25 November, 2016
Businesses operating in Singapore will face fines of up to S$5,000 ($3,500) if they do not notify the country's Ministry of Manpower (MoM) where they make staff redundant or otherwise dismiss them because of major reorganisations within the company.
The new employee retrenchment notification obligations, set out under the Workforce Singapore Agency Act, will come into force in Singapore on 1 January 2017 and will apply to businesses that employ at least 10 employees.
The obligation to notify MoM of retrenchments will apply where, within any six month period, businesses make at least five permanent staff, or workers working under full time contracts at least six months long, redundant. Notification is also mandatory where businesses dismiss those workers "by reason of any reorganisation of the employer’s profession, business, trade or work".
MoM said that businesses will be required to notify retrenchment of the first five workers within five working days that the fifth worker is notified of their dismissal. Where further staff are then dismissed, "notification must be submitted within five working days after each employee is notified", the government department said.
The notification regime is aimed at ensuring dismissed workers are given help to find alternative employment and/or training opportunities, the MoM said, through the assistance of Workforce Singapore, the National Trades Union Congress and the Singapore National Employers Federation.
For further information, please contact:
Ian Laing, Partner, Pinsent Masons
ian.laing@pinsentmasons.com
