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SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will simplify the parameters of the incentive scheme for job growth to ensure that qualifying companies can expand their labor needs and submit hiring plans, it said on Friday (4 May September) the Minister of Manpower, Josephine Teo.
In a Facebook post, he said that instead of looking at the average number of local employees in a company from January to August 2020, MOM will now analyze the number of local workers employed in the month of August only.
“This will make the qualification criteria easier to understand,” Ms Teo said.
In a press release on Friday, MOM said that to be eligible for the Job Growth Incentive, companies must achieve an increase in their local workforce from September 2020 to the end of February 2021, compared to the size of your local workforce in August 2020.
The rise in the local workforce must be accompanied by an increase in jobs that pay at least S $ 1,400 in gross monthly wages, MOM said.
To encourage companies to retain their existing employees to the extent possible, the Job Growth Incentive payment will be reduced if any person under company employment in August 2020 leaves the company after August 2020.
READ: Singapore’s unemployment rate reaches 2.9%, the highest in more than a decade; double staff reduction
“For the Job Growth Incentive, the purpose is clear: it is a huge push for companies, regardless of company size, to expand their workforce and submit their hiring plans, to create more jobs for Singaporeans.” Teo said.
Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat announced the introduction of the Job Growth Incentive Scheme in August, in which the government set aside S $ 1 billion to support businesses, especially those that continue to perform well despite the impact of COVID -19, to hire Singaporeans.
For each new local employee under the age of 40, the Government will co-pay 25 per cent of the first S $ 5,000 of gross monthly salary for 12 months from the month of hire. For every new mature local employee age 40 and over, government support doubles to 50%.
In total, eligible businesses can receive up to S $ 15,000 for each local hire under 40 and S $ 30,000 for each local hire 40 and older, MOM said.
READ: Extension of employment support plan among Singapore $ 8 billion measures announced by Heng Swee Keat
COMPANIES ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE A JOB GROWTH INCENTIVE AUTOMATICALLY FROM MARCH 2021
To receive the full amount of support, businesses must continue to meet the eligibility criteria for the 12-month period.
Eligible businesses would not have to apply and would receive Job Growth Initiative payments automatically starting in March 2021.
MOM said that the Employment Growth Initiative payments will be above the Employment Support Program payments that a company would receive for all of its local employees.
“The Job Growth Initiative provides substantial salary support to enable these companies to submit their hiring plans and grow their local workforce over the next six months,” MOM said in its press release.
“Together with the extension of the Employment Support Program, this is a huge boost for job creation for the local population.”
The Job Growth Initiative is a step up in terms of the level of salary support compared to the Enhanced Hiring Incentive announced in early May. Therefore, the Enhanced Hiring Incentive will be replaced by the Job Growth Initiative effective September 1, MOM said.
