36% jump in workers undergoing training at e2i

SINGAPORE — The labour movement’s Employment and Employability Institute (e2i) saw more than 51,800 workers upgrading their skills through e2i training programmes last year — a 36 per cent increase from 2013.

More than 1,100 job seekers were also placed under the institute’s Place-and-Train programmes, which allow companies to provide workers with structured skills training after the hiring process.

Meanwhile, more than 17,500 union members benefited from a S$1.85 million disbursement under the Union Training Assistance Programme (UTAP) — an individual skills-upgrading benefit for National Trade Union Congress (NTUC) members that is meant to defray training costs — while 725 members were funded for self-sponsored training.

These updates were shared by e2i chief executive officer Gilbert Tan yesterday at the Devan Nair Institute for Employment and Employability, as the organisation launched its month-long Employability Fair, where about 5,000 job vacancies offered by 500 employers were up for grabs.

Mr Tan said e2i’s goal this year is to strengthen and develop services for the growing number of professionals, managers and executives (PMEs), who make up about 40 per cent of the current workforce.

For example, he added, e2i launched the Jobs Bank Connect programme to help PMEs navigate the national Jobs Bank website, a challenge many of them had faced previously.

The programme also helps PMEs customise their resumes for online job applications to increase the chances of a job match.

Said Mr Tan: “PMEs are typically being defined by their knowledge and skill sets, so it’s all the more important that they continue to keep abreast of the latest changes in their fields of practice.”

Additionally, with small and medium enterprises (SMEs) collectively recruiting about 60 per cent of Singapore’s workforce, Mr Tan said another of e2i’s goals is to work with SMEs to create better jobs.

“SMES are facing challenges such as rental costs and the manpower quota, but a successful SME that gives good jobs to workers is one with good leadership. To address that, we put together a programme, IN-Tune, to inspire, upgrade and build a community of practice among SME leadership to share with each other,” he added.

IN-Tune, a joint collaboration between e2i and SeraphCorp, will allow SMEs to network and share ideas through seminars held on a quarterly basis.

At yesterday’s inaugural session, three business owners, including HungryGoWhere co-founder Dennis Goh, shared their personal journeys to success and offered business tips to aspiring SME leaders.

Founder of maternity and baby wear retail chain Spring Maternity, Ms Joey Kwa, said she enjoyed the format of the seminar, adding that “it was good to bring together people who have been through similar circumstances”.