Hiring of persons with disabilities gets govt boost

Singapore

THE government will leverage SkillsFuture so that persons with disabilities can contribute meaningfully in the workplace, while more support will be extended to the employers that hire them.

Speaking at the inaugural Inclusive Business Forum on Friday evening, Deputy Prime Minister and Co-Ordinating Minister for Economic and Social Policies Tharman Shanmugaratnam outlined some of the ways that the government will promote employment for those with disabilities.

He noted that while hiring persons with disabilities could help firms in the ongoing labour crunch, more importantly, it also changes the culture of the workplace.

"By hiring persons with disabilities, we also change the culture of the workplace, and with that, the broader culture of society as a whole. Customers become more understanding; co-workers become more supportive of each other; and over time, you just soften the work environment," he said.

This year, SG Enable will establish a series of online human resource management guides - the first on inclusive recruitment and hiring practices was launched at the forum - so that employers have the necessary skills and knowledge when it comes to areas such as hiring, accommodating and retaining persons with disabilities.

Meanwhile, employers looking to link up with job seekers and training providers can tap a disability employment portal, http://employment.sgenable.sg, which lists information on training, internship and employment opportunities.

In addition, the Tote Board will channel S$5 million from the S$30 million earmarked under the Tote Board-Enabling Lives initative for grants set aside for transition-to-employment programmes.

SkillsFuture will also be used to empower persons with disabilities to help them gain skills, he highlighted.

Under SkillsFuture, all Singaporeans aged 25 and above received S$500 in credit in January to use for courses to enhance their skills.

There are also plans to introduce a dedicated category of SkillsFuture Study Awards for persons with disabilities who are role models as well as for job coaches and other professionals who support persons with disabilities.

Schemes introduced in recent years have already gained some traction, while other initiatives by the government have helped in areas such as training.

These include the Special Employment Credit (SEC), where employers get a credit of up to 16 per cent of the salary of their workers with disabilities. By last year, over 4,600 employers and 7,100 persons with disabilities had benefited from the scheme.

Meanwhile, training programmes have been expanded and enhanced to better equip persons with disabilities for the workplace, while funds have been increased to cover barriers such as getting to work and adopting assistive technology in the workplace.

The forum, which aims to encourage companies to employ more persons with disabilities, was jointly organised by SG Enable and the Workforce Development Agency (WDA).

The six panellists speaking at the forum were Singtel vice-president of group corporate social responsibility Andrew Buay; Eureka Call Centre Systems director Alvin Nathan; AIG Singapore diversity and inclusion manager Magdalena Poulin; Deutsche Bank head of non-bank financial institutions, corporate and investment banking Bernd Starke; MOH Holdings director (HR & talent development) Tan Kwang Cheak; and United Overseas Bank executive director Agnes Wong.

Panellists discussed the need for training and mentorship, job process redesign as well as leveraging assistive technology to create the kind of work culture which plays to the strengths of the disabled.

Speaking from experience, Mr Nathan stressed that re-engineering jobs were critical to help employees perform better and increase their productivity, which also ensures that the practice of hiring persons with disabilities remains a sustainable one.