Re-integrating Ex-Offenders into Society

Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs of all ex-offenders who have re-integrated into society (a) what is the percentage of those who have been re-employed; and (b) what is the percentage of those who have been re-employed in the Civil Service, Government agencies and statutory boards.

The Minister of State for Home Affairs (Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M) (for the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs): Mr Speaker, Sir, every year, about 9,000 local offenders complete their sentences and are released from prisons and the drug rehabilitation centres (DRCs).

Those who need help with employment can approach the Singapore Corporation of Rehabilitative Enterprises (SCORE), a statutory board under the Ministry of Home Affairs which provides employment assistance for offenders and ex-offenders in the pre-release and post-release stage.

In 2010, SCORE assisted 1,292 inmates at the pre-release stage through Placement Exercises. SCORE provided job coaching for inmates, covering topics such as interview and communication skills. SCORE also arranged for employers to interview inmates within Prisons. Of those assisted, 1,170 (91%) successfully secured jobs.

Last year, at the post-release stage, SCORE's Employment Assistance Unit also assisted 344 released offenders. Of these, 218 (63%) secured jobs. These figures are for those helped directly by SCORE. However, many offenders may look for their own employment and these numbers are not tracked.

Dr Intan Azura also asked about the employment of ex-offenders by the Civil Service. In 2006, the Public Service Division amended the Civil Service job application form to ask applicants to declare if they have criminal records, instead of whether they have ever been convicted in court. This change was made to reflect support for the Yellow Ribbon campaign to give ex-offenders a second chance in life.

Currently, those who have had their criminal records spent can declare that they do not have a criminal record when applying for a job in the Civil Service. Given this, the Public Service Division has informed us that they do not track statistics on the number of ex-offenders employed by the Civil Service.

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Ms Tin Pei Ling (Marine Parade): Sir, I thank the Minister of State for the comprehensive reply. Could the Minister of State share with us what are the reasons some ex-offenders did not approach SCORE for assistance. What could be the possible reasons for some of the unsuccessful job matchings; and whether there is anything that the Ministry is looking into to improve the situation and help these ex-offenders re-integrate better into society and find a job so that they can start leading a normal life again.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, SCORE tries very hard to ensure that our releasees have the best chance at rehabilitation and reintegration. This is not only looking at the job needs. We have to look at their needs for shelter, home support, social support and so forth. In addition to doing that, we also ensure that they are, as much as possible, well prepared to go back to the workforce. As I mentioned just now, of those who sought help from SCORE, 91% of them actually got a job and stayed on the job at least for a while before they moved on to another job. For those who have not sought help, we do not really know why they have not done so. But as far as we have found out from the inmates, many of them have other sources of information and also old skills that they can rely on to get jobs.

Dr Intan Azura Mokhtar (Ang Mo Kio): I thank the Minister of State for his reply. I have met some residents of mine who were Security Officers before but they committed a crime, and they were incarcerated for a while. When they came out of prison, they wanted to go back to their former work as Security Officers, but their Security Officer's licences were revoked and they could not get them renewed. Perhaps the Minister of State could explain what were some factors that led to these licences being revoked. And is there any way for them to go back to the job that they knew they could do?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Sir, those in the security industry, they are to protect the property and the premises for which they are entrusted. Therefore, it is important for us to have people whom we can trust, not only to be the lookout for the employers, but also in addition to that, they are part of the overall security setup that we have in our homeland. Therefore, when they have committed some offences for which we think makes it not suitable for them to return to the security industry, we would not allow them to continue with the work. But given a time lapse, during which we will monitor them, we will approve their licence renewals if they do not fall back into the crimes for which they were incarcerated.