NTUC supports the National Wages Council (NWC) Guidelines for 2023/24 and its recommendations for lower-wage workers and middle-income and sandwiched class of workers will help them cope with cost-of-living pressures
The National Wages Council (NWC) Guidelines for 2023/24 was released today. The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and our affiliated unions and associations support the recommendations that will be in force from 1 December 2023 to 30 November 2024. NTUC calls on employers to adopt these guidelines for all workers, especially the middle-income and sandwiched class of workers, and to ensure there is fair, inclusive and sustained wage growth. NTUC also calls employers to press on to uplift the wages for our lower-wage workers (LWWs).
Helping workers cope with cost-of-living pressures
NTUC understands that there are signs of the labour market softening, reflecting the impact of global economic headwinds. The Ministry of Trade and Industry projects that the Singapore economy is set to expand by 0.5% to 1.5% in 2023. While the economy has moderated with export-dependent sectors facing headwinds, aviation, tourism-related and consumer-facing sectors continue to enjoy positive prospects. Notwithstanding this, the feedback from workers on the ground highlights the need for further support for the lower-wage and the middle-income and sandwiched class of workers in coping with rising living costs amidst inflationary pressures.
As such, one key recommendation was the call for a one-off lump-sum payment to all workers, with heavier weightage towards lower to middle income workers. NTUC hopes that this will help to ease some of the cost-of-living pressures that workers are experiencing.
Uplifting more lower-wage workers
This year’s Guidelines for LWWs will cover employees who are earning a gross monthly wage of up to $2,500. The Guidelines recommend wage increments of 5.5% to 7.5% for all firms hiring LWWs, subject to a minimum $85 to $105 for companies that have done well and recommended that companies that have not done well but have good business prospects to provide future variable payments based on appropriate business indicators. This year’s minimum quantum represents an increase over last year’s and will help LWWs close the gap on the median wage. NTUC also supports the NWC’s call for LWWs who are earning comparatively less to receive higher percentage wage increases.
The Tripartite partners have also significantly revised the Occupational Progressive Wage requirements upwards to benefit more administrators and drivers and help them move closer to the median wage.
Fair, Inclusive and Sustainable Wage Increases for All Workers
Despite ongoing economic uncertainties, NTUC appreciates employers leaning in to support workers. In this vein, NTUC hopes for employers to adopt the Guidelines and to reward employees with fair wage increases and variables payments. NTUC also calls upon employers to pass on productivity-gains and profits to workers in the form of built-in wage increases and variable payments. NTUC supports the call by Government for employers to implement the Flexible Wage System (FWS) to better manage the businesses uncertainties ahead.
NTUC Supports Workforce and Business Transformation for Sustainable Wage Growth
NTUC continues to call for employers and employees to take a proactive approach in their upskilling. Through NTUC’s #EveryWorkerMatters Conversations campaign which engaged more than 42,000 workers, a majority of workers face barriers in their training. 77 per cent of workers lack the financial resources to fund their own training, while 72 per cent of workers lack the understanding on the type of training they need to remain relevant. In addition, 55 per cent of employees lack support from their employers for self-initiated training1 . In this regard, NTUC supports this year’s Guidelines’ call for employers to provide support for employees themselves to initiate training.
Through our NTUC Training and Placement ecosystem, employers can tap onto our resources in their workforce and business transformation initiatives to enable better Wages, Welfare and Work Prospects for our workers. NTUC has formed more than 1,600 Company Training Committees (CTCs) thus far to improve productivity and wages, and strongly encourages employers to partner us in forming CTCs. NTUC also urges members to leverage the NTUC Union Training Assistance Programme (UTAP) in conjunction with their SkillsFuture Credit to invest in and upskill themselves so that they are able to reach their fullest potential.
NTUC would like to thank our Tripartite Partners for the discussions at this year’s convening of National Wages Council as we appreciate the efforts taken to help workers and uplift them.
This is a step forward in one aspect of NTUC’s refreshed workers’ compact to ensure no workers are left behind in the nation’s progress. NTUC looks forward to the successful implementation of the guidelines and we will continue to ensure that every worker has a fair chance at having better work prospects and better wages, because #EveryWorkerMatters.
Ms Mary Liew
President
National Trades Union Congress
[1] https://www.ntuc.org.sg/Uportal/News/Flipbooks/EWMC_OurWorkersCompact
