MP Louis Ng urges Government to increase childcare leave for parents

SINGAPORE — Calling for the Government to increase childcare leave for parents in Singapore, Mr Louis Ng said on Thursday (Feb 27) that the allotment now “doesn’t make sense”.

The Member of Parliament for Nee Soon Group Representation Constituency (GRC) said that it has been more than a decade since childcare leave provisions were increased and said that “it is time to review this again”.

At the moment, working parents with at least one child who is a Singaporean under seven years old can take up to six days of childcare leave every year.

Mr Ng questioned whether this is enough, given that most childcare centres in Singapore are closed for six days every year and most parents would have to use up all six days of childcare leave for these annual closures.

“What happens when your child falls sick or for any other times when childcare leave is needed?” he asked.

Speaking during the second day of the Budget debate, Mr Ng called on the Government to introduce childcare sick leave and to provide this sick leave on a per-child basis. Parents can apply for this leave only with a medical certificate.

“Surely, we can all agree here that if you need six days of childcare leave for one child, you can’t also only need six days of childcare leave for two, or three or four children.”

Referring to how public service officers are already given extra days of child care leave, on top of the six days of annual child care leave, Mr Ng asked for the playing field to be levelled for those in the private sector.

He stressed that childcare sick leave is “much needed” because parents should be the ones looking after their children when they are sick.

Using the example of Hand Foot and Mouth Disease, which 90 per cent of children would have had by the time they are 12 years old, he said that it is extremely difficult for parents to find help to look after their sick children because the infection can last for more than two weeks.

He also said that employers would not want employees taking care of their sick children to return to work and spread the disease to their colleagues.

“Also, do we honestly think that the employee can concentrate at work and be productive? Won’t they be worrying about their child who is sick? How is this beneficial to the company?

“Having childcare sick leave will help the children, the parents and, ultimately, the employers,” he added.

While some may argue that giving more childcare leave will affect the employment prospects of parents with more children, Mr Ng pointed out that it is not the case for those working in the public service and that the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices would be able to address this concern.

“If we want Singaporeans to have kids and have more kids, then we need to give them time to look after and be with their kids. It’s not just about making preschool more affordable,” Mr Ng said.

Before delivering his speech, Mr Ng also filed a parliamentary question on Thursday, asking whether the Government would consider allowing paternity leave to be used within 24 months of childbirth instead of the present 12 months.

Manpower Minister Josephine Teo, who oversees the National Population and Talent Division under the Prime Minister’s Office, said that there is no reason to extend the period to 24 months because the policy is in line with international practice.

Mr Ng also suggested that the number of fathers taking paternity leave could increase if fathers are allowed to take their two weeks of leave anytime within 12 months of childbirth, instead of the default arrangement now of taking it within 16 weeks. Fathers are permitted to take paternity leave beyond the 16 weeks and up until a period within 12 months of childbirth if employers give consent.

Mrs Teo responded by stating that the norms on parenting are changing and that employers can be encouraged to be more supportive.

She added: “This is, I think, the fifth time you have asked that question on paternity leave in as many months. So we are happy to answer your question, provided you ask slightly different questions. I hope that you are equally happy with our slightly different answers.”

PARENT-CARE LEAVE

Besides advocating for more childcare leave, Mr Ng also called for parent-care leave to be legislated, especially given Singapore’s ageing population.

He repeated his call to level the playing field between the public and private sector in the area of parent-care leave, as civil servants are allowed to take up to two days of leave to care for their parents, but that provision is not available in the private sector.

“It has been eight years since we introduced parent-care leave in the civil service and it is time now for everyone else to have this. We need to legislate it,” he said.

While he recognised that work has been done to encourage employers to adopt the Tripartite Standard on Unpaid Leave for Unexpected Care Needs, he pointed out that leave granted under these guidelines is unpaid leave.

“Why do civil servants get paid parent-care leave and others have unpaid leave? Again, can we level this playing field?

“Time is the most precious commodity. I hope this Budget is not just about the economy but also about giving our people precious time to rest and to spend with their loved ones," he said.