ASSISTANCE FOR THE UNEMPLOYED

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan asked the Acting Minister for Manpower, with the unemployment rate forecast to creep up and perhaps even surpass the levels experienced in the 1998 downturn, will his Ministry consider further interim measures to help the unemployed, at least for a period, subject to suitable means testing, until they are able to become financially independent again.

Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Acting Minister for Manpower in view of the current unemployment situation and projected pessimistic employment forecast, whether he will introduce additional financial assistance schemes to help those who are unemployed and who face financial difficulties.

Mr Low Thia Khiang asked the Acting Minister for Manpower (a) whether he is aware that, despite the Utilities Save scheme introduced in the Budget, there is a substantial number of households who are unable to pay utility bills and have had their supplies disconnected; and (b) whether he will introduce measures or provide specific assistance schemes to help these households.

The Acting Minister for Manpower (Dr Ng Eng Hen): Mr Speaker, Sir, with your permission, I would like to take Question Nos. 1 to 3 together.

Mr Speaker: Yes.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Because the Questions have been asked from various agencies, this reply is with the inputs from the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Community Development and Sports, Ministry of the Environment and Ministry of Trade and Industry.

As the Member rightly pointed out, since 1998, as economic conditions worsened, the Government appreciated that more would face hardship. In response, several measures have been introduced to help lower income groups and unemployed workers cope with the difficult times. These measures involved not just temporary financial assistance, but also job matching and placement services, and specific schemes and programmes to facilitate re-entry into the workforce.

On financial assistance, the Government works closely with Community Development Councils (CDCs) and voluntary welfare organisations (VWOs) to tailor the assistance to households in need. For instance, the unemployed who have a low household income can apply for interim financial assistance at their Community Development Councils. Short-term financial aid will be granted for six months, subject to a review every three months. In FY2002, 6,700 unemployed Singaporeans were helped by this scheme. 88% of them managed to get a job within three months and become financially independent.

In addition, families who live in 1-, 2- or 3-room rental and purchased flats who have difficulty paying their rental, utilities or conservancy charges can obtain short-term relief to tide over temporary crises. They may apply for monthly subsidies for rent, utilities and service and conservancy charges, up to a maximum monthly cap of $90 for utilities and $35 for service and conservancy charges. For those lower income families that are unable to pay their utility bills - this is in reply to Mr Low Thia Khiang - PUB has already adopted the practice of thimbling their water supply instead of cutting it off completely since late 2002. This has enabled them to continue to have access to a minimum supply of water for basic needs. PUB will extend this practice until the economic situation improves.

As for facilitating job placement, between December 2001 and last month, 152,000 visits for job assistance under MOM's Career Link and its Distributed Career Link Network were recorded; of these, 19,600 people were placed into jobs. Recently, we have seen an increase in take-up rate and this is encouraging. MOM also introduced a number of industry-targeted programmes to place and train or convert job seekers for jobs in growth or strategic sectors. More than 1,200 Singaporeans have benefited from such programmes so far. Further, training programmes are in place to ensure that workers' skill sets develop in tandem with the economy. About 80,000 workers have benefited from the Skills Redevelopment Programme.

I share Members' concern on the impact of a further rise in overall unemployment rate, as pointed out by Dr Amy Khor. Hence, MOM is working towards introducing more place and train programmes in other sub-sectors which offer employment opportunities. We will support retooling and upskilling workers and later I will be introducing a Bill which will enable us to start the CET statutory board. These developments will enable MOM and its partners to be more effective in helping the unemployed find jobs.

The various financial, training and employment assistance measures which I have just described provide a sound and holistic framework for helping unemployed and low-income Singaporeans in this downturn. We will have to calibrate the extent of assistance depending on economic circumstances, and feedback from MPs, VWOs, and officers on the ground.

Unfortunately, our experience shows that despite the difficult conditions, there are jobs which companies still cannot find Singaporeans to fill. Hence, the Government will need to tighten the connection between financial assistance and efforts on the part of individuals to look for jobs, take up jobs that are available and undergo training. We will monitor closely how well the existing schemes are working and, wherever necessary, to streamline and improve the assistance framework to make it more effective.

Ultimately, jobs and self-reliance are the best guarantee of financial independence, self-confidence and personal dignity. I urge Singaporeans who are out of work to be flexible and realistic in their search for jobs. They should not turn down job opportunities which may not be ideal, but which can financially tide them over this downturn.

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan (Hong Kah): Sir, I would like to ask the Minister specifically about the white collar workers. It has been reported that about half of the currently unemployed are white collar workers. Are there any specific measures in place or being planned to help this specific group of workers, especially they are reporting that they are encountering resistance from prospective employers due to cynicism about their over-qualification and possible change of job when the economy turns around?

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Sir, saying that half of the workers unemployed are white collar workers does not quite lend equanimity to the situation. Let me give a clearer picture.

Of all the unemployed residents - if we take the overall global number of those who are unemployed - the unemployment rate for degree holders is 3.8%, in other words, 96% of those with degrees are employed. For diploma holders, it is 3.5%; upper secondary, 3.4%. Nonetheless, we do agree with Dr Amy Khor that more needs to be done to help every sector of the unemployed and our programmes are crafted not so much at either blue or white collar workers but industry-specific, to look at areas where there is growth and to enable workers who have been unemployed or retrenched from one sector to convert to another sector.

Mdm Ho Geok Choo (West Coast): Sir, I would like to ask the Minister how he would facilitate the employment of young graduates who are today finding themselves very disillusioned when they graduate from the university, especially when they are losing out to the diploma holders as well as the ITE graduates.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Sir, I think the Member has touched on the issue of job vacancies. Let me give some numbers again.

As of March 2003, there were still about 12,000 job vacancies in the private sector. There are still about 31% or 4,000 jobs for professionals, managers, executives and technical vocations. Also, in the public sector, there are about 1,800 jobs available for professionals and associate professionals. It is not only a question of the grade of jobs but also the industry. Yes, there is disruptive unemployment, in other words, particular sectors have shrunk so that those who work in one sector cannot go back to that sector and they have to convert to another sector. We have created specific schemes targeted at this group. One particular scheme is called the Strategic Manpower Conversion Programme and it is aimed especially at professionals to help them change. For example, an executive who is retrenched from the electronics sector can switch to the healthcare sector. There are these schemes available. We also work with professional organisations, such as SHRI and SPEC, to help them help professionals to make this conversion.

Mr Low Thia Khiang (Hougang): I would like to ask the Minister whether he deems the current assistance schemes for the unemployed sufficient and able to help them.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Sir, the Member fully appreciates that the word "sufficient" is subjective. Let me give some objectivity to his question in terms of those who are in utility account arrears, which he has mentioned. Yes, for everyone who suffers hardship, we empathise, but we need to be mindful of the numbers. The percentage of households who have arrears on utilities is 1% of all accounts. Even in the 1-room and 2-room HDB flats, it is around 5%.

The Energy Market Authority has set for itself particular targets to try to bring down the number of accounts in arrears to reduce the figure to pre-1999 level, which is 0.2% eventually. So that is the working target internally.

As I have also mentioned, PUB, instead of disconnecting supply, has agreed that they will use thimbling so that their essential water requirements are still met. We will work hard and, as I said, we will calibrate the financial assistance schemes with our CDCs and VWOs to respond to those in need. But the number suggests that there is a declining trend of those who are in arrears.

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Sir, while we are asking the workers to change their mindset to accept other jobs, has the Ministry any plan to also work at changing the mindset of some employers who are against employing older workers who would otherwise be more than qualified for the job?

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Sir, we actively do this, but to really get the effect, my Ministry has decided that a holistic approach is better, which means that not only we work on the mindset of all those parties involved but we also introduce enabling schemes. One particular enabling scheme, as I have mentioned previously in this House, is the People-for-Jobs Traineeship Programme where Government will fund half of the worker's salary for about six months or $2,000, whichever is less. This will facilitate, if you like, the employer to accept the employee and for Government to show its support and for that six months for the employee to be tested in the new job. I am sure that those who have signed up for this scheme will prove their own worth in due time.

Dr Amy Khor Lean Suan: Sir, I would like to ask the Minister how successful has this People-for-Jobs Traineeship Programme been.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Sir, I do not have the exact number but, from my recall, about 4,000-odd people have been placed on this scheme since it was introduced. But I would have to check the number.

Mr Low Thia Khiang: Sir, the Minister said that the Ministry would calibrate the assistance schemes. I would like to ask him whether or not the Government has calibrated the latest employment situation and the financial assistance schemes and whether he is satisfied that the current financial assistance schemes - despite the number that he has mentioned about the arrears position in utilities - such as the Rents and Utilities Assistance Scheme as well as other interim financial assistance schemes, are actually helpful and sufficient to take care of the unemployed.

Dr Ng Eng Hen: Before I answer Mr Low Thia Khiang, my other more learned colleague has told me that actually 10,000 people took up the People-for-Jobs Traineeship Programme, of which 4,000 stayed on. I will again have to check on the numbers.

Is it sufficient? It is a relative word. I would rather give the Member numbers so that we know where we are now and in the future. As I said, the number of accounts in utility arrears is 1%. The average amount of arrears for each account is about $1,000 and the trend is down.

Are we satisfied? Can anyone be satisfied? We will work with our CDCs and VWOs and we will monitor the situation and calibrate the assistance in tandem with the hardship felt on the ground and in tandem with the economic conditions.