Some unskilled Work Permit Holders' POE to be extended

SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Manpower will extend the maximum Period of Employment (POE) for unskilled Work Permit Holders from Non-Traditional Sources -- Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand -- and China.

From July 2012, the POE will be extended from six to 10 years for all sectors.

MOM said this will give greater flexibility for businesses to optimise their foreign manpower within the dependency ratio ceiling or DRC limits.

This is in response to calls by some Members of Parliament during the recent Budget debate and feedback from industries during MOM's regular industry engagements.

MOM will also consider allowing businesses greater flexibility in the deployment of their existing foreign workers across job duties within the same firm, to boost efficiency and productivity.

A pilot run will be carried out later this year for the hotel industry.

Feedback from many companies, especially those in the construction sector, showed that extending the POE of unskilled workers would help businesses retain their trained, experienced, and more productive Work Permit Holders (WPHs) for longer periods.

The extension of the maximum POE for unskilled WPHs from Non-Traditional Sources and China will not lead to an increase in WPHs in Singapore as businesses are still required to keep within the DRCs in their sectors.

This measure does not impact WPHs from Malaysia, North Asian Sources and foreign domestic workers as they do not face a POE restriction and can work up to age 60.

Previously, MOM has been strict with the occupational roles of foreign workers. They cannot be deployed across different job functions within a firm.

MOM said there had been feedback from the industry, business chambers and associations for more flexibility in this area.

Sectors, such as the hotel and F&B industries, could utilise their staff for other functions when they have the capacity to do so. This would translate to a boost in efficiency.

MOM will start with a pilot run to relax the occupational restrictions in the hotel sector. If successful, this could be extended to other services industries.

MOM said it will be working closely with tripartite partners to set the criteria and conditions for this pilot. It aims to implement this programme by the second half of this year.

Minister of State for Manpower Tan Chuan-Jin, writing in MOM's blog, said effective governance includes gathering feedback from all quarters, and where possible, make adjustments to ensure the government's policies are flexible and responsive to the changing business landscape.

Mr Tan added businesses should remember they need to do their part as well.

He said while the government strives to keep Singaporeans at the core of its workforce, the government also strives to keep local businesses at the core of its policies, and help them upgrade and improve their productivity.

Mr Tan said co-creating policies can take place in many forms.

He added while the government may not always be able to adopt all ideas, it will definitely consider ideas which will improve the quality of life for Singaporeans.