Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): I thank Minister of State Gan for her response. I am just wondering if we can push it just a little bit more, because, of course, many of our residents – especially mothers, not just mothers of triplets, but working mothers in general – have struggled with this. So, I wonder if the Ministry will consider, not moving to Guidelines for all firms, which I understand – especially for SMEs, it may be difficult to follow through – but perhaps only for the largest firms, to begin with.
Mr Speaker: Minister Tan.
The Minister for Manpower (Dr Tan See Leng): Thank you, Speaker, for allowing me to respond to both the hon Members of Parliament. We intend to put the Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangements up some time next year, in 2024. Members would appreciate the fact that this is a tripartite initiative. So, it involves the Government, the Labour Movement as well as the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF).
So, in moving it forward, we need to get the concurrence and support, not just from a top-down perspective, but also from ground-up. And those guidelines will then be set into motion, it will always be a work-in-progress, to see how we can continue to titrate and calibrate according to the needs of the businesses and the needs of our workers, our local population, as well as also the needs of the employers. I hope this answers and addresses both the Members’ concerns.
Ministry of Manpower
21 March 2023
https://sprs.parl.gov.sg/search/#/sprs3topic?reportid=oral-answer-3158
Office of the Leader of the Opposition 