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In a pre-Budget 2025 media briefing, NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng also shared some of the other initiatives that the union is hoping to undertake to enhance workers’ job security and career development opportunities for workers.
The National Trades Congress Union (NTUC) announced earlier today the Company Mentorship Circle (CMC), a pilot initiative to enhance workers’ career progression for Professionals, Managers, and Executives (PMEs).
During a pre-Budget media briefing attended by HRO, SG Ng announced that the pilot initiative is said to enhance workers’ career progression, with NTUC and its affiliated unions partnering and connecting with unionised companies with the 1,200 mentors and experienced industry leaders in the NTUC Mentors Network, who will provide skills and career guidance to workers in these companies.
The CMC will also aim to help strengthen a workplace culture of continuous learning and development for workers.
The CMC augments the current NTUC Executive Mentorship Programme, which has benefitted more than 146 mentees over three pilot runs. The next run of the programme, from March to May 2025, will provide structured guidance to help over 250 PME mentees pivot into new roles and industries, with a particular focus on emerging sectors like artificial intelligence.
More information about the CMC initiative will be announced in due course.
Sharing his views on the initiative, SG Ng said that the union is currently focusing on matching both demand and supply, highlighting that 1,200 is a good number to start with.
"One of the reasons we are starting with this is, we see some traction with the general public of PMEs and, with the supply of mentors quite eager to help NTUC realise this possibility, we want to deploy them into useful areas based on their own values and purpose, so we can match them to the outcomes that they influence."
Job security is a concern for all workers, including PMEs
This initiative comes in lieu of what SG Ng called an urgent need to enhance the job security of workers, including PMEs, with SG Ng noting that job security remains at the top of mind of many working Singaporeans, including PMEs.
"34% of workers are concerned about job security; in layman's language, in the next three months, they worry that they may lose their job."
"It's not surprising that mature PMEs around my age group, 50 – 59 are more likely to be concerned about job security.
"Ultimately, we need a strong economy and thriving businesses so our workers can benefit from the success," he added.
Moreover, citing a recent World Economic Forum report, SG Ng commented: "70% of Singapore's workforce will need to be upskilled and reskilled by 2030 to remain competitive, given the fast changing technological and economic landscape."
"Six in 10 of Singapore firms have identified skill gaps as a potential barrier to their own business transformation efforts."
"These findings highlight the need to support workers," he pointed out.
Other initiatives to enhance job security for workers
Besides the CMC initiative, and to address the challenges ahead, SG Ng shared that NTUC is taking proactive steps to strengthen its digital innovation and develop tools to enhance workers’ employability and job security, including PMEs.
“What has changed in the last seven, eight years, is that now PMEs make up close to half of our local workforce.”
SG Ng added that initiatives such as collaboration with companies to transform their businesses and improve their productivity, ensuring that workers can benefit from their successes through better wages, welfare and work prospects, have also taken effect and has seen positive feedback.
One example is the Company Training Committee (CTC) grant that has benefited workers with real wage increases, structured career pathways through the Career Development Plan, and skills allowances.
“We wanted to add value and come in with a Company Training Committee to be an institutional instrument. That means, when a company has initiatives, they identify business opportunities or business risks, we want to make a business transformation.
"We want to partner companies to move workers along terms of upskilling reskilling, even in job redesign or movement of workers inside the company for some time."
The CTC initiative has been in place for the last five years, with significant positive outcomes in workforce development and value adding to both companies and the workforce.
SG Ng shared that in the period, the number of workers that have been benefiting from skills training under the CTC has exceeded 200,000.
Another example shared was the Virtual Career Coach (VCC) to enhance NTUC’s e2i’s career advisory and job matching services. Since its launch in August 2024, more than 3,500 jobseekers have benefitted from the VCC
With scaled-up efforts to support PMEs, job placements for PMEs – including skilled technicians – rose from 8,800 to 17,000 between 2023 and 2024. The percentage of PME jobseekers approaching NTUC’s e2i between Q4 2023 and Q4 2024 has also increased from 45% to 61%.
Continued partnership with tripartite partners to improve job security
Lastly, SG Ng highlighted that NTUC, its unions, and associations will continue to champion workers’ interests, ensuring that their concerns are heard.
The tripartite partnership is crucial in tackling issues such as job security, upskilling, workers’ wellbeing, and fair wages while addressing broader social challenges, such as caregiving responsibilities amid an ageing population, better support for lower-wage workers, and the need for better access to job opportunities for PMEs.
When asked about his wishes for the upcoming Budget Statement, SG Ng shared: "We are seeking government support to increase the scale of our effort to be able to use the CTC initiative to do even more for business transformation and outcomes.
He also expressed hopes that with the Government’s help, the expansion of the Tripartite “Queen Bee” Partnership can take place, whereby the initiative goes beyond a single company into a cluster where Queen Bees, such as ST Engineering and other companies, use their influence and collaborate with to be able to influence their subsidiaries, so as to scale the CTC concept even further.
Lead image / NTUC
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