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SINGAPORE – By the end of March, $ 940 million in Pay Credit Plan (WCS) payments will be disbursed to more than 98,000 employers here, bringing the total amount in pay credits paid during the pandemic to more than $ 2 billion.
In a Facebook post on Thursday (March 18), Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat wrote that encouraging workers remains “at the very center of everything we do” as the government does everything what is possible to face the pandemic and transform the economy and businesses.
“WCS is one of the ways to lift up our workers, by supporting companies to provide salary increases to workers in Singapore,” he said.
WCS cofinanciers raise salaries. It was introduced in 2013 as a three-year plan and then extended through 2020 to support companies in their transformation efforts and encourage the sharing of productivity gains with workers.
In the 2021 Budget, it was extended one more year to a co-financing level of 15 percent, to further support salary increases to help companies develop their local workforce and emerge stronger from Covid-19.
This followed previous improvements to the scheme in the first 2020 Unit Budget, when government co-financing of qualified salary increases in 2019 and 2020 was raised by five percentage points to 20 percent and 15 percent respectively.
The gross monthly salary cap for employees was also raised from $ 4,000 to $ 5,000 for both years, allowing more people to qualify for the salary credit.
More than $ 1 billion in salary credits were disbursed to more than 95,000 employers in 2020, for salary increases in 2019.
An additional payment was made in June 2020, in addition to the annual payment made in March 2020.
In a joint statement on Thursday, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the Internal Revenue Authority of Singapore (Iras) said that through the next payment in March, the government will co-finance 15 percent of the qualifying wage increases awarded from 2017. as of 2020, to more than 800,000 local employees earning a gross monthly salary of up to $ 5,000.
This will support wage increases and benefit more than 98,000 employers, they said.
Mr. Heng noted that it is encouraging that many employers, despite having to cope with the stresses and strains posed by the pandemic, continue to do their part to encourage their workers.
“These are uncertain times for many workers and companies. I encourage employers to continue to use this and other schemes to redesign jobs and improve the skills of their workers,” he wrote.
“By continuing to put the well-being of our workers at the center of what we do, companies will build stronger ties with their workers and emerge stronger together in a post-pandemic world.”
Employers do not need to submit an application to receive payments. Eligible employers will receive letters from Iras by March 31 informing them of the amount of their pay.
These will be credited directly to employers’ registered bank accounts through PayNow Corporate or Money Order.
Any appeal related to WCS payments must be submitted to Iras by June 30 and will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
More information can be found on the Iras website.
Iras can also be contacted directly at 1800-352-4727 or by email at [email protected].
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