Training Recommendations

The NWC recommends that employers implement training and productivity initiatives

Employers are encouraged to work with NTUC to establish Company Training Committees (“CTCs”). The CTCs have helped companies in driving business transformation to increase productivity and implementing training plans, and can tap into the wider NTUC training and placement ecosystem, which includes NTUC’s e2i. The Government has also set aside $70 million for the NTUC CTC Grant to support employers to implement transformation plans.

To ensure skills currency, employers should adopt a proactive approach to reskill and upskill existing employees to prepare them for changes in job functions. Employers and employees can refer to SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG)’s quarterly Jobs and Skills Insights Reports, as well as the Skills Demand for the Future Economy report published in December 2021 to learn about emerging trends, growth areas and in-demand skills.

Employers can also tap on Government subsidies to reskill and upskill employees, e.g., Workforce Singapore’s Career Conversion Programmes which provide up to 90% of monthly salary for training duration. Individuals can also tap on the SkillsFuture Mid-Career Enhanced Subsidy, which provides subsidies of up to 90% of course fees for SSG-supported courses.

Employers can also seek the assistance of SNEF, Singapore Business Federation (“SBF”), other trade associations & chambers, the unions and NTUC LearningHub, access consultancy services offered by the National Centre of Excellence for Workplace Learning (“NACE”), or join a SkillsFuture Queen Bee network in their sector where available to raise their capability and capacity for training their own workers. SNEF has a variety of training courses for employers to consider; click here to find out more.

Employers should also recognise and support the acquisition and demonstration of skills in decisions affecting hiring and career advancements.

Training requirements from March 2023

Employers are required to ensure that all resident OPW employees attain either:

  1. One Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) course, with no restriction on which course can be taken, or;
  2. One in-house training programme
    • An in-house training programme refers to a training programme organised by employers themselves and guided by defined training objectives, training modality, key training tasks, and training duration.
    • Where required, employers should be prepared to show supporting documentation on the in-house training programme – (i) defined training objectives, (ii) training modality, (iii) key training tasks, (iv) training duration (e.g. no. of days) – and records of specific workers undergoing the training.
    • On-the-job training can be counted towards in-house training programme requirement, as long as it fulfils the criteria set out above.

Employers will be given a grace period to comply with the OPW training requirements:

  1. For new hires, employers are to comply within a grace period of six months from the new hire’s date of employment.
  2. For existing employees, employers are given a grace period of one year from the start of the OPW implementation in March 2023 (i.e. up to 29 February 2024) to comply with the training requirement.