At dialogue, it seeks participants' views on measures used elsewhere for hiring locals, foreigners
By Andrea Ong, The Sunday Times, 30 Jun 2013
A national conversation session yesterday shed light on the options the Government is exploring to get employers to give Singaporeans fair consideration for jobs.
Some 40 participants - including employers and employees from various sectors - were asked for their views on practices in three economies even as Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin promised changes to the current system.
These changes will seek to address concerns that foreigners are being preferred over Singaporeans for jobs.
At yesterday's session on jobs, facilitators gave presentations on measures used by the United Kingdom, the United States and Hong Kong in three specific areas: demonstrating efforts to recruit locals for jobs, giving justifications for hiring foreigners and showing that locals have not been displaced.
A good number of participants plumped for Hong Kong's practice of requiring employers to give reasons for recruiting a foreigner to fill a vacancy, and the US practice of employers declaring that they have taken steps in "good faith" to recruit locals.
But participants were also divided on the effectiveness of such moves. Some were in favour of having concrete laws to protect Singaporeans while others noted that employers may find a way around the system or that overly rigid rules might affect companies' competitiveness.
In his wrap-up speech, Mr Tan said: "Many of these countries go through some hoops and hurdles. It looks good on paper but does it completely eradicate things? No, it doesn't. But should we leave it completely open as we are today? I would say no. We need to do something."
Speaking to reporters after the session, Mr Tan said a key objective of the changes is to "make sure that we look after all Singaporeans".
Besides measures which will cover "the hiring side of the house", government agencies will also continue to work with companies to ensure an internal pipeline to develop locals, he said. The Government is also looking at enhancing the Employment Pass framework.
When asked to vote on whether they felt there was a level playing field between Singaporeans and foreigners in job opportunities, participants gave a range of responses reflecting the different challenges in different sectors.
Mr Thomas Ho, 48, suggested a "soft ratio" of locals to foreigners for every sector, which the Government could use as a form of moral suasion on employers.
Mr Ho, who was retrenched earlier this year after 22 years in the banking industry, said his sector in particular was feeling the squeeze from foreigners.
But participants like Mr Elango Subramanian, 51, who owns a small and medium-sized enterprise, and those from the service industry spoke of the difficulties they faced in hiring talented locals.
Mr Tan pledged the Government's commitment to creating a level playing field for Singaporeans but cautioned that this should not "jeopardise something which has provided us with very strong foundations".
For instance, looking after Singaporeans is really about creating jobs and opportunities - and this is achieved through a "fairly dynamic economic space".
"Being open and diverse is a big part of our strength," he said, noting Singapore's low unemployment rate. "Let's not, for... some issues which have become amplified in some ways, overturn the cart which has actually provided us with a very strong base."
Mr Tan also observed that many of the Our Singapore Conversation participants are professionals, managers or executives (PMEs) and said that, while the Government was concerned about this group, the unemployment rate among non- PMEs was actually higher.
This illustrates the different views and concerns the Government has to bear in mind, he said.
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