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Title : Labour chief warns against complacency amidst strong job numbers
By :
Date : 16 June 2007 1915 hrs (SST)
URL : http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/282671/1/.html

SINGAPORE: The Labour Movement is encouraged by the positive first quarter report on the manpower situation in Singapore.

Figures released showed that wages have climbed by some five per cent.

They also showed that more jobs have been created and more Singaporeans are returning to work.

But NTUC's Secretary General Lim Swee Say says Singaporeans cannot be complacent.

One concern is that the tightening labour market may cause the wage structure to be less flexible.

Mr Lim says there is still work to be done.

And he adds that this period of healthy growth is the time to do so, since this will put Singapore in good stead and make its people more employable.

"What this means is that as we go through this process of tightening the labour market, we must firstly continue to help the matured workers to gain re-employment, in other words helping workers to work beyond the retirement age of 62. This is the best time to do so because companies are looking for more workers.

"Secondly, we must step up our efforts to promote, to encourage, to help back to work women, let them come back to the work force, for example by redesigning the work to become more family friendly," says Mr Lim. - CNA/yy



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