Singapore: Flexible Work Arrangements May Become The New Cliché

We published a newsletter regarding the Flexible Work Arrangements in Singapore. To view PDF version, please click the following link.

→Flexible Work Arrangements May Become The New Cliché

Flexible Work Arrangements May Become The New Cliché

June 17, 2024
One Asia Lawyers Group Singapore office
Lawyer in Singapore Vitoria Wah
Lawyer in Singapore, Japan Tetsuo Kurita 

1. Introduction
   Flexible work arrangements may become the new cliché when Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower introduces the Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests (“Tripartite Guidelines“) in Singapore on 1 December 2024.
   
   
2. The Tripartite Guidelines are enforceable guidelines that set out a set of good employment practices that all companies should implement at their workplaces to promote the effective and sustainable provision and utilization of flexible work arrangements.
   
   
3. The Tripartite Guidelines supplements Singapore employment laws and Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower can act against a company for its non-compliance with the Tripartite Guidelines.
   
   
4. The Tripartite Guidelines was enacted in response to the growing demand for flexible work arrangements from employees and the benefits that such arrangements bring to a company’s long-term sustainability such as talent attraction and retention.
   
   
5. Flexible work arrangements are work arrangements where employers and employees agree to a variation from the standard work arrangement. Flexible work arrangements include:
   
   

1. 1. flexi-place arrangements where employees work flexibly from different locations aside from their usual office location (e.g. telecommuting work-from-home); or
   2. flexi-time arrangements where employees work flexibly at different timings with no changes to total work hours and workload e.g. flexi-hours, staggered hours, flexi-shift and compressed work schedule; or
   3. flexi-load where employees work flexibly with different workloads and with commensurate remuneration (e.g. job sharing, part-time work).
      
      

6. Given the increasing share of working caregivers in the workforce and evolving post-pandemic expectations of how work arrangements and workplaces should be structured, demand for flexible work arrangements among job applicants and employees are increasing and thus making the Tripartite Guidelines even more relevant.
   
   
7. We will be conducting a short seminar and networking session on 6 August 2024 from 4:00pm to 6:00pm at our office address at 16 Raffles Quay, Hong Leong Building, #21-01.
   
   

This article is produced by our Singapore office of One Asia Lawyers Singapore: Focus Law Asia LLC and does not constitute legal advice. It is intended to provide general information only. Please contact our lawyers if you have any specific queries.