Persons with disabilities not part of public sector headcount: Chan Chun Sing

SINGAPORE — Public sector agencies can hire as many persons with special needs as they want as such employees are not counted towards their staff headcounts, Minister-in-charge of the Public Service Chan Chun Sing said in Parliament on Wednesday (March 6).

Mr Chan was responding to a question from Ms Denise Phua, Member of Parliament (MP) for Jalan Besar Group Representation Constituency, on whether he would consider setting a target for the public sector to hire persons with special needs to make it more inclusive. Ms Phua had pointed out that the sector currently employs a “dismal” 365 such persons out of some 150,000 public officers.

Rebutting the need for a target, which he recognised could lead to tokenism, the minister said the best incentive for the public service to hire “differently-abled individuals” during the manpower crunch was to have a “separate quota”. That would be achieved by not counting their employment under the “usual manpower headcount”. That way, the agencies could employ more persons with special needs and would be incentivised to do so when manpower is tight, he added.

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“We really don’t want people to meet the target for the sake of meeting the target. I want people to look at the people based on what they can do and focus on their abilities instead of disabilities, and fit them into the job (by redesigning) the job to fit the person," said Mr Chan.

Continuing with her line of questioning, Ms Phua’s exchange with Mr Chan in Parliament also saw Nominated MPs Anthea Ong and Walter Theseira chiming in.

A soft target would go some way to setting an example, said Ms Phua. “I know the Government is generally allergic to quotas in this aspect, but I am hoping that at least the public service can set an example, a model, and perhaps put in or install some targets — for example, 1 or 2 per cent first, so the rest of us in the country can actually look towards learning as much as possible."

In response, Mr Chan said that the current employment rate of people with special needs in the public sector is already “over and above” the usual manpower quotas. He also called for greater efforts in promoting inclusive hiring practices by sharing testimonies and practices.

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“My assurance to the public is that public service has the attitude to go forth and is not constrained by the manpower quotas in the usual sense,” he added.

The discussion was sparked by a question Ms Ong posed on the current employment rates of persons with disabilities, including persons-in-recovery from mental health conditions, in the public service.

Mr Chan said the public sector employed more than 300 “differently-abled individuals” as of the end of last year, but added that the Government does not track the number of officers who are recovering from mental health conditions.

In her follow-up question, Ms Ong urged the minister to prohibit a hiring practice she said was ongoing within the public sector, whereby agencies would request for a declaration of job applicants’ medical history, including their pre-existing or past mental health conditions.

“In the job market, generally that is being seen as discriminating to a large extent,” she said.

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Mr Theseira added that the public service needed to do more to assure individuals that they should not be concerned about making known their medical history, noting current sentiments that such declarations would affect career advancement opportunities.

In response, Mr Chan stressed that the public sector adopts the practice “not to blacklist anybody (or) in any way limit their progression”. Rather, it is done in the spirit of making sure that each individual’s capabilities and limitations are known to ensure that the workplace is safe and that “everyone’s potential (is put) to good use”, he said.

In fact, this was a “philosophy” Mr Chan upheld when he served in the Singapore Armed Forces as Major-General and Chief of Army, he added.

“I would like to assure the House that it is not for punishment. In fact if anybody declares a medical condition, it is so that we can better take care of the person that we will not unnecessarily stress the person beyond the point of their capabilities,” said the minister.