Gan Siow Huang and Tan See Leng on balancing caregiving and business needs

Employers are required by legislation to provide various types of leave to support employees' caregiving needs. For instance, besides maternity and paternity leave, employers have to provide childcare and extended childcare leave on an annual basis. Some employers have gone beyond these legally mandated provisions to give additional paid leave to care for children, parents and families. To promote such progressive practices, the Tripartite Standard on Work-Life Harmony encourages employers to provide at least two enhanced types of leave in their companies. Minister of State for Manpower Gan Siow Huang said this in reply to MPs' questions in Parliament on Tuesday (Mar 21). She said the Government will continue to promote workplace practices that strike a good balance in addressing employees' caregiving needs and business needs. Manpower Minister Tan See Leng also addressed the issue, saying the Government will look into how it can continue to tighten and calibrate the guidelines according to the needs of businesses, workers and the local population.