INTRODUCTION
The HR policies and procedures manual and employee handbook form the backbone of an
organization. These documents consist of all the details regarding the treatment to be given to the
employees in the organization and help the employees in recognizing the culture of the organization.
The HR policies and procedures manual is complied first and thereafter the employee handbook is
prepared in conjunction with the prevailing policies and procedures as laid down in the earlier
document.
Such documents clearly define the benefits to be provided to the employee, various procedures as
followed in the organization and the standard of work maintained in the work place. In case there is
any issue from either the side of the employer or the employee, the HR policies and procedures
manual and employee handbook prove the necessary source of information to be adhered to in order
to resolve the issue.
Managing employment disputes
The Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) provides employees and employers with services
to resolve salary-related claims and employment disputes.
TADM provides advisory and mediation services before claims can be heard at the
Employment Claims Tribunals (ECT).
Employers and employees with salary and dismissal related claims should first register their
claims at TADM.
Claims that cannot be resolved through mediation will be issued with a claim referral
certificate and referred to the ECT.
Types of claims
These are the types of claims that can be heard at ECT. They need to be first filed at TADM.
For Statutory salary-related claims from all employees covered by the EA,
employees RRA and CDCA.
Contractual salary-related claims by all employees, except domestic
workers, public servants and seafarers.
Wrongful dismissal claims from all employees covered by the EA and
CDCA.
For Claims for salary in lieu of notice for all employers.
employers
Maximum claim amount
You can claim Upto $20,000. [OR] Up to $30,000 if you go through Tripartite Mediation
Framework or mediation assisted by unions recognised by the Industrial Relations Act.
Period to file your claim
For statutory and contractual salary-related claims:
Still employed by the company Within 1 year after the dispute arose.
No longer employed by the company Within 6 months from your last day of work.
For wrongful dismissal claims:
For pregnant If you feel that you’ve been wrongfully dismissed without being
employees paid your maternity benefits, you must file your claim within 2
months from the date of your confinement.
For other types of Within 1 month from your last day of work.
wrongful dimissal
claims
Tripartite Mediation Framework
The Tripartite Mediation Framework (TMF), in accordance with the Industrial Relations Act, allows
more employees to benefit from tripartite mediation as an option to resolve employment disputes.
From 1 April 2019, employees will also be able to tap on the TMF to resolve wrongful dismissal
disputes.
Eligibility for tripartite mediation
All PMEs who are union members in non-unionised companies.
Rank-and-file union members in non-unionised companies.
Coverage of issues
Employment statutory benefits, e.g. salary arrears, overtime pay, public holiday and rest day
pay, maternity and other leave.
Re-employment issues.
Breach of individual employment contracts.
Payment of retrenchment benefits.
Wrongful dismissal issues.
Financial relief for unpaid salary claims
TADM also operates a short-term relief fund to help local low-income claimants, if their employer
cannot pay their salary arrears due to business failure. TADM will assess if claimants qualify for the
financial relief.
Mediation for disputes not covered under employment laws
Employees can contact TADM for assistance if they have a dispute that is not covered under
employment laws.
WORKPLACE GRIEVANCES
A workplace grievance is discontent or the feeling of being victimised at work. For example, arising
from the management style or lack of sensitivity on a supervisor’s part.Miscommunication and
misunderstanding are common in such work environments. If not managed properly, it can affect
morale and productivity.
SOLUTIONS
Raise grievances and seek recourse through grievance-handling channels in your company.
Report your supervisor's behaviour to top management.
Approach your union for assistance.
Seek counselling support from counselling centres.
What employers can do
Employers should aim to prevent misunderstandings from occurring by:
Treating employees with respect, and adopt fair and responsible employment practices.
Ensuring that lines of communication are kept open.
Providing proper grievance-handling procedures and addressing grievances appropriately.
Keeping employees informed of such channels, including how top management can be
approached
FAIR CONSIDERATION FRAMEWORK (FCF)
The Fair Consideration Framework (FCF) sets out requirements for all employers in Singapore to consider the
workforce in Singapore fairly for job opportunities. Employers should not discriminate on characteristics that
are not related to the job, such as age, gender, nationality or race.
To access a larger pool of candidates, employers in Singapore are strongly encouraged to
advertise their job vacancies on MyCareersFuture.sg, even if those jobs are eligible for
advertising exemption.
Hours of work, overtime and rest dayIf you are covered under Part IV of the Employment Act, your
hours of work are regulated and you are entitled to breaks, overtime pay and rest day.
OVERTIME PAY
Overtime work is all work in excess of the normal hours of work (excluding breaks).
You can claim overtime if you are:
A non-workman earning up to $2,600.
A workman earning up to $4,500.
The overtime rate payable for non-workmen is capped at the salary level of $2,600, or an hourly rate
of $13.60.
OVERTIME PAY IS CALCULATION
Overtime pay is calculated as follows:
Hourly basic rate of pay x 1.5 x number of hours worked overtime
The hourly basic rate of pay is calculated as follows:
For this category of Hourly basic rate of pay is
employee
Monthly-rated employee (12 x Monthly basic rate of pay) / (52 x 44)
Daily-rated employee Daily pay at the basic rate / Working hours per day
Piece-rated employee Total weekly pay at the basic rate of pay / Total number of hours
worked in the week
MAXIMUM HOURS OF WORK
As an employee, you are not allowed to work more than 12 hours a day.
An accident or threat of accident.
Work that is essential to the life of the community, national defence or security.
Urgent work to be done to machinery or plant.
An interruption of work that was impossible to foresee.
Working more than 12 hours a day (overtime exemption)
If an employer requires employees to work more than 12 hours a day (up to a maximum of 14 hours),
they must apply for an overtime exemption.
Maximum hours of overtime
An employee can only work up to 72 overtime hours in a month.
Employers can apply for an exemption if they require employees to work more than the 72
hours of overtime in a month.
Work on rest day or public holidays is not counted in the 72-hour overtime limit, except for
work done beyond the usual daily working hours on those days. Such extra hours are
included in the 72-hour limit.
OVERTIME ON A REST DAY OR PUBLIC HOLIDAY IS CALCULATED AS FOLLOWS:
(Hourly basic rate of pay x 1.5 x Number of hours worked overtime) + (Rest day or public
holiday pay)
Rest day
Your employer must provide 1 rest day per week.
A rest day comprises 1 whole day (midnight to midnight). It is not a paid day.
For shift workers, the rest day can be a continuous period of 30 hours. A 30-hour rest period
that starts before 6pm on a Sunday is considered as 1 rest day within the week, even if it
extends into the Monday of the following week.
A week is continuous period of 7 days starting from Monday and ending on Sunday.
Your employer cannot compel you to work on a rest day, unless under exceptional
circumstances.
When rest day can fall
The employer determines the rest day, which can be on a Sunday, or any other day of the
week.
Other than the rest day, the other days of the week which you don’t need to work are not
considered rest days.
If the rest day is not a Sunday, your employer should prepare a monthly roster and inform
you of the rest days before the start of each month.
The maximum interval allowed between 2 rest days is 12 days
PAY FOR WORK ON A REST DAY IS CALCULATION
Payment for work on a rest day is calculated as follows:
If work is done For up to half your For more than half Beyond your
normal daily your normal daily normal daily
working hours working hours working hours
At the 1 day’s salary 2 days’ salary 2 days’ salary +
employer’s overtime pay
request
At the Half day’s salary 1 day’s salary 1 day’s salary +
employee’s overtime pay
request
EMPLOYMENT RECORDS
From 1 April 2016, all employers must maintain detailed employment records of employees covered by the
Employment Act. Here are the detailed requirements such as what items to include and how long to keep
them.
REQUIREMENTS
Employers must maintain records for all employees covered by the Employment Act.
Format Soft or hard copy, including handwritten.
For how For current employees: Latest two years.
long? For ex-employees: Last two years, to be kept for one year after the
employee leaves employment.
