WORKERS will receive broader protections against discrimination, assurance for reporting errant employers without fear of retaliation, and fair access to job opportunities, under a legislation framework that is set to be introduced in Parliament in 2024.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Friday (Aug 4) said the government has accepted 22 recommendations from the Tripartite Committee on Workplace Fairness (TCWF) for Singapore’s eventual anti-discrimination laws.

“This will send a strong signal that there is no place for workplace discrimination,” said TCWF co-chair and Manpower Minister Tan See Leng.

While there were complex trade-offs involved in crafting the framework due to varied views felt by different segments of society, Dr Tan said the tripartite cooperation was a key part of efforts to eliminate workplace discrimination.

Apart from MOM, the committee also comprised the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) and Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF).

Friday’s announcement comes after a six-month period of public consultations and engagements with relevant stakeholders, and following the release of TCWF’s interim report in February.

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Two new recommendations were introduced after the consultation and engagement exercises.

The first is to define discrimination “as making an adverse employment decision because of any protected characteristic”.

Under TCWF’s recommendations, discrimination related to five key characteristics – age; nationality; sex, marital status, pregnancy status, and caregiving responsibilities; race, religion and language; as well as disability and mental health conditions – will be disallowed.

The five suggested characteristics account for more than 95 per cent of discrimination complaints handled by the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices from 2018 to 2022, said Dr Tan.

Keeping scope tight

While there was feedback for other characteristics – such as one’s sexual orientation, or a person’s criminal history – to also be protected, the committee ultimately elected to narrow the scope of the upcoming legislation for a start.

“That’s not to say that we tolerate discrimination in other forms,” Dr Tan stressed. “(We will) review as the cases come in; this is not a document that will not be continued to be worked on, it is a live document.” 

The other new recommendation relates to a “tripartite advisory” being issued, to inform employers on how the provision of reasonable accommodations to persons with disabilities should be done.

Otherwise, the broad recommendations released in TCWF’s interim report still stand.

These include redress for workers for workplace discrimination in all stages of employment, from recruitment to dismissal. Presently, those who face workplace discrimination can only seek redress in cases of wrongful dismissal.

Another accepted recommendation is to ban employers from retaliating against those who report workplace discrimination, such as by wrongful dismissal or unauthorised salary deduction.

The committee also recommended for exceptions to apply, including for genuine business needs, religious organisations, and smaller companies with less than 25 employees.

From an employers’ perspective, there would “ideally” be no legislation on the matter, as it could add to rigidity or impede business growth, said TCWF co-chair and SNEF president Robert Yap.

“But we understand that there is a need to take appropriate actions against errant employers,” he added.

Currently, the only current enforcement option for cases of workplace discrimination is the suspension of employers’ foreign work pass privileges.

As part of the accepted recommendations, a range of penalties beyond work pass curtailment – such as corrective orders, which require companies to review hiring processes, and financial penalties – can be imposed on errant employers.

Meanwhile, NTUC views the upcoming legislation as the final part of a multi-step approach to workplace fairness, said secretary-general and TCWF co-chair Ng Chee Meng.

While legislation is the last mile in providing for the enforcement and deterrence of bad practices among employers, other steps – such as mediation at the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management – should still be attempted first, Ng said.