Speech at 4th International Consortium for Intergenerational Programmes Conference 2010
Mr Gan Kim Yong, Minister for Manpower, Pan Pacific Singapore
Mr Gerard Ee, Chairman of Council for Third Age,
Dr Susan Feldman, Co-chair, ICIP
Dr Thang Leng Leng, Health Research Cluster, NUS
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
1. It is my pleasure to join you at this 4th International Consortium for Intergenerational Programmes (ICIP) Conference. This conference aims to deepen understanding of intergenerational issues so as to strengthen the social compact and unleash the potential in each generation to contribute to society. All countries faced with the issue of an ageing population, including Singapore, can identify with this aim. I am glad that the ICIP has partnered the Council for Third Age and the National University of Singapore to bring the conference to Singapore. This provides an excellent opportunity for overseas and Singapore delegates to share and learn from other countries' experience as well as international best practices in intergenerational programmes.
2. As Mr Gerard Ee pointed out earlier, a diversity of views, experiences and knowledge make for a stronger society. With an ageing population, a multi-generational workforce and community will become the norm. We can turn this into an advantage and a crucial resource that we can tap on.
Ageing Workplaces in Singapore
3. In Singapore, this issue has received much attention. We are a prime example of a rapidly ageing country. Our fertility rate of 1.23 in 2009 is among the lowest in the world, and our life expectancy at birth of around 81 in 2008 is among the highest. In just 10 years' time by 2020, one in six Singapore residents will be 65 years or older compared to about one in 111 today. The silver tsunami is fast approaching, and at the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), we have been taking steps to encourage older workers to continue working for as long as they are able to. Employers, too, will need help to manage an intergenerational workforce.
4. The current statutory retirement age in Singapore is 62. With statistics showing that Singaporeans can expect to live for another 20 years after retirement, working is one of the best ways to keep our seniors engaged and continue to contribute to the economy and their organisations, while at the same time enhancing their retirement adequacy. With the population of seniors growing, and the number of fresh entrants to the workforce expected to shrink in the near future, it also makes business sense for employers to proactively examine how they can better tap on older employees as a source of manpower, experience and knowledge to sustain and grow their business.
5. To create a win-win outcome for employers and older employees in Singapore, we have adopted the re-employment route. Re-employment offers greater flexibility compared to raising the statutory retirement age. Over the past few years, the tripartite partners, comprising the Government, the employers and the unions, have worked closely together to identify the areas of concern relating to re-employment, and formulated guidelines for implementation by companies and unions. In March this year, we launched the Tripartite Guidelines on Re-employment of Older Employees, to help companies put in place systems and processes to reemploy their older employees. These guidelines come ahead of re-employment legislation, which will be introduced by 2012. The legislation will require employers to re-employ their eligible retiring employees till age 65. Employees can be re-employed in the same job or it could be in a different job with adjustments to employment terms and arrangements to suit the circumstances of the company and the employee.
6. Given the flexibility, I expect most companies should be able to continue to offer job opportunities for their retiring workers. For the minority who are unable to offer employment for eligible employees, a one-off Employment Assistance Payment (EAP) should be given to these employees to help tide them over a period of time while they look for alternative employment. Employers should also help these employees by offering employment assistance such as career counselling or training to enhance their ability to help them find a new job.
7. To help companies be re-employment ready, the Government has set aside $50m under the ADVANTAGE! Scheme from 2010 till end 2011. The scheme provides financial grants for employers to put in place the systems and processes to recruit, retain and re-employ older workers. Companies can apply for up to $400,000 of funding which can be used for training as well as job-redesign projects targeted at enhancing the employability and productivity of older workers. SMEs can also apply for a $10,000 Capability Development grant to develop HR systems to implement re-employment. Since its introduction in 2005, over 1,300 companies have signed up for the programme. As at end March, they have committed to recruit nearly 8,300 older workers, retain 19,300 and re-employ almost 9,500 older workers.
8. Workers too have to do their part to be eligible for re-employment. They need to stay healthy and continue to upgrade their skills, remain productive and employable. To this end, we will continue to develop and invest in our Continuing Education and Training (CET) system, and work with our tripartite partners to encourage employees, especially older employees, to take up training. We will be launching the Workfare Training Scheme in July, which will provide older, low wage workers additional incentives to upskill. Training is key to help this group of workers seize new opportunities, improve their productivity on the job and advance in their careers.
9. We have seen some encouraging results. Last year, despite the economic downturn, the employment rate of older residents aged 55-64 remained stable at 57.2%.
10. According to preliminary findings from a 2009 survey2 by MOM, nearly two-thirds (64%) of companies surveyed already allowed their employees to continue working past age 62. Three in ten (30%) private establishments surveyed had local employees who reached the age of 62 during the year ending June 2009, involving some 9,400 local employees. The vast majority (92%) of them were allowed to work beyond the age of 62. This comprised 62% who were allowed to continue working beyond 62 and 30% who were offered re-employment, mostly in the same job. Nearly all (94% or 8,150) of those offered employment beyond 62 accepted the offer3. Only a minority rejected the offer (4.9%) or was still considering the offer (0.7%) at the time of the survey.
11. These findings are encouraging, as it shows employers do value older workers. However, the preliminary findings also suggest that more can be done to encourage employers to be re-employment ready. Therefore, it is timely that the re-employment ready campaign has kicked off this month to highlight the "golden" experiences that "silver" employees can bring to the workplace while reaching out to employers, employees and the public in the lead up to re-employment legislation.
12. In addition, there are enlightened employers, such as Parkway Healthcare Group to learn from. Parkway signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Singapore Manual and Mercantile Workers’ Union in 2008, committing to re-employ eligible employees up to age 65. Parkway has also taken proactive steps to prepare their employees for re-employment. Employees nearing retirement are scheduled to attend talks to help them plan and decide if they wish to continue working beyond age 62. To encourage employees to stay on with the organisation and to recognise the contributions of re-employed staff, Parkway introduced the "Golden Years Service Awards" to be given to employees who achieved 3, 6, 9 and even up to 12 years' of post-retirement service. These efforts have helped Parkway retain many of their valued older employees.
13. The Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices released a report on "Harnessing the Potential of Singapore's Multigenerational Workforce" earlier this month. Among other things, the report pointed to the different communication styles needed by a multi-generational workforce and how best to organize intergenerational teams to be more productive. A reassuring finding from the survey was the common belief held across all generations in the workforce that a diverse workforce, comprising different generations, has a positive effect on the overall performance of the organization.
14. With the final set of tripartite guidelines on re-employment out, I hope that more employers will adopt the guidelines and implement re-employment in their companies to create more employment opportunities for our seniors.
Intergenerational Relations in the Family and Community
15. Work is just one aspect in helping our seniors stay active. The family and community are equally important. With family being the basic building block of society, strengthening intergenerational bonds within the family will go some way in enhancing intergenerational solidarity within the society.
16. The Council for Third Age or C3A has done an admirable job in promoting active ageing in Singapore in the broader context of family and community since its inception in 2007. Seniors can look forward to a series of initiatives organised annually by the C3A under the "Active Ageing Festival". One such initiative is "Grandparents' Day" which serves as a platform to encourage families to come together with three or more generations and participate in a day of fun-filled activities. Another initiative is the annual "Active Ageing Carnival" which has seen participation grow steadily since 2007. Activities typically associated with the young are included in the carnival's programme to attract multi- generational participation. I was told rock climbing and the 3-on-3 basketball tournament at this year's carnival was very well-received.
17. This evening, C3A will be announcing the winners of the inaugural Intergenerational Bonding Awards 2009. The awards aim to recognise exemplary programmes that promote intergenerational bonding. You will be hearing from the finalists on their projects this afternoon and more importantly, you will have a hand in deciding the winners by your vote.
Conclusion
18. In Singapore, we have taken a holistic approach in addressing the needs of our ageing population, work, family and community. I am sure there is much to share and learn from the experience of other countries. I congratulate the ICIP, NUS and Council for Third Age for this successful event and I wish you all a fruitful and enriching conference.
Thank you.
1 "Population Trends 2009", June 2009, Dept of Statistics
2 The Retirement & Re-employment Practices survey was conducted from October-December last year, effectively covering 3,200 private establishments which together employ more than 800,000 employees. More information on the study will be released in May.
3 This includes those who accepted the offer of re-employment or continuation of employment.