Government Aims to Promote Equality and Support Women in the Workforce
SINGAPORE: The Government proposed enshrining the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices in law in the White Paper on Singapore Women’s Development presented on Monday (Mar 28).
“This sends a strong message that we will not tolerate any form of discrimination, including against women,” stated Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang. “For instance, when hiring a new employee, companies should prioritize qualities such as experience and job performance, rather than considering whether the candidate is male or female.”
In addition to addressing poor employment practices, the Tripartite Committee on Fair Workplace Practices will explore new measures allowing individuals to report observed or experienced workplace discrimination. Employers will be required to establish procedures for handling such complaints and to ensure confidentiality for those who report discrimination, while also prohibiting retaliatory actions.
A new set of tripartite guidelines regarding flexible work arrangements is expected to be finalized by 2024. Ms. Gan emphasized that employers must fairly and properly consider requests for flexible work arrangements from employees. “Flexible work arrangements will become standard in future workplaces, enabling more women, particularly those with caregiving responsibilities, to stay in or return to work,” she said.
Offering flexible arrangements will also allow employers to access a broader talent pool, including seniors. The Government aims to establish a workplace culture where employees feel comfortable requesting flexible work options, while still allowing employers to accept or decline requests based on their operational needs. The objective is to increase the adoption of the voluntary Tripartite Standard on Flexible Work Arrangements among employers to 40% by the end of 2022, up from the current 27%.
“We will continue to support work-life harmony through ground-up initiatives, such as our work-life ambassadors, and encourage greater utilization of parental leave, with the public service leading by example,” the White Paper stated.
Increased Representation of Women in Leadership Roles
The Government also highlighted the importance of having more women in leadership positions to challenge and change existing gender stereotypes. As part of this initiative, the Singapore Exchange Listing Rules and Practice Guidance for the Code of Corporate Governance have been revised to enhance board diversity, including gender diversity, within listed companies.
“This significant step reinforces the commitment of listed companies to appoint more women to their boards,” the White Paper noted.
Ms. Gan remarked that women in Singapore have made “tremendous progress” in the workforce, with more than 70% of women now employed compared to just 50% in the 1990s. Workforce Singapore offers a variety of programs and services aimed at helping job seekers find employment and reskill, including the career conversion program.
The Ministry of Manpower and Workforce Singapore intends to collaborate with more organizations to complement these services and reach out to women seeking to return to work after a period of absence. “Ultimately, we hope to empower more women who wish to re-enter or remain in the workforce, enabling them to pursue their careers and realize their full potential.”
