Various Schemes to Help Older Workers

Please refer to the letter by Mr Tan Lee Gan “Difficult to articulate the hardship of unemployed middle-aged Singaporeans” (ZB January 3).

2.  We are encouraged by workers like Mr Tan, who are keen to upgrade their skills and stay employable, and persevere in their job search. Middle-aged and older workers have benefited from the stronger employment market in the past two years. For example, in September 2006, 74% of retrenched degree holders aged 50 and above found re-employment within six months, an improvement from 64% in September 2005. More older workers are now employed than ever before. The resident employment rate for the 55-59 age group increased from 55.9% in 2004 to 60.6% in 2006. Similarly, the resident employment rate for the 60-64 age group rose by more than eight percentage-points from 33.6% in 2004 to 41.9% in 2006. These improvements represent the biggest jump ever in employment rates for such older workers over any two-year period.

3.  The Singapore Workforce Development Agency's (WDA) Distributed Careerlink Network (DCN) of job centres help job seekers to upgrade their skills and find jobs. We regret that Mr Tan's job search through the DCN has not been successful. We urge him not to give up because in 2005, the DCN helped 27,000 job seekers find suitable employment, a quarter of whom were older workers aged 50 years and above. From January to November 2006, out of the 20,925 job seekers who found suitable employment through the DCN, close to 30% were aged 50 years and above.

4.  More employment opportunities for older workers have also been facilitated through new initiatives like the ADVANTAGE! Scheme, which was launched early last year to encourage and help companies to hire workers above the age of 40, and to re-employ workers above the retirement age of 62. 145 companies have committed to hiring about 2,300 mature workers and re-employing 1,300 workers beyond the retirement age.

5.  We have since contacted Mr Tan to see how we may further support him in his job search and training.

Lianhe Zaobao (Forum Section, 14 December 2006) carried a piece on career centres set up by WDA, run by NTUC and CDCs, and located at various parts of Singapore. These centres provide job-matching, and employment and training services, helping people to upgrade their skills and increase their chances of finding employment. I am deeply moved by the initiative.

I am 56 years old. Around August last year, I resigned from my work as the airport company I serviced underwent restructuring. After that, I tried to look for a job through various channels such as Southwest CDC, CDAC, Central CDC and NTUC, and even sought the help of my MP, but to no avail.

I received university education, and merely wanted a job. I have been a president of a RC, a committee member of a CCC, etc. However, now that I am unemployed, what I have experienced is the same as what many who are above 50 years have gone through. The so-called assistance given to us comes in the form of job offers as dish washers, cleaners, or security guards.

I wish to upgrade myself by signing up for computer or horticulture courses. However, I have been told that to apply for such courses, I must first have a job or must have approval from the top. What does “approval from the top” mean?

I have seen many foreigners from China who work in business associations, libraries and Chinese restaurants, etc. PM Lee wants us to accept foreigners who might one day become Singapore Citizens. I support this and have tried to welcome foreigners to stay in Singapore, as I was from Malaysia before I settled down in Singapore.

However, looking at the experience of middle-aged Singaporeans like us, there seem to be no measure in place that can help us effectively. Not every Singaporean needs financial help. No matter how poor we are, we must have a sense of dignity. I have tried to look for work in the job market, but was rejected because of my age. Such age discrimination has become more and more serious.

When we are young, we can strive hard, proactively upgrade our skills, and when we encounter set-backs, we take it as a form of training and challenge. But when we are old, we need a fish net that can help us to fish on our own. Yet, such opportunities are not available to us. Middle-aged Singaporeans who have received a high level of education like me are now out of job and have difficulty finding employment. I am deeply saddened by this. Our CPF, savings and insurance returns will be used up. With increasing life expectancy, even having more charity organisations cannot address the problem of an ageing population.