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S’pore needs to groom new generation of tripartism leaders: Chan Chun Sing

SINGAPORE — The country’s strong tripartism should not be taken for granted, said NTUC Secretary-General Chan Chun Sing, as he noted the relationship between unions, employers and the Government needs to be continually strengthened.

Mr Chan Chun Sing. TODAY file photo

Mr Chan Chun Sing. TODAY file photo

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SINGAPORE — The country’s strong tripartism should not be taken for granted, said NTUC Secretary-General Chan Chun Sing, as he noted the relationship between unions, employers and the Government needs to be continually strengthened.

Delivering his National Day Message today (Aug 1) for the first time in his capacity as labour chief, Mr Chan stressed the need to groom a new generation of tripartite leaders to allow more workers at every sector and level to benefit.

“While Singapore may face ever tougher competition, tripartism can continue to be a significant advantage for us in charting a winning strategy for the next chapter of the Singapore story”, he said.

Mr Chan noted his recent trip to Geneva for the International Labour Conference, where other countries could not build a strong tripartite culture due to a lack of trust and continuity in their Government and its policies.

For instance in other countries, policies catered to short-term political considerations than the long-term interests of workers and companies would avoid working with unions.

He added: “Ultimately, it is the workers that suffer, as the economy stagnates and the number of quality, available jobs decline”.

Mr Chan said Singapore’s belief is in cooperation among the Government, unions and employers instead of confrontation among the three parties. As such, this enabled a conducive environment to attract quality investments while ensuring workers are fairly rewarded.

He noted the improvements in workers’ wages and standard of living over the last 50 years is a “living testament” of tripartism as Singapore’s advantage.

During a media briefing before delivering his National Day message, Mr Chan told reporters that employers are willing to pay more for Singapore workers due to less likelihood of disruption.

Citing the SMRT bus drivers’ strike incident in 2012, he noted this was unprecedented but it affected the reputation of Singapore.

“It behooves us not to be complacent about such things,” added Mr Chan. “I think it be mistake to underestimate what can go wrong and what effort we required to (uphold tripartism) for the next generation”.

In his speech, Mr Chan reiterated that as Singapore’s population ages and workforce shrinks, the economy cannot compete by lowering wages or expanding the manpower pool.

Instead, the nation’s workforce competes based on quality and innovation as well as people’s trust in the Singapore Brand. He also highlighted the importance of improving workers’ capabilities to take on jobs of the future — such as through the national SkillsFuture movement to encourage lifelong learning.

“As we celebrate SG50, let us build on the Singapore Brand of trust and assurance,” said Mr Chan. “That when others do business with Singapore, our workers and companies can be trusted to deliver on our promises”.

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