Family-friendly practices are ‘key part’ of recruiting and retaining talent: Indranee

SINGAPORE: Employers concerned about the business impact of their staff taking additional parental leave should understand that workplaces and the workforce have changed, said Minister Indranee Rajah on Thursday (Aug 22).
“Given that this is important to young employees, having family-friendly practices is a key part of talent recruitment and retention.
“Any company that wants to get ahead and have a good, solid workforce would need to have progressive workplace practices, and that includes all these things that make Singapore a place that’s made for families,” she told CNA’s Singapore Tonight programme.
Ms Indranee, who oversees the National Population and Talent Division at the Prime Minister’s Office, was speaking on key changes to Singapore’s parental leave arrangements that were announced on Sunday.
Parents will get an additional 10 weeks of shared leave to care for their babies when a new scheme is fully implemented on Apr 1, 2026. 
The new scheme will be rolled out in phases to manage the impact on employers and give them time to adjust their operational and manpower arrangements.
In his National Day Rally speech, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong also announced that new fathers will get four weeks of government-paid paternity leave, up from the current two weeks’ mandatory leave. 
These changes, which are part of the government’s efforts to provide stronger caregiving support for parents, will bring the total paid leave to 30 weeks or about 7.5 months, up from the current 20 weeks. 
On Thursday, Ms Indranee acknowledged concerns raised by businesses and unions – especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – about the new leave provisions.
The government had consulted them before announcing the changes last week.
While they understood the rationale of more parental leave and supported it, they were worried about having enough manpower to cover tasks and sustain the company’s business, said Ms Indranee.
“For a smaller outfit, where let’s say you have only four employees – if one person is out for a while, that’s about 25 per cent of your workforce,” she noted.
She said that to address such feedback, the government ensured additional leave would be government-paid. This allows employers to hire another staff member, rather than having to pay the salary of the worker on leave.
In terms of how SMEs which have staff in specialised roles can manage operational challenges, Ms Indranee said the key is for employees and employers to have a good working relationship.
Employees will be required to give at least four weeks’ notice before taking any government-paid parental leave. But Ms Indranee said the government would encourage staff to give even more advance notice, so employers can make alternative arrangements and adjustments.
“The key is that responsibility; that sense of mutual trust and understanding that we’re both trying to work together to achieve a good outcome – and having an early heads up really makes a difference,” she said.
Employees going on leave should also hand over work properly and work out covering arrangements with their employer, she added.
When asked how hopeful the government is about these changes helping to raise Singapore’s total fertility rate, Ms Indranee said: “I think these measures have to be seen in the context of the totality of measures that we are taking.”
Last year, the country’s resident total fertility rate dropped below 1.0 for the first time ever, hitting an all-time low of 0.97.
Some reasons previously cited were temporal ones, like marriage plans being disrupted by the pandemic, while others included the financial costs of child-raising and pressures to be an excellent parent.
Among other government measures to tackle these concerns is the lowering of childcare fee caps in anchor and partner operator preschools by S$40 in 2025 – as announced during Budget 2024. 
The Baby Bonus cash gift was also recently increased by S$3,000, with eligible families receiving the benefits from Aug 1 last year onwards.
“We recognise that the decision of whether to have a child is a very personal choice. But what we want to do is create an environment, the conditions in a society where parents feel … ‘I’m really supported if I have a child,’” Ms Indranee said.
The additional leave would help parents who are worried about balancing work commitments with caring for their children in the first 18 months, which is when care needs are greatest, she noted.
Dr Xander Ong, CEO of non-profit organisation Centre for Fathering, told CNA that fellow fathers have increasingly shared with him their fears of not being seen as a good team member.
“Dads today actually really want to be involved. Increasingly, a lot of them know the importance of their roles even in these beginning months of their child’s life, but many of them face this negative perception regarding taking paternity leave because they fear repercussions on their career prospects,” he said.
Mindset shifts need to happen both in the workplace and the family, Dr Ong added.
“Workplaces really have to embrace that they form part of the village to support the raising of a child.”
Ms Indranee echoed the same view – the government wants to move away from a society where child-raising is primarily seen as the mother’s responsibility, she said.
“Studies show that when a father is involved in the child’s upbringing from an early stage, the child really benefits emotionally in terms of bonding with the father as well,” she said.
Dr Ong said his vision is for more people in Singapore to see and support co-workers as sons, daughters, mothers and fathers.
“These are roles that are critical and irreplaceable. If more of us see it as such, we’re truly able to build a nation that is made for families. That is something that is my goal, and also what many families are hoping can happen to Singapore,” he added.