Opening Remarks at Launch of the Alliance for Action on Empowering Multi-Stage Careers for Mature Workers
Dr Koh Poh Koon, Senior Minister of State for Manpower, Civil Service Club Tessensohn
Mr Desmond Tan, Deputy Secretary-General, National Trades Union Congress,
Ms Tan Hwee Bin, Vice President, Singapore National Employers Federation,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good afternoon.
1.
It is my pleasure to join you today for the launch of the Alliance for Action on Empowering Multi-Stage Careers for Mature Workers, or AfA for short. Today, we have with us members of the Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment, which I co-chair with Desmond and Hwee Bin, and representatives from the organisations that we aim to partner with in our AfA. I would like to thank our workgroup members and AfA participants for your commitment and willingness to share your ideas and perspectives, so that we can make jobs and workplaces more age-friendly.
Our Ageing Workforce
2.
Singapore is experiencing a profound demographic shift. By 2030, one in four Singaporeans will be aged 65 and above. Life expectancy, because of good healthcare delivery, has also increased, from 76.2 years around 30 years ago to 83.5 years today. In that short 30 years, our life expectancy has extended by almost 10 years. With advances in healthcare, we are living longer and healthier, prompting a fundamental shift in how we approach our later years. Whether you like it or not, all of us will get there one day. And so, what we do today is laying the foundation for not just the aged of today, but for all of us here tomorrow.
3.
This increasing longevity opens up new possibilities. Career paths that once followed a linear trajectory now offer more flexibility, simply because we are much more able bodied. While retirement often meant an abrupt end to one’s professional journey in the past, today’s workforce is increasingly motivated by diverse aspirations. This could be transitioning to a new career, engaging in part-time roles, or shifting to mentorship positions within the same industry. Such aspirations are further enabled by the rise of technologically enabled remote work, freelance opportunities, and skills-based roles. Today, more than ever, we have an opportunity to reinvent the career landscape for our seniors and build a diverse multi-generational workforce.
4.
The Government has been taking proactive steps to support our senior workers if they wish to continue contributing to the workforce. We have progressively raised the retirement and re-employment ages to enable workers to work longer if they choose to do so, and provided support to employers who hire older workers through schemes like the Senior Employment Credit.
5.
Beyond existing broad-based policies, we move now to empowering organisations and workers to harness the strengths of senior workers and help workers fulfil their career aspirations. We need a fundamental shift in mindsets. This requires innovation, experimentation, and most importantly, collaboration among all stakeholders. Everyone has a role to play, but what does this mean?:
a.
For senior workers, this means reskilling, upskilling, and possibly planning for multi-stage careers. This could look like switching careers, or taking on a new work arrangement with a new employer or within the same company, to balance their life goals and career aspirations.
b.
For employers, this means embracing the benefits of tapping on the silver workforce and leveraging the expertise and networks of senior workers. Employers can also build capabilities for job redesign and training to create a diverse multi-generational workforce. Employers can also look at creating more flexible work opportunities, because this will provide some flexibility to allow workers to adjust their lifestyle needs as they get older.
The Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment and Launch of the Alliance for Action on Empowering Multi-Stage Careers for Mature Workers
6.
This is why MOM, NTUC and SNEF established the Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment, or TWG-SE, earlier this year. The Workgroup is developing policy recommendations in two key areas. First, empowering our senior workers to be productive and employable. Second, promoting age-friendly jobs and multigenerational workplaces.
7.
The TWG-SE is launching this AfA so that progressive employers like many of you who are here with us today can experiment alongside us and co-create ideas and prototype solutions to make jobs and workplaces more age-friendly. Because of the diverse landscape and workplaces we are dealing with, it is far better to engage employers and companies like yourselves from the ground up, from big and small companies, to innovate and come up with ideas to learn and iterate, so that we have prototypes that we can share with others to scale and broaden their outreach.
8.
Today, I am pleased to announce that we intend to partner with 32 organisations that have been selected to participate in the AfA as prototype developers. These organisations comprise companies, labour market intermediaries, and non-profit organisations. They represent a wide spectrum of industries, including manufacturing, hospitality, security and financial services. To the organisations present today – thank you for being here to be pioneers in this journey.
9.
Over the coming months, these organisations will develop and test prototypes in areas such as:
a.
Re-designing jobs to better suit the needs and strengths of mature workers;
b.
New models of flexible work arrangements that allow workers to adjust their work arrangements based on their aspirations and circumstances; and
c.
Skills upgrading, structured career planning, and training programmes tailored for mature workers.
10.
The prototypes developed by these organisations will provide us with valuable insights and practical solutions. Where feasible, we hope to share and scale it across different sectors. We intend to work closely with the organisations, providing them with funding support when they come on board.
11.
We will have the opportunity later to hear from some of the organisations as they share about their prototypes. I look forward to learning from their innovative ideas. Together, we can begin the co-creation process from day one.
Conclusion
13.
This AfA represents a new chapter in our efforts to support senior employment. It is a testament to the strength of our tripartite partnership and our shared commitment to building a more age-friendly workforce.
14.
I would like to once again thank our prototype developers for your commitment and openness towards innovation. I would also like to thank my fellow TWG-SE co-chairs, Mr Desmond Tan and Ms Tan Hwee Bin, and all our tripartite partners for your unwavering support.
15.
Together, I believe we can all work hand-in-hand towards creating a future that is more age-friendly, a workforce that is more multigenerational, to harness the potential of our seniors, and at the same time, create value for our companies and boost our economy.
16.
Thank you for being here and I look forward to meeting with you later.