SINGAPORE: Flexible work arrangements have become a talking point in recent days with the launch of guidelines for employers to fairly consider such requests.
And as Singapore looks to normalise flexible work arrangements, ensuring that the local workforce stays competitive in skills, productivity and work ethic will be key, Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang said on Tuesday (Apr 23).
At the same time, mixed workforces combining local and overseas staff are likely to be part of the future of work, employers' associations said, given the difference in labour costs.
Ms Gan and representatives from the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) and the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME) were speaking to the media a week after the launch of new tripartite guidelines on requests for flexible work arrangements.
From December, Singapore will require all employers to fairly consider employees’ requests for flexible work arrangements. This is aimed at making it easier for some workers, such as caregivers and seniors, to remain in or return to the workforce amid Singapore’s tight labour market and ageing society.
But some employers told CNA that as managing remote teams becomes more common, they may rethink hiring local staff and look overseas for recruitment, particularly given the difference in costs.
Asked to respond to these concerns, Ms Gan said that the competitiveness of Singapore’s workforce was key. Local workers must have in-demand skills and be able to meet business productivity needs.
Another area in which they must remain competitive is their work ethic or “the softer things, like being reliable, trusted”, which are attributes of the local workforce that businesses appreciate, she said.
“These are the … positive things that we have to continue to sharpen for our Singaporeans to remain competitive and to be in demand,” she said.
Ms Gan noted that many companies practised hybrid work arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic out of necessity, and many would continue to do so even without the guidelines as it made sense for their business.
Yet many companies also still hired locally after the pandemic. This was because apart from the competitiveness of local workers, in-person interaction was needed for collaboration and teamwork, she said.
Mr Ang Yuit, president of ASME, said that businesses were already looking to build mixed workforces combining local and offshore talent before the guidelines were announced, and that this was “a natural situation given the cost differential” in hiring.
He added that mixed workforces will increasingly be the case in more companies, and that such “multination” arrangements will be part of the future of work.
Tripartite partners hoped that the flexible work arrangement guidelines would allow local manpower to be more effectively deployed within the companies that require it, he said.
The guidelines “hopefully allow companies and staff to provide that degree of flexibility and agility to target where the pain points of businesses are and effectively plug those gaps”, he added.
Mr Edwin Ng, honorary secretary of SNEF, stressed that the tripartite guidelines do not prescribe how or where companies hire, and that these are driven by business considerations.
“I think this is a matter that the economics of business will decide,” he said. “We prefer to let businesses decide what’s best for and what works for their business.”
He said that it was important for Singapore’s companies to evolve in parallel with the country’s economy, and for workers to upskill to harness these new opportunities.
SNEF’s executive director Mr Sim Gim Guan pointed out that the labour market in Singapore remains “very manpower tight”.
According to government figures, there were 174 vacancies for every 100 jobseekers in December 2023, with the proportion of vacancies for professionals, managers, executives and technicians rising last year.
“The idea is that the more we are able to increase our capacity, even including outsourcing, actually the more we are able to grow our economy,” said Mr Sim.
Ms Gan and the business associations also sought to clarify the tripartite stance on four-day work weeks, after this was mentioned in foreign media reports about the guidelines.
In general, Mr Ng said that SNEF’s endorsement of the guidelines was based on three principles: That employers have the prerogative to decide whether to grant a flexible work arrangement request; that the arrangements must not negatively impact productivity and service quality; and that not all roles and jobs are suitable for all forms of flexible work arrangements.
He stressed that the tripartite guidelines do not advocate a four-day work week and do not mandate any outcome or prescribe any form of flexible work arrangements on businesses.
“Treat it as a tool to facilitate the discussion so as to benefit both parties, so that there is a way for these (flexible work arrangement) requests to be put through,” he said, adding that companies were expected to continue emphasising a “strong organisational culture”.
Elaborating on this, Mr Ng pointed out that Singapore’s economy is globally connected, and depends on the workforce “being active and being very flexible”.
“I would hesitate if this whole suggestion of a four-day (work week) becomes a widespread culture, because there may be huge consequences on businesses and the economy,” he said.
“To look at whether it’s suitable, I would suggest that we really look at the role itself and the nature of the company, rather than to make it a general kind of culture.”
An example that meets the intent of the guidelines would be if a senior worker wants to retire, but agrees to stay on a four-day work week basis so the company can continue to benefit from his experience and plan succession, added Mr Ng.
Ms Gan said that given Singapore’s labour shortage, it would be difficult for employers to accommodate a four-day work week.
“There might be some companies out there that are able to. That’s good for them, if they’re able to manage their work process, the nature of their work, that they can implement it. So be it. But I don’t see that becoming the norm,” she said.
Employers who can implement a four-day work week for an employee without affecting output or hiring more workers may be able to carry on without reducing the employee’s pay, said Ms Gan.
But if the employee’s productivity and responsibilities are reduced as a result of flexible work arrangements, it would be fair to consider a reduction in remuneration, she added.
ASME’s Mr Ang noted that a four-day work week can take different forms. One that involves shorter work hours without a reduction in pay would not work for most businesses, and the request would be “flatly rejected”.
Companies have to assess the flexible work arrangement requests that they receive within certain boundaries of productivity and effectiveness, he said, but in the longer term, there are many options in performance management and job design to consider.
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And as Singapore looks to normalise flexible work arrangements, ensuring that the local workforce stays competitive in skills, productivity and work ethic will be key, Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang said on Tuesday (Apr 23).
At the same time, mixed workforces combining local and overseas staff are likely to be part of the future of work, employers' associations said, given the difference in labour costs.
Ms Gan and representatives from the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) and the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME) were speaking to the media a week after the launch of new tripartite guidelines on requests for flexible work arrangements.
From December, Singapore will require all employers to fairly consider employees’ requests for flexible work arrangements. This is aimed at making it easier for some workers, such as caregivers and seniors, to remain in or return to the workforce amid Singapore’s tight labour market and ageing society.
But some employers told CNA that as managing remote teams becomes more common, they may rethink hiring local staff and look overseas for recruitment, particularly given the difference in costs.
Related:
Asked to respond to these concerns, Ms Gan said that the competitiveness of Singapore’s workforce was key. Local workers must have in-demand skills and be able to meet business productivity needs.
Another area in which they must remain competitive is their work ethic or “the softer things, like being reliable, trusted”, which are attributes of the local workforce that businesses appreciate, she said.
“These are the … positive things that we have to continue to sharpen for our Singaporeans to remain competitive and to be in demand,” she said.
Ms Gan noted that many companies practised hybrid work arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic out of necessity, and many would continue to do so even without the guidelines as it made sense for their business.
Yet many companies also still hired locally after the pandemic. This was because apart from the competitiveness of local workers, in-person interaction was needed for collaboration and teamwork, she said.
Mr Ang Yuit, president of ASME, said that businesses were already looking to build mixed workforces combining local and offshore talent before the guidelines were announced, and that this was “a natural situation given the cost differential” in hiring.
He added that mixed workforces will increasingly be the case in more companies, and that such “multination” arrangements will be part of the future of work.
Tripartite partners hoped that the flexible work arrangement guidelines would allow local manpower to be more effectively deployed within the companies that require it, he said.
The guidelines “hopefully allow companies and staff to provide that degree of flexibility and agility to target where the pain points of businesses are and effectively plug those gaps”, he added.
Related:
Mr Edwin Ng, honorary secretary of SNEF, stressed that the tripartite guidelines do not prescribe how or where companies hire, and that these are driven by business considerations.
“I think this is a matter that the economics of business will decide,” he said. “We prefer to let businesses decide what’s best for and what works for their business.”
He said that it was important for Singapore’s companies to evolve in parallel with the country’s economy, and for workers to upskill to harness these new opportunities.
SNEF’s executive director Mr Sim Gim Guan pointed out that the labour market in Singapore remains “very manpower tight”.
According to government figures, there were 174 vacancies for every 100 jobseekers in December 2023, with the proportion of vacancies for professionals, managers, executives and technicians rising last year.
“The idea is that the more we are able to increase our capacity, even including outsourcing, actually the more we are able to grow our economy,” said Mr Sim.
Related:
NO GUARANTEE OF FOUR-DAY WORK WEEK
Ms Gan and the business associations also sought to clarify the tripartite stance on four-day work weeks, after this was mentioned in foreign media reports about the guidelines.
In general, Mr Ng said that SNEF’s endorsement of the guidelines was based on three principles: That employers have the prerogative to decide whether to grant a flexible work arrangement request; that the arrangements must not negatively impact productivity and service quality; and that not all roles and jobs are suitable for all forms of flexible work arrangements.
He stressed that the tripartite guidelines do not advocate a four-day work week and do not mandate any outcome or prescribe any form of flexible work arrangements on businesses.
“Treat it as a tool to facilitate the discussion so as to benefit both parties, so that there is a way for these (flexible work arrangement) requests to be put through,” he said, adding that companies were expected to continue emphasising a “strong organisational culture”.
Elaborating on this, Mr Ng pointed out that Singapore’s economy is globally connected, and depends on the workforce “being active and being very flexible”.
“I would hesitate if this whole suggestion of a four-day (work week) becomes a widespread culture, because there may be huge consequences on businesses and the economy,” he said.
“To look at whether it’s suitable, I would suggest that we really look at the role itself and the nature of the company, rather than to make it a general kind of culture.”
An example that meets the intent of the guidelines would be if a senior worker wants to retire, but agrees to stay on a four-day work week basis so the company can continue to benefit from his experience and plan succession, added Mr Ng.
Ms Gan said that given Singapore’s labour shortage, it would be difficult for employers to accommodate a four-day work week.
“There might be some companies out there that are able to. That’s good for them, if they’re able to manage their work process, the nature of their work, that they can implement it. So be it. But I don’t see that becoming the norm,” she said.
Employers who can implement a four-day work week for an employee without affecting output or hiring more workers may be able to carry on without reducing the employee’s pay, said Ms Gan.
But if the employee’s productivity and responsibilities are reduced as a result of flexible work arrangements, it would be fair to consider a reduction in remuneration, she added.
ASME’s Mr Ang noted that a four-day work week can take different forms. One that involves shorter work hours without a reduction in pay would not work for most businesses, and the request would be “flatly rejected”.
Companies have to assess the flexible work arrangement requests that they receive within certain boundaries of productivity and effectiveness, he said, but in the longer term, there are many options in performance management and job design to consider.
Continue reading...