Mr Speaker, the passing of this Bill would set in motion enhancements to shared parental leave and paternity leave schemes. Together with maternity leave, a couple who welcomes a baby in 2026 can benefit from 30 weeks of paid leave in total. These enhancements that include the doubling of mandatory paternity leave from two to four weeks, mark a major reset to policies and seek a major change in mindsets of how society can and should support parents and the parenting journey.
Freelancers make up about 1 in 10 of Singapore’s resident workforce. Some too, are hoping to start families. They welcome the Bill and look forward to the enhancements. Nonetheless, some have raised concerns on how the Bill would be received by service buyers. Allow me to elaborate. Before I proceed, I declare my role as Director for NTUC’s Freelancers and Self-employed Unit.
Babies bring joy. However, some freelancers have found the journey of becoming a mother distressing. Why so? For instance, some freelance instructors shared about abrupt termination of contracts after they disclosed their pregnancy status to clients. These clients had included education institutions. Being dumped by clients in this manner is hurtful and runs counter to this Bill’s push for progressive, family-friendly policies.
My Parliamentary Question1 at the recent 14 October sitting thus sought to know if the Ministry of Manpower would extend maternity protection to Singaporeans engaged in non-standard forms of employment, should the contracts of these freelancers such as dependents contractors be terminated on grounds related to pregnancy. The Minister’s response to the PQ provided the following guidance, and I quote: “Self-employed persons and service buyers are encouraged to negotiate contracts that are mutually favourable, including providing for scenarios where a party is unable to fulfil the contract, such as pregnancy. Parties can take reference from the Tripartite Standard on Contracting with Self-Employed Persons, and any disputes can be brought to the Small Claims Tribunals.”
In this regard, would the MSF consider working with the Ministry of Manpower and TAFEP (Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices) to state upfront in the Tripartite Standard on Contracting with Self-Employed Persons, that a service buyer should consider substitution options than to terminate the contract of a freelancer who must absent herself due to pregnancy and/or childbirth?
Could I also seek assurance from the government that should a freelancer approach TAFEP, and/or a Small Claims Tribunal about losing a contract or contracted gig after disclosing her pregnancy status to her client, the authorities would not condone such pregnancy discrimination?
On the operational aspect of the Child Development Co-savings Act:
• Given that the birth of a child is accompanied by many expenses, could the MSF consider paying out the government paid maternity leave amount to eligible freelancers when the maternity leave commences and not after the 9th week of the maternity leave period?
• I would also like to seek clarification on the amendment where workers with multiple employment arrangements would be reimbursed on a “per-parent” basis instead of “per employment” basis; how would this amendment be implemented for persons who are both employees and self-employed?
Notwithstanding these clarifications sought, I support the Bill and look forward to this decisive step towards a fair and inclusive working environment for freelancers and employees.
[1] https://www.mom.gov.sg/newsroom/parliament-questions-and-replies/2024/1014-written-answer-to-pq-on-maternity-protections-for-singaporeans
