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Singapore Labour Law and TAFEP

Ministry of Manpower- Employment Act

• Who is covered by the Employment Act• The Employment Act covers every employee (regardless of nationality)

who is under a contract of service with an employer, except:• Any person employed in a managerial or executive position who earns

a basic monthly salary of more than $4,500;• Any seafarer;• Any domestic worker; and• Any person employed by a Statutory Board or the Government.

See more at: http://www.mom.gov.sg/employment-practices/employment-rights-conditions/employment-act/Pages/default.aspx#sthash.AZJFBRXT.dpuf

Ministry of Manpower- Contract of Service

• Essential clauses of Contract of Service• A contract of service must include the following clauses:• Commencement of employment;• Appointment – job title and job scope;• Hours of work;• Probation period, if any;• Remuneration;• Employee's benefits (e.g. sick leave, annual leave, maternity

leave);• Termination of contract – notice period; and• Code of conduct (e.g. punctuality, no fighting at work).

Ministry of Manpower- Leave entitlement

An employee is entitled to Annual Leave if he or she satisfies all the following conditions:•He or she is covered under Part IV of the Employment Act (see above); and•He or she has served the employer for at least three months.An employee's annual leave entitlement under Part IV of the Employment Act is as follows:* An employee's year of service starts from the day he or she begins work with the employer.

Year of service* Days of leave

1st 7

2nd 8

3rd 9

4th 10

5th 11 (till max 14 days on the 8th year)

Ministry of Manpower- Termination of Contract with Notice

Length of Service Notice Period

Less than 26 weeks 1 day

26 weeks to less than 2 years 1 week

2 years to less than 5 years 2 weeks

5 years and above 4 weeks

The party who intends to terminate the contract must give notice to the other party in writing.

The notice period to be given depends on what is agreed in the written contract. If there is no written contract, the notice period to be given depends on what the parties have agreed upon verbally.

If there is no such period previously agreed upon, the following shall apply:

TAFEP- Tripartite Alliance of Fair & Progressive Employment Practices

Why TAFEP? • Singapore is a meritocratic society. It also has a diverse workforce in terms

of ethnicity, religion, age, and gender. Implementing fair and merit-based employment practices is the right thing to do. - See more at: http://www.tafep.sg/fair-employment-practices#sthash.jh6GkYTb.dpuf

What is TAFEP?• Promotes the adoption of fair, responsible and progressive employment

practices among employers, employees and the general public. TAFEP is inculcated throughout the hiring process covering;– Job Advertisement– Application Forms– Shortlisting & Interviewing

• E-Learning Tool (http://www.tafep.sg/eLearning2/TAFFEPc02_course.html)Source : TAFEP

Job Advertisement• Tasks and Responsibilities • Skills, abilities, experiences and qualifications• Do NOT state preference for age, race, language, gender,

marital status and religion• No grey area - should not give others the perception that

it is discriminatory in any way

• For Example: “Young and dynamic? “

IS IT NECESSARY? IS IT ACCEPTABLE?Source : TAFEP

FCF - Fair Consideration Framework

• By Ministry of Manpower• Sets out the expectations of what constitutes fair hiring

– Comply with TAFEP• Before hiring an EP -> Consider Singaporeans fairly• Jobsbank

– National jobsbank – Features : Job posting, resume search, and its free– Launched 1 August– New EP application : Ad in Jobsbank for at least 14 days – Does not apply for EP renewal and other work passes

Source : MOM

Jobsbank

• Exemptions – Companies with 25 or fewer employees; – Salary of S$12,000 and above– Short-term assignees, 1 month or less

• Access to Jobsbank– Singpass account– Request for login from HR FC to assign authority in IRAS– Define Maker and Checker/Approver role in branch– https://www.jobsbank.gov.sg/

Source : MOM

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Can a firm advertise on other websites (instead of the jobs bank) or other platforms (e.g. newspapers)? Firms can continue to advertise job vacancies on other platforms and websites, to extend their outreach to Singaporean job seekers.But if an EP application is needed, firms must advertise on the new jobs bankbefore submitting the application to MOM.

If a firm uses a recruitment agency, is an advertisement necessary and who will be required to advertise on the jobs bank?Yes. The recruitment agency may advertise on behalf of the firm on the jobs bank.

Jobsbank - FAQs

Source : MOM

Jobsbank - FAQs

Must the job in the EP application be the same as the job advertised on the new jobs bank? Yes

How will MOM know whether a firm has advertised on the jobs bank before submitting an EP application?The firm will be required to state the advertisement ID number

If the firm has not advertised on the new jobs bank because it did not intend to hire foreigners, but subsequently decides to hire a foreigner because it has not found a suitable Singaporean, must the firm advertise on the new jobs bank before an EP application can be made ?Yes

Source : MOM

Screen 1 : Login as Employer

Screen 2 :Login via Singpass

Screen 4 :Select and key in UEN

Job ID No of Applicants

Only expiry date

Screen 5:Main Page

Screen 6:Create job posting

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