Over 1,900 firms receive Progressive Wage Mark accreditation

MORE than 1,900 firms have been accredited with the Progressive Wage (PW) Mark or PW Mark Plus since applications opened on Dec 22, 2022.

The scheme recognises businesses that pay progressive wages to lower-wage workers, and about 76,000 firms, or about 52 per cent of all firms in Singapore, are eligible.

The accreditation is the latest in a range of tripartite progressive wage moves to uplift lower-wage workers.

Combined with existing and upcoming measures, progressive wage recommendations are expected to cover 94 per cent of the lower-wage workforce, or about 234,000 workers, Senior Minister of State for Manpower Zaqy Mohamad said at a visit to Uniqlo – which is PW Mark accredited – on Wednesday (Jan 18). 

Firms that are eligible for the PW Mark and are awarded government contracts for new tenders called from Mar 1, 2023, as well as new quotations from Mar 1, 2024, must be accredited for the contract period. Their eligible sub-contractors must also obtain accreditation.

Accredited firms will receive digital copies of the PW Mark that they can print, or use for other purposes such as advertising or packaging.

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To qualify, companies must hire at least one local worker – a Singaporean or permanent resident – covered by any existing sectoral or occupational progressive wage models (PWMs), pay the relevant workers progressive wages, and pay all other local workers at least the local qualifying salary (LQS) of S$1,400.

PWMs currently set out guidelines for the cleaning, security, landscape, lift and escalator maintenance and retail sectors. They will be implemented for the food services and waste management industries as well as for administrators and drivers later this year.

Furthermore, firms that adopt the Tripartite Standard on Advancing Well-being of Lower-Wage Workers – which specifies a set of good workplace practices to uplift lower-wage workers – on top of satisfying the PW Mark requirements will receive the PW Mark Plus. Fourteen firms have been accredited with the PW Mark Plus as at Jan 9, 2023.

Tripartite representatives agreed that in addition to government and union support for enhancements of productivity, skills and wages for lower-wage workers, consumers could also offer support by buying from PW Mark-accredited brands.

Yeo Wan Ling, director of U SME and Women & Family Unit at National Trades Union Congress, noted that many PWMs previously implemented have been in more business-to-business or business-to-government-focused industries.

Zaqy said: “I think if you can get the whole ecosystem in place, consumers can show their preference (for companies that pay progressive wages).”

Despite current inflation and cost-of-living concerns, seven in 10 Singaporeans are likely to purchase goods and services from a PW Mark-accredited company over one that is not, a Ministry of Manpower survey found last month, he added.

Singapore National Employers Federation honorary treasurer Tan Hwee Bin also noted that good work environments, which the PW Mark recognises, will help attract local talent.

Uniqlo supervisor Gina Lim, who has worked at the company for four years, said she joined Uniqlo because of its higher-than-market rate salaries, and clear development and training progression pathways.

Additionally, Uniqlo’s human resources director Juliana Tan said that of the 1,600 people employed locally, around 500 lower-wage, full-time staff and more than 900 part-time staff currently benefit from the PWM. She noted that Uniqlo also intends to apply for the PW Mark Plus accreditation down the road.

Relevant firms can apply for the Singapore Business Federation-administered PW Mark and PW Mark Plus accreditation via the GoBusiness Singapore Portal. This accreditation is valid for a year from the date of approval, and will be subject to automatic renewal as long as firms continue to meet the PWM and LQS requirements.