Rehiring guidelines are useful and relevant
- The Straits Times (01 February 2011): Rehiring guidelines are useful and relevant
- The Straits Times (28 January 2011): Rehiring must be done fairly, say pilot
Rehiring guidelines are useful and relevant
- The Straits Times, 01 February 2011
We refer to the ALPA-S letter (Jan 28) which suggested that the Tripartite Guidelines on Re-employment of Older Workers could be “exploited” by employers when offering re-employment opportunities to employees.
2. The tripartite partners had carefully formulated, and recently updated, the Tripartite Guidelines to balance the needs of all parties; taking into consideration the concerns and feedback from employers, employees/unions and the public. The Guidelines are not a “crutch” for employers as the writer suggested, but serve as a key reference for employers and employees alike to facilitate re-employment which is fair to both parties.
3. By providing details on how re-employment is to be implemented, the Guidelines ensure that employers offer re-employment opportunities to employees beyond the retirement age of 62, up to age 65. The Guidelines allow employers sufficient flexibility, yet emphasise the need to take into account reasonable factors, to make adjustments to their employees’ employment terms and remuneration to ensure cost competitiveness; particularly when an entrenched seniority-based wage system exists. Employers and employees can work out arrangements which best suit the needs of both parties.
4. While the Retirement and Re-employment Act will only take effect from January 2012, companies and unions have given feedback that the Guidelines are a useful and relevant basis for implementing re-employment which benefits both employers and employees. A Ministry of Manpower survey in 2009 showed that nearly two-thirds of companies have been able to make arrangements for their employees to work past age 62.
5. The tripartite partners encourage all employers to offer re-employment to eligible employees based on the Guidelines. We also advise employees/unions to be flexible and make the necessary adjustments to their expectations on the re-employment terms and conditions. Employers and employees/unions may seek advice and assistance from the tripartite partners on the implementation of the Guidelines if necessary.
6. We will closely monitor the implementation of the Guidelines to ensure its continued relevance to employers and employees/unions. We remain committed towards working together with employers and employees in preparing them for the re-employment legislation.
Rehiring must be done fairly, say pilot
- The Straits Times, 28 January 2011
The aim of the re-employment law is to keep citizens employed as long as possible (ST editorial 'Make sure rehiring process is fair', Jan 18; and 'Re-employment more effective' by the tripartite partners; last Saturday).
Our experience has shown that unless the intent and spirit behind the guidelines are recognised, the efforts of the tripartite partners - the National Trades Union Congress, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and the Singapore National Employers Federation - will be abused.
For example, the legislation does not insist that an employee must retire at 62. However, our employer Singapore Airlines (SIA) insists that the guidelines allow an employee to continue beyond 62 only if retirement first occurs at that age.
SIA was willing to allow national pilots to become unemployed on passing 62 while continuing to retain expatriates, albeit younger, and at a much higher cost to the company.
SIA Cargo has chosen to offer only daily-rated employment, with no assurance of minimum monthly income, to national pilots beyond the age of 62. However, it offered the stability of longer-term employment to younger expatriates, some of whom must be retrained to fly the Cargo aircraft.
While SIA and SIA Cargo offer at least three-year contracts to younger expatriates, they would offer only a one-year renewable contract to Singaporeans beyond the age of 62.
The editorial and the tripartite partners' reply mentioned dispute resolution.
We have been in MOM-mediated discussions. While MOM has managed to convince SIA to move away from its initial offer, the association finds it untenable for a national pilot, who has contributed many good years to the company, to take home less than a new expatriate pilot, just because the Singaporean pilot has turned 62.
With the matter unresolved, we have proposed that it be referred for adjudication. However, we are told that we must wait until next year before we can take the matter to the Industrial Arbitration Court.
While the guidelines rightly allow for flexibility as circumstances vary from company to company, we must also acknowledge that not all companies should be using the guidelines as a crutch when they don't need to.
We must ensure that the rehiring process is fair and that Singaporeans who are older than age 62 are not exploited in the name of the guidelines.