Fair Consideration Framework a ‘sensible approach’: Tan Chuan Jin

SINGAPORE — Describing the new Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) as a “sensible approach”, Acting Minister for Manpower Tan Chuan-Jin today (Sept 23) said it sends a “strong signal to all employers that they should consider Singaporeans fairly in filling available jobs”.

“Our objective is simple – to let Singaporeans benefit fairly from economic growth, by helping them get better jobs now and in the future,” said Mr Tan in a blog post.

The Government today announced the FCF. Among the new rules, employers will have to advertise job vacancies on a new government jobs bank for at least 14 days before they apply to hire an Employment Pass (EP) holder, starting from Aug 1 next year.

Mr Tan noted that the majority of participants in the Ministry of Manpower’s Our Singapore Conversation felt that “the playing field is somewhat unlevel between Singaporeans and foreigners for job opportunities”.

They asked for ways to ensure that Singaporean fresh graduates were not disadvantaged with competing with foreign employees, he noted. “Employers, on the other hand, shared that they faced real difficulties finding suitably qualified Singaporeans to work for them.”

“I hear you,” said Mr Tan. “Not just the OSC participants, but the many Singaporeans I have met and who have written to me about the discrimination they have perceived at the workplace.”

Noting that “fair consideration is ultimately a mindset issue”, he said: “I think what we have come up with is an approach that works best for Singapore.”

The mandatory advertising requirement is “an important aspect” of the FCF, as it serves a “larger purpose of facilitating greater labour market transparency, by complementing existing job portals in the market”, said Mr Tan.

Data from the new jobs bank will not only help the Government improve its retraining and continuing education efforts but also enable it to better “discern existing skills gaps and also better facilitate job-matching”.

In dealing with firms that require “additional scrutiny” — such as those with a low proportion of Singaporeans at the PME level — the MOM will adopt a more “targetted approach”, said Mr Tan. “We will start to identify and engage such firms probably by early next year, and shine a light on their hiring and staff development practices, even as we work towards the setting up of the new jobs bank next year,” he said.

The firms found to have relatively poor employment practices and which refuse to improve may have their work pass privileges reined in, he added.

Explaining why the framework is not a “Hire Singaporeans Only” policy, Mr Tan said the FCF is “a sensible approach given our local context, where we generate more jobs than there are Singaporeans to fill”.

While the Government understands the employers may not always be able to find a suitable local candidate, Mr Tan said: “I expect employers to pay attention to the way they hire and develop their staff. They should focus their lenses on Singaporeans before they look to hiring EP holders.”