BARRIERS FACED BY SMES IN RAISING SKILLS OF LOW-INCOME WORKERS

BARRIERS FACED BY SMES IN RAISING SKILLS OF LOW-INCOME WORKERS

10.

Assoc. Prof. Paulin Tay Straughan asked the Minister for Manpower what are some of the barriers faced by small and medium-sized enterprises with regard to (i) raising the skill levels of low-income workers; and (ii) hiring Singaporeans.

Mr Gan Kim Yong: Training barriers commonly cited by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) include financial constraints and difficulties in releasing workers due to small staff strength. Nonetheless, MOM’s survey of private sector establishments showed that 61% of SMEs, defined as establishments with less than 200 employees, do send their workers for structured training. This is comparable to the figure of 65% among all private sector establishments surveyed. Among SMEs who sent their workers for training, many reported positive impact of training, such as higher work productivity and customer satisfaction.

Continuing Education and Training (CET) is subsidised for all Singaporeans. To make training even more affordable for low-wage workers (LWWs), we launched the Workfare Training Support Scheme (WTS) in 2010. The WTS provides higher training grants to employers and LWWs, including absentee payroll. WDA also partnered HDB and the Singapore Institute of Retail Studies (SIRS) to roll out an on-site bite-sized training programme for retail SMEs in HDB estates to make training more accessible to SMEs with small numbers of staff. In this programme, training is conducted within the locality of the shops at convenient times (such as before store opening).

Some SMEs may not be aware of avenues available to them to improve worker productivity and skills. Recognising this, WDA and SPRING Singapore jointly initiated the SME Productivity Action Roadmap (SME-PRO) last year: a three-step approach to assist SMEs in productivity improvement. There are also five Enterprise Development Centres (EDCs) set up jointly by SPRING Singapore and key business chambers and associations to provide business advisory services to SMEs.

On the barriers faced by SMEs in hiring Singaporeans, SMEs on the whole could face greater difficulties in attracting and retaining quality staff compared to larger companies due to weaker employer branding, lower ability to pay and reward as generously, and fewer opportunities for job rotation.

In 2010, SPRING rolled out two programmes to encourage young Singaporeans to consider SMEs as an attractive career choice. The Management Associate Partnership is an 18-month career development programme that equips management associates with core competencies to run SMEs’ operations and be part of the SME’s future growth stories; the Enterprise Internship Programme seeks to expose local university and polytechnic students to the dynamic and rewarding working environment in high-growth SMEs through short-term internships. In addition, SMEs may also tap on Government assistance programmes such as the HR Capability Programme under SPRING Singapore to enhance their HR capabilities and practices.

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Being small, SMEs also have their advantages, such as greater ease in creating a close-knit organisation, wider range of responsibility for their managers, more flexible HR practices, etc. We encourage our SMEs to leverage on their strengths and adopt progressive employment practices to win their share of talent to support their growth.

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