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Oral Answer by Mrs Josephine Teo Second Minister for Manpower to Parliamentary Question on term contract employees

Employment practices

NOTICE PAPER NO. 865 OF 2017 FOR THE SITTING ON 02 OCTOBER 2017

QUESTION NO. 1484 FOR ORAL ANSWER

MP: Assoc Prof Daniel Goh Pei Siong

To ask the Minister for Manpower (a) how many companies have currently adopted the Tripartite Standards for Employment of Term Contract Employees; (b) what percentage of all resident term contract employees do these companies account for; (c) whether the companies who signed on to these Standards are audited or reviewed for compliance; and (d) how will these Standards be further improved in the future.

Answer

  1. The Tripartite Standard for the Employment of Term Contract Employees was launched just two months ago. Since then, well over 400 employers have adopted the Standard, accounting for more than 28,000 or 17% of all resident term contract employees.
  2. Instead of relying on audits, the Standard spells out clearly verifiable actions that employers commit to undertake and relies on employers’ self-assessments of their ability to comply. If their employees experience any difficulty arising from non-compliance with the Standard, they can report to The Tripartite Alliance for Fair & Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP), which will contact the employer to clarify their practices or to change them, so as to meet the Standard.
  3. Our current focus is to increase the number of employers adopting this Standard. We will also consult with our tripartite partners at an appropriate time, to review the Standard so as to ensure it remains relevant.