Employment of Ex-Offenders

Mrs Lina Chiam asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs since the launch of the Yellow Ribbon Project in 2004 (a) how many ex-prisoners enrolled in this Project have been able to secure a job; (b) what is the success rate of the Project; and (c) what are the follow-up programmes and whether these programmes track those who are still jobless to help them secure jobs again.

The Minister of State for Home Affairs (Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M) (for the Deputy Prime Minister and the Minister for Home Affairs): Mr Speaker, the Yellow Ribbon Project seeks to engage the community and garner community support for ex-offenders and their family in order to give them a second chance in life. However, the Yellow Ribbon Project does not offer any direct employment help to ex-offenders. Employment assistance is provided by the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE), a statutory board under MHA, whose work I will describe later.

The Yellow Ribbon Project has achieved some success in spreading this "second chance" message. In a survey conducted in 2010, 91% of the respondents indicated that they were aware of the project and its key message. The Yellow Ribbon Project has also helped to nurture important community partnerships with key stakeholders such as corporate organisations, Government agencies and schools. These partners have supported the project through volunteerism, donations and sponsorships. In addition, the Yellow Ribbon Project has helped to garner more support from employers to offer jobs to offenders. The number of employers collaborating with SCORE has increased by more than 100% from 1,381 in 2004 to 2,872 in 2011.

Mr Speaker, with regard to helping offenders and ex-offenders to look for jobs, this service is offered by SCORE. It is a statutory board under my Ministry. SCORE provides such employment assistance through skills training, case management and job placement exercises. To help offenders transit from Prisons into the workforce and stabilise in their jobs, SCORE also introduced the Case Management Service in 2007. Offenders who have successfully secured jobs are assigned SCORE Case Managers for six months. In 2011, 1,586 offenders were case-managed at work. Of these, 78% had stayed on the job for three months and 54% had stayed on the job for six months. Ex-offenders who are looking for a job or have lost their job can approach the Employment Assistance Unit of SCORE. In 2011, 492 ex-offenders sought SCORE's assistance. Of these, 363, or 74%, successfully secured jobs and have started work.

Underpinning these efforts are the ex-offenders' commitment, discipline and preparedness to work hard and remain in stable employment. The community also plays an important role in giving them a second chance and helping them to successfully re-integrate into society.

Mrs Lina Chiam: I thank the Minister of State for answering my question. I would like to ask one supplementary question. What are the follow-up programmes and how does the Ministry track the ex-offenders who cannot or are unable to secure jobs?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Mr Speaker, I thank the Member for the supplementary question. We do not track the offenders after they have got the job. The nature of ex-offenders is that once they have left the prison, they want to leave the prison behind. Generally, they do not want to have anything to do with the Prisons. However, help is still offered to them if they want to come back or if they are out of a job or if they need particular assistance in getting re-integrated into society.

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