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Sharing five measures to combat workplace discrimination, Dr Tan See Leng said these are in areas which account for more than 95% of discrimination complaints received by TAFEP and MOM.
On 7 January 2025, Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng opened a debate on the Workplace Fairness Bill in Singapore's Parliament.
The Workplace Fairness Bill is expected to strengthen protections against discrimination while upholding Singapore's fair workplace norms, targeting common forms of bias with broad societal support.
Dr Tan talked about the nation contending with an ageing population and economic headwinds during his second reading of the Bill, adding: "Amidst these demographic and economic realities, a complementary foreign workforce remains important to Singapore's continued economic success, as well as ensuring good jobs and good wages for locals, but we are also clear that these benefits will only accrue to Singaporeans if there is a level playing field that prevents discriminatory practices.
"So even as we have made progress, we must not take our generally harmonious and fair workplace conditions for granted."
He emphasised the importance of safeguarding Singapore's harmonious and fair workplace conditions, urging proactive measures to ensure employees and job seekers continue to receive equitable treatment.
“Today, after extensive consultations, we have decided on a more nuanced and calibrated approach by first starting with five categories of protected characteristics.”
- Age
- Nationality
- Sex, marital status, pregnancy status, caregiving responsibilities
- Race, religion and language
- Disability and mental health conditions
“Now these are areas where there is broad societal consensus and we have national policy imperatives to prevent discrimination against in the workplace. Together, they account for more than 95% of discrimination complaints received by TAFEP and MOM,” he added.
Overall, in his reading of the Bill, Dr Tan covered the following areas, for which we've summarised some of the key talkpoints:
- First, how it strengthens protections for jobseekers and employees against discrimination, while retaining flexibility for employers.
- The Bill will start out with five categories of protected characteristics, as detailed above.
- For persons with disabilities, MOM is working on a Tripartite Advisory for Reasonable Accommodations to raise awareness and provide practical guidance to employers.
- For persons with mental health conditions, he said an evidence-based approach will be taken towards mental health issues at the workplace, rather than perpetuating stigmas that limit the potential contributions of affected individuals.
- He made a point of sharing that Singapore's laws are not overly prescriptive – this, he noted, is to avoid undermining labour market flexibility and inhibiting the ability to leverage the country's long-standing model of labour relations to manage such complex issues.
- He stated: "So, we have designed this Bill knowing it cannot be the only tool to tackle all forms of workplace discrimination."
- Second, provision of grievance handling processes to promote better communication and amicable resolution of issues.
- The Bill, he said, focuses on ensuring that employers have a grievance handling process in place, while refraining from being overly prescriptive on the detailed requirements.
- At the same time, being aware that formal processes alone may not be sufficient, the Minister said the Bill provides better assurance, by prohibiting employers from retaliating against those that file complaints and claims.
- The grievance handling processes required under this Bill can also be used by victims of workplace harassment, to surface their cases to employers for resolution.
- In cases where the employer and employee are unable to settle their differences within the firm itself, the employee can decide if they wish to make a private employment claim under the Bill. Minister Tan said a second Bill will be introduced later to provide this option for claimants.
- Thus, he affirmed that this Bill is only the first of two Bills, and will cover the substantive rights and obligations under the WFL. It has been introduced early so that employers have more time to prepare themselves for the new law.
- He added on the timeline of the next update and implementation: "The second Bill will pertain more specifically to how private employment claims can be made for workplace discrimination. It will take us some time to work through the details, which are complex and novel, on how such claims are adjudicated. If both Bills are passed, we intend to implement the WFL sometime in 2026 or 2027."
- Third, complementing the government's education-first approach with calibrated levers to deal with the small number of bad employers who persist in egregious discrimination.
- On the education and capability building front, he stated TAFEP is working closely with partners like SNEF, the Institute for Human Resource Professionals (IHRP), Singapore Human Resources Institute, and the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises.
- MOM will continue to support firms on this journey by helping employers that may be in breach of the WFL to understand their obligations and rectify the breach.
- Recognising that small firms may have limited capabilities and resources, and that this can make full compliance from day one difficult, he cited that the Bill exempts firms with fewer than 25 employees. He affirmed that this will be reviewed in five years after the law is implemented.
- For the small number of errant employers that blatantly flout the rules, the Bill empowers the Government to take enforcement action based on the severity of the breach.
NTUC’s Labour Members of Parliament (LMPs) and Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) have come out in strong support, as well as raised queries on the Bill. Below we have summarised some of the talkpoints from their speeches in Parliament.
Heng Chee How, NTUC Deputy Secretary-General, Senior Minister of State and Member of Parliament for Jalan Besar GRC
DSG Heng's speech highlighted the urgent need to tackle age discrimination in the workplace, noting its growing prevalence and its impact on older workers, particularly Professionals, Managers, and Executives (PMEs).
Beyond legislation, DSG Heng advocated for age-friendly workplace practices, including flexible arrangements, job redesign, and inclusive hiring processes, saying: “Age-friendly job design takes into account the needs and capabilities of older workers and provides them with the tools and resources necessary to succeed.”
“Through various Government schemes and tripartite initiatives, including the NTUC Company Training Committee (CTC) Grant and various other job redesign grants, employers can work together with their unions to create age-friendly workplaces and businesses can ensure that their multi-generational workforce remains competitive and well-equipped to meet the challenges of the future.”
Patrick Tay, NTUC Assistant Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Pioneer SMC
ASG Patrick's speech emphasised addressing workplace discrimination through the "5Cs".
Coverage
ASG Patrick appreciated that the legislation would address the majority of common forms of workplace discrimination. However, he did acknowledge that outsourced workers and freelancers, including platform workers, may be underserved in workplace discrimination protections. While this initial iteration of the Workplace Fairness Bill lays a foundation, it was emphasised that regular reviews will be essential to adapt to evolving societal norms and workforce dynamics, ensuring no genuine victim of discrimination is overlooked.
“The Labour Movement will continue to listen closely to workers’ feedback, and lobby for further changes to the workplace fairness legislation, even after it is implemented, to ensure its relevancy and cater to the needs, expectations, and conditions of workers and the world of work.”
The other Cs are as follows:
- Clarity, where ASG Patrick highlighted key concerns, including defining fairness and discrimination, addressing direct and indirect forms, clarifying the scope of mental disabilities under protected characteristics, and ensuring clear guidance for stakeholders.
- Communication, in which he expressed hope that questions from all stakeholders will be effectively communicated to employers, unions, HR, legal practitioners, and workers, viewing them as opportunities to refine the approach and foster trust and unity.
- Capability, in which he proposed updating the IHRP certification to include the Workplace Fairness Legislation, ensuring it covers all certifiable levels and relevant topics like WFL, tripartism and industrial relations in Singapore. Additionally, he reiterated the call for making IHRP certification mandatory, particularly for companies hiring foreign manpower.
- Complement, where ASG Patrick welcomed the inclusion of harassment as a grievance, noting its overlap with discrimination, and urged the Government to strengthen protections through research, education, and awareness training.
Yeo Wan Ling, NTUC Assistant Secretary-General, Senior Minister of State and Member of Parliament for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC
ASG Wan Ling strongly believes that the bill serves as a safety net for workers who face discrimination in the workplace and calls for broader coverage, more resources for companies, as well as stronger support for SMEs in implementing anti-discrimination practices.
She inquired if the Ministry plans to provide additional resources for companies to implement anti-discrimination practices and support HR professionals in SMEs to handle workplace disputes.
“An interim measure could also be to recognise SMEs who have implemented WFL practices in their workplaces voluntarily.
“This will allow all companies to be on a level playing field, and to uplift the image of SMEs to be equally progressive employers alongside all Singaporean companies.”
Melvin Yong, NTUC Assistant Secretary-General and Member of Parliament for Pioneer SMC
ASG Melvin’s speech emphasised the importance of protecting workers with mental health conditions and he suggested expanding the definition of protected mental health condition, in relation to an individual, to include diagnoses by allied health professionals such as psychologists and therapists.
He acknowledged that clause 16 of the Bill states that the protected mental health condition, in relation to an individual, means that the individual has been diagnosed with any mental disorder by a medical practitioner registered under the Medical Registration Act, which means workers with mental health conditions are only protected from discrimination if they see and are treated by a psychiatrist.
“I would like to urge the Government to review and expand this definition.”
“There is a wide array of mental health conditions, with a range of treatment options depending on how early someone seeks assistance.
“Beyond the clinical environment of seeing a psychiatrist, some workers with milder mental health issues would benefit greatly from seeing a therapist or a psychologist."
Lead image / Tan See Leng Facebook
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