Many Companies Adopted Advisory on Re-employment
- Lianhe Zaobao (09 August 2008) : Many Companies Adopted Advisory on Re-employment
- Lianhe Zaobao (04 August 2008) : Guidelines on Re-Employment of Older Workers Needed Urgently
Many Companies Adopted Advisory on Re-employment
- Lianhe Zaobao, 09 August 2008
Your editorial “Guidelines on re-employment of older workers needed urgently” (Zaobao, 4 August) may have led your readers to conclude that little guidance was provided to help employers and workers on re-employment.
2. This is incorrect. Since October 2007, employers, unionists and the Government have been working to help companies to adopt re-employment early through detailed recommendations and practical suggestions on implementation. The Tripartite Implementation Working Group (TIWG) released the Tripartite Advisory on Re-employment of Older Workers in April this year, following consultation with union leaders and employers.
3. The Advisory covers areas such as the eligibility criteria for re-employment, the re-employment contract duration and adjustments to wages upon re-employment. However, re-employment is a new concept for many and it will take time for employers and workers to understand and accept. The tripartite partners are thus making concerted efforts to engage employers and workers via workshops and seminars. Response and feedback from employers and unions to the Advisory so far have been positive. They find the Advisory useful and practical and an increasing number of companies have adopted the Advisory in full or adopted key features of it. They have also provided useful feedback which will be taken into consideration when we formalise the Tripartite Guidelines in 2009. Some features of the guidelines could also eventually be incorporated into the re-employment legislation to be implemented by 2012.
4. We strongly encourage employers to adopt the Advisory to provide re-employment opportunities and tap on the skills and experience of their older workers. The advisory is available at the SNEF website: http://www.sgemployers.com. Employers who require funding assistance to implement re-employment can approach WDA for assistance through the ADVANTAGE! scheme. Employers interested to implement re-employment, or who wish to provide feedback on the Advisory, can email SNEF at beyond62@snef.org.sg, NTUC at ongst@ntuc.org.sg, or MOM at mom_lrd@mom.gov.sg.
Guidelines on Re-Employment of Older Workers Needed Urgently
- Lianhe Zaobao, 04 August 2008
Last Thursday, the Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers' Union (SMMWU) held a tripartite forum which included a close-door discussion between Acting Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong and the chief executives of companies. One issue highlighted was the re-employment of older workers.
Despite recent news that 540 unionised companies have started to re-hire older workers, it is obvious that the tripartite partners have yet to reach a consensus on how to implement it. In fact, many employers are still taking a wait-and-see attitude.
One good example is the question of pay cut after re-employment. This is an issue of concern for workers interested to work till 65 as well as human resource managers. How should the pay cut be executed? How much to cut? Would the government set guidelines on this? The tripartite partners had expressed different views on these questions.
Mr Ong Yen Her, Director of Manpower Ministry's Labour Relations & Workplace Division, said that the tripartite work group was more in favour of a flexible approach. Companies which have not adopted the seniority-based remuneration system should not impose a pay cut while those that have could implement some cuts. He felt that the decision was best left to the company. Singapore National Employers Federation's Executor Director Koh Juan Kiat felt that the level of salary should be directly linked to the value of the job.
Workforce Development Agency's Chief Executive Ong Ye Kung opined that as companies would need to look at factors such as work performance in assessing whether or not to re-employ workers, they should have the power to make flexible decisions. National Trades Union Congress President John De Payva strongly felt that this is should not be a case of the Government giving a general prescription for all, but rather decisions should be made based on the merit of individual cases.
SMMWU's Assistant Secretary-General Joseph Chua said that many union members were worried that they might be subjected to another round of pay cut at the time of re-employment at 62 as they had already suffered one round of pay cut upon reaching 60.
At present, companies rehiring workers are adopting different approaches. In the absence of guidelines, it is not surprising that these companies are doing things their own way. This shows that a set of guidelines is absolutely necessary before 2012 when the Re-employment Act comes into effect.
However, it is best that there is a basis for consensus between employers and workers on certain crucial issues such as the pre-requisites for re-employment. If employers are compelled by the law to re-employ older workers, they may make use of gaps in the law to discourage older workers from working. If this happens, the aim of legislation will not be served and disputes may follow. Hence, it is necessary to have the guidelines in place.