ONE of the first tasks of Singapore’s new Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment will be to set up an industry-led alliance for multi-stage careers, said Senior Minister of State for Manpower Koh Poh Koon on Friday (Mar 7).
Giving details of the workgroup, which was announced in Budget 2025, Dr Koh said it will study policy recommendations to help senior workers be productive and employable, as well as promote age-friendly jobs and workplaces.
The workgroup will be set up later this year with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF). It will be co-chaired by Dr Koh, NTUC’s deputy secretary-general Desmond Tan and SNEF’s vice-president Tan Hwee Bin.
“This will be a significant tripartite effort to review and refresh our approach towards senior employment,” said Dr Koh at his ministry’s Committee of Supply debate.
One of the workgroup’s first tasks will be setting up the Alliance for Action (AfA) on Empowering Multi-Stage Careers for Mature Workers.
The AfA will engage a wide range of stakeholders to understand the key changes needed to improve senior employment. Details on how to participate will be released later.
The AfA will also collaborate with employers to create and test practical solutions that make jobs and workplaces more age-friendly, with funding and consultancy support.
A different workgroup has also been formed to raise human resource standards and the capabilities of its practitioners, so that they can “contribute strategically to business and workforce outcomes”, said Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng.
The Tripartite Workgroup on Human Capital Capability Development, which convened its first meeting in February, will run for a year. It will explore ways to enhance support for businesses and introduce national standards to measure human capital outcomes, said MOM.
Support for workers on flexible work arrangements
Separately, from Apr 1, Workforce Singapore’s (WSG) Career Conversion Programmes (CCPs) will be expanded for workers who have flexi-load arrangements such as part-time work.
What this means, said Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang, is that companies can now tap the programme even for roles that are not full-time.
CCPs support the reskilling of mid-career new hires and employees. The WSG funds up to 90 per cent of a worker’s salary during training, capped at S$7,500 per month.
To qualify, the worker must be reskilled into growth job roles and be employed on permanent or contract terms of at least one year.
Growth jobs refer to emerging or good job opportunities with long-term prospects for progression. Identified under Industry Transformation Maps or Jobs Transformation Maps, they can be found in about 30 sectors, including financial services, retail, built environment, and information and communications.
