TL;DR – The proposed Job-Skills Integrator complements NTUC’s e2i and CTC initiatives. NTUC’s e2i and CTC looks at empowering workers through training so that workers can be placed in jobs with better career prospects.
In the Budget 2023 statement on 14 Feb, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Lawrence Wong announced that employers will soon have a new resource to tap on to ensure better training and placement of workers in their industries. This new scheme is known as Jobs-Skills Integrators.
The Job-Skills integrator will bring together stakeholders in selected sectors to develop industry-relevant training and facilitate job matching. This will optimize training and job placements and support displaced workers so they can be re-trained and placed into new jobs. Doesn’t this seem very similar to NTUC’s e2i and CTC initiatives?
Helping improve workers’ wages, welfare and work prospects remains core to the work of the Labour Movement. NTUC have always been championing workers’ career opportunities and progression to achieve better wages.
In NTUC’s secretary-general Ng Chee Meng’s Facebook post, he said, “NTUC supports this move because the best way to cope with the rising cost of living is for our workers to achieve better skills and in turn, have better jobs. NTUC will continue to work with our tripartite partners and unions to push for better training outcomes for our workers.”
NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute)
E2i centres support the local workforce in their employment and employability needs. Services like career coaching to identify areas of development and employability options, training advice and workplace advisory are available there.
Targeted assistance will be given to specific worker groups such as low-wage workers and professionals, managers and executives.
NTUC Company Training Committees (CTC)
The NTUC CTC initiative was launched in April 2019 to help companies drive business and workforce transformation which will in turn provide better work prospects for workers. More than 800 CTCs have been set up in both large organisations and small to medium enterprises.
CTC uses a collaborative and consultative approach in identifying skills and training needs that will support the company’s strategic direction to achieve industry transformation.
Mr Ng, in his opening speech at the inaugural NTUC Training & Placement Symposium in November 2021 said, “Whether you are thinking about business transformation that will result in job redesign, upskilling workers and ultimately job matching, we want to bring that integrated team concept or what we call ‘training and placement ecosystem’ to you.”
While we are waiting for more details on the pilot Job-Skill integrator, you can seek individual support by heading down to e2i centres if you are in need of career or training advice.