Tripartite workgroup invites public feedback on self-employed persons' top concerns in the future economy

1. The tripartite workgroup on self-employed persons (SEP) invites the public to give feedback on SEPs’ top concerns in the future economy.

Background

2. Employment legislation in Singapore generally require the employer to provide some basic protection to their employees. Such employees include those on term contracts, and those who are employed on temporary or casual work. As SEPs do not have employers and have greater control over their work, such protection is usually not available to them. While the share of primary SEPs among residents in the workforce has remained at about 8 - 10% for the past 10 years, they may benefit from some enhanced protection. There is also a possibility that self-employment may become more prevalent in our future economy.
3. To be prepared for the future, as announced by the Minister for Manpower in March this year, a tripartite workgroup has been formed to look into SEPs’ concerns and to come up with practical solutions for the wellbeing of SEPs in our future economy. The workgroup comprises members from MOM, National Trades Union Congress and the Singapore National Employers Federation.

Call for Public Feedback

4. Some concerns that SEPs raised during the tripartite workgroup’s engagements include:
   1. Getting paid late, or not getting paid at all or fully
   2. Ineligibility for employment benefits (e.g. loss of income while injured)
   3. Uncertainty of finding sufficient work, fluctuating income and its impact on long-term financial planning
5. To help the workgroup get a more in-depth understanding of challenges faced by SEPs and possible solutions, we invite SEPs, SEP associations, service buyers, intermediaries and members of the public to provide their feedback on the consultation paper posted on the REACH website. The REACH consultation paper is attached to this media release for the media’s reference.
6. Members of the public may email their feedback to mom_consultations@mom.gov.sg, with the title “Consultation on SEPs’ Top Concerns in the Future Economy”, by 22 December, 6pm. The tripartite workgroup will consolidate and publish a summary of the key comments received, together with our responses, subsequently.

Definition of Self-Employed Person

• SEPs refer to persons who operate their own trade or business. Those who do not employ any paid worker and are not contributing family members are also known as “own account workers”. “Own account worker” is the more formal term used in MOM’s Labour Force Supplementary Survey on Own Account Workers, and which follows closely to the International Labour Organisation’s classification of Status in Employment.
• SEPs work in diverse occupations and include taxi drivers, real estate agents, property agents, private hire car drivers and private tutors.
• SEPs are not casual, temporary, or term-contract employees who are on employment contracts for fixed periods of time.