Singapore expands the Non-Traditional Source Occupation List to assist businesses with manpower challenges.
Starting from September 1, licensed hotels in Singapore will be able to hire housekeepers and porters from non-traditional source countries, as part of a new initiative aimed at helping businesses meet their manpower needs amidst stricter S Pass salary benchmarks.
These two occupations have been added to the Non-Traditional Source (NTS) Occupation List, which was first announced during the Ministry of Manpower’s Committee of Supply debate last year. The addition comes as a response to the expected salary increase for S Pass holders, which would make it difficult for workers in certain roles to meet the new qualifying salary thresholds.
Previously, roles under the NTS Occupation List were often filled by rank-and-file S Pass holders. With the salary adjustments set to take effect, these workers may no longer qualify for work permits, as their salaries may not be high enough. However, the NTS Occupation List will allow employers to hire workers from additional countries, including Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand.
Employers will need to ensure that these workers are paid a minimum of S$2,000 a month, and no more than 8% of their total workforce can be made up of workers hired from these non-traditional source countries.
Including housekeepers and porters, the NTS Occupation List now features a total of nine occupations, which include roles such as cooks in Indian restaurants, food processing workers, metalworkers, welders, riggers, and structural metal preparers.
Additionally, the Ministry of Manpower has provided further guidelines for how Indian restaurants can hire cooks from non-traditional sources under the new framework.
