in restructuring existing sectors, and our efforts to maintain a diversified economy.
  2. First, the Government brings in new, high value-added industries which in turn will create not only quality jobs, but also well-paying jobs. Examples include aerospace engineering, interactive digital media, and biomedical manufacturing. We also help our local companies to grow and enable them to provide good jobs.
  3. Second, we encourage the restructuring of existing sectors up the value chain which in turn creates higher-value and better paying jobs for Singaporeans.
  4. Third, the Government maintains a diversified economy which not only provides resilience in employment, but also creates a variety of jobs that our PMEs with different skills and dispositions can aspire to. Importantly in an increasingly volatile global economy, this will also help insulate us. What is quite clear, is that the structure of our economy is changing, in terms of the profile. In 2001, we have 26% of the workforce being PMEs, today it is about 32%, and going forward in 2030 we expect four in 10 or about 40% PMEs. What this shows is that there is a level of mobility, more Singaporeans are becoming better educated, better qualified, better skilled. At the same time, the economy is also progressing in the right direction.
  5. So these strategies will have to be work-in-progress as we continue to see how the world is adapting, how we can adjust ourselves in the process and for us to ensure that we create the right type of PME jobs for the PMEs that are coming onto the market as well.
  6. Besides creating job opportunities, which is quite critical, we all know that with good levels of economic growth, these jobs will take place, good companies will be here and very importantly we need to equip our PMEs with the required skills and nurture a strong Singaporean core of talent to fill such jobs. A key pillar is a strong higher education system that prepares our students with skills relevant to current and future industry needs. Our Post-Secondary Education Institutions (PSEIs) work closely with industry representatives and sector champion agencies on curriculum. It is really quite important to ensure that what we are preparing our students in schools is directly relevant to the economy and the market outside. For example, the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department in the National University of Singapore (NUS) is advised by a Consultative Committee that includes industry representatives from EDB and relevant companies like Starhub, ST Engineering, and Rolls Royce. With input from such committees, new courses are rolled out to train young Singaporeans in the skills needed, to take on the good jobs brought in by new industries.
  7. The Government has also put in place multiple pathways in the higher education landscape to create different pockets of excellence. This creates a diverse mix of PMEs with different strengths to support the diversity in our economy.
  8. Beyond pre-employment education, another important pillar, which is our strength in Singapore, is to provide strong support in continuing education and training (CET) for our PMEs throughout their career. This means that education and training does not stop at their formal education years. It should continue even during their working years. This is the sharp edge of our capabilities because it allows us to adapt and construct courses as and when the economy changes. For example, the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) has put in place the Skills Training for Excellence Programme (STEP) to help PMEs update their skills, knowledge and expertise, so that they can remain competitive and employable. Since the launch of STEP in 2011, over 65,000 PMEs have benefitted from its training programmes. About 300 STEP scholarships have also been set aside for Singaporeans, in sectors such as aerospace, construction and retail.
  9. It is important for our CET programmes to be relevant to industries’ needs. Through platforms such as the Industry Skills and Training Councils (ISTCs), WDA works closely with industry associations, employers, unions and other Government agencies to understand industry’s training needs so that we can tailor the courses specifically. This platform is also used to anticipate future competencies and skills. WDA has also set up an Employability Skills and Training Council (ESTC) to engage stakeholders on horizontal and employability skills needs that are relevant across different sectors.
  10. Besides skills training to match industry needs, it is also important for us to help to facilitate employment of our PMEs. We have launched a series of employability interventions for PMEs including CaliberLink, a one-stop service point for PMEs that integrates training assistance and career services. From December 2011 to end-August 2012, CaliberLink has assisted over 2,000 PMEs through its training and career consultation services, networking events and workshops.
  11. WDA has also collaborated with the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME) to help SMEs recruit and retain PMEs through a two-year Max Talent Place-and-Train (PnT) programme. From its launch in May 2012 to end-August 2012, ASME has reached out to over 400 PMEs and more than 300 SMEs. In addition, WDA is collaborating with two private employment agencies to roll out the “PME Specialist Assistance” programme to help unemployed Singaporean PMEs enhance their employability and expand their employment opportunities. Within two months of its introduction in July 2012, over 40 PMEs were referred by WDA’s career centres to the programme.
  12. In summary, growing competitive high value-add businesses in Singapore is important because they will in turn create good PME jobs for Singaporeans. To enable Singaporeans to hold these jobs, we equip them with industry-relevant knowledge and skills through our pre-employment training and CET systems. This coupled with our assistance provided via CaliberLink and other means to help emplace them and to link them up with the relevant jobs will enable us to develop a strong Singapore core in our globally competitive workforce.

1Professionals, Managers and Executives