Wages council to meet soon and issue new guidelines by September

The March guidelines recommended that employers should first reduce non-wage costs and consider measures to use and manage excess manpower. ST PHOTO: TIMOTHY DAVID

The National Wages Council (NWC) will convene later this month, for the second time this year, to tackle the growing threat to jobs posed by the coronavirus pandemic, it was announced yesterday.

The council - comprising representatives from the Government, employers and unions - will update guidelines issued in March on wage and employment-related issues for businesses, with the aim of having the new ones out by next month.

Earlier this month, observers called for more aggressive wage support, an office to look after gig workers and pay hikes for low-wage staff.

They said the council could consider measures such as higher support for job redesign and re-training and additional guidelines on retrenchment payments, as well as looking at whether the Jobs Support Scheme of wage subsidies could be extended.

The March guidelines, which cover the period from April 1 this year to June 30 next year, recommended that employers should first reduce non-wage costs and consider measures to manage excess manpower.

It also asked employers to tap government support to offset business and wage costs, and continue with workforce transformation to be in a better position to grow when economic recovery comes.

Employers that still find it necessary to trim wages to save jobs were urged to adopt a graduated approach and give special consideration to low-wage workers.

The guidelines also stated that layoffs should be the last resort and should be conducted responsibly.

"The labour market has softened considerably since," the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said yesterday, citing preliminary data that indicated a huge decline in total employment in the second quarter, more than four times the drop in the first quarter.

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"The softness... is likely to persist amid the weak external economic environment, and the pressure on companies to retrench will mount," it added.

Total employment, excluding foreign domestic workers, plunged by 121,800 in the second quarter.​

  • 6,700 Number of workers laid off in the second quarter - more than double the 3,220 workers laid off in the first quarter.

Retrenchments more than doubled in the second quarter, with 6,700 workers laid off, up from 3,220 in the first quarter.

DBS chairman Peter Seah, who also chairs the NWC, said yesterday: "In the light of the profound impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, companies and especially workers, it is important that the tripartite partners review the challenges posed and make recommendations to respond to the issues."

Council members include Singapore National Employers Federation president Robert Yap, Singapore Business Federation vice-chairman Gan Seow Kee, National Trades Union Congress president Mary Liew, NTUC assistant secretary-general Desmond Choo, MOM Permanent Secretary Aubeck Kam and Ministry of Trade and Industry Permanent Secretary Gabriel Lim.

This will be only the fourth time that the council has re-assessed guidelines twice in the same year since being set up in 1972.

The other instances occurred in 2009 amid the global financial crisis, in 2001 after the Sept 11 attacks in the United States and during the 1998 Asian financial crisis.

The public can give their views on wage and employment-related issues and suggest changes to the guidelines through a feedback form until Aug 28.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on August 15, 2020, with the headline Wages council to meet soon and issue new guidelines by September. Subscribe