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EMPLOYMENT Employment Law


The Employment Act (the Act) tells you about your rights and obligations as an employee You are an employee under the Act, if you are: em ployed under a contract of service

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any offic er or employee of the Government included by the President as an em ployee a workman, ie if you engage a skilled or unskilled manual labour, including an artisan or apprentice if you operate or m aintain transport vehic les for hire or comm ercial use if you engage in partly manual labour and partly in the supervision of a workman a bus conductor a lorry attendant a bus, lorry and van driver
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a bus ins pec tor a goldsmith and silversmith employed in the premises of an employer a tailor and dressm aker em ployed in the premis es of an employer a harbour-craft crew a workman em ployed on piece rates in the premises of the em ployer not a dom estic servant, seaman, manager, executive or secretary. Not all provisions in the Ac t apply to employees. If you are an employee earning m ore than $1,600.00 per month(excluding overtime, bonus, AW S and other allowanc es), the following provisions in the Act will not apply to you: priority of salary claims over other debts ; Commissioner's power to inquire into am ount due to employee; and rest days, hours of work, holidays and other c onditions of service. note that for this part, s ubc ontractors for labour are c onsidered employees In such situations, you must refer to your contract of s ervice. Since the provisions in the Employment Act set the m inimum standard, the terms of your c ontract of service m ust be at least equal to or more favourable than the provisions in the Act, otherwise the terms that are les s favourable will be illegal and invalid.

Your Rights as an Employee


Some of your rights under the Act are issues c oncerning your salary and c onditions of work.

Salary
Your salary must be paid at least onc e a month (not necessarily on the first day of a calendar month) and within the first 7 days of eac h salary month. For exam ple, if you are to be paid on the 15th day of each c alendar month, you must be paid no later than the 22nd day of the month. You c annot be forced to sign a contract of servic e. When you have com pleted your c ontract of servic e, you mus t be paid all your s alary and your employer m ust allow you to leave your job.

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If your employer ends your c ontract of service, you should be paid within 3 days of the end of your employm ent. If you end your em ployment, you should be paid within 7 days of the end of your em ployment. If you give due notic e, your s alary must be paid to you on the day that your employment ends. Your employer can m ake deductions from your salary for a number of reasons, for example: absence from work without good reason; repayment of a loan; incom e tax; CPF contributions; the costs of goods entrus ted to you which are los t or dam aged because of your negligenc e or loss of money that you, as an employee, are responsible for; and if you agree, for hous ing accomm odation and meals. There are limits to the deductions whic h can be m ade and the total amount of suc h deductions cannot be m ore than half your monthly salary. However, more than half may be deducted from your last salary before the end of your employment. In addition to your salary, you m ay also get extra allowances, for exam ple, for food or accommodation, but not for alcohol or drugs. If your em ployer provides you with housing accommodation, there m ust be a proper supply of water, proper s anitary arrangem ents and first aid equipment available. Your em ployer cannot tell you how you should spend your salary, for example, if he sets up a canteen at your place of work, he cannot force you to buy your meals there. All salary m ust be paid in legal tender and be paid into your pers onal or joint ac count or by cheque to you. If your employer does not com ply with the above, he is guilty of an offence and can be fined up to $1,000 or jailed for 6 months.

Conditions of Work
There are 7 issues which will be applicable only to you if your monthly income is less than $1,600 per month, or if you are a workman.

a) Working Hours Generally, you are not required to work more than 8 hours a day (or 44 hours a week). There are, however, exceptions to this general rule. You can: work for 9 hours in one day (but still not exceeding 44 hours a week), if you agree to work less than 8 hours a day on one or more days, or work 5 (or less) days a week. Work for 48 hours a week (or 88 hours over 2 weeks), if you agree to work less than 44 hours every alternative week. Work unlimited hours and on res t days, if there is an accident, or if the work is essential to the life of the comm unity, defence or security, or if there is urgent work to be done to m achinery or plant or an unforeseen interruption of work. You are required to work for a m aximum of 12 hours in a day. However, you m ay be asked to work longer under the circ ums tances mentioned in (c) above. If you work more than the hours above, you are working overtim e.

b) Ov ertime You c annot do overtime work for more than 72 hours a month. If you work overtim e, you should be paid 1.5 times your hourly-rate of pay. The formula for calculating overtime of pay is : Hourly-rate of pay X 1.5 number of overtim e hours The formula for calculating hourly-rate of pay is : For employees paid monthly: (monthly salary X 12) (52 X 44 hours)

c) Re st T ime You are entitled to have at least 1 rest day a week whic h need not be a Sunday.

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You are allowed to have a rest period after working continuously for 6 hours . However, if the nature of your work is such that it mus t be done continuous ly, then you m ust have a 45-minute off meal break within 8 hours . Any c ontinuous period of 30 hours is considered a rest day. d) Working on a Rest Day: Salary Entitleme nt You c annot be forced to work on a rest day unless the type of work you do is such that it needs to carried on continuously in shifts
Hours of Work At your Request At Your Employers Request day or less your basic rate of pay for one days work Your basic rate of pay for one days work More than day,less than normal daily Your basic rate of pay for one days work Twice your basic rate of pay for one days work working hours Your basic daily rate for 1 day plus 1.5 times your hourly rate of pay for each 2 days of pay at basic daily rate, plus 1.5 times More than normal daily extra hour or part thereof (see Overtime for calculation of hourly rate of your hourly basic rate for the extra hour or part working hours hourly rate of pay) thereof.

e) Shift Workers As a shift worker, your hours or work may differ from those of other workers. Section 38 of the Act s ets out the standard working hours for non-s hift workers (dis cussed in Working hours and Overtime). Section 40 sets out the working hours requirem ent for shift workers. Under the section: You can be required to work more than 6 consec utive hours without a break, or more than 8 hours (but not more than 12 hours) a day, or more than 44 hours a week (but not m ore than an average of 44 hours per week over a period of 3 weeks. You can c laim overtime, if you work more than an average of 44 hours per week over a period of 3 weeks . You must consent in writing to working on shift. Section 38 and 40 of the Act m ust be explained to you, otherwise your consent will not be valid. Your consent will only be valid if you have been informed of when working hours start and end, then num ber of working days per week and when the rest day falls. f) Holidays and Annual Leave You are entitled to have an off-day on all offic ial public holidays (but you m ay agree with your employer to change the off-day to another day). If the public holiday falls on the rest-day, you are entitled to have the following day off. Your annual leave entitlem ent depends on how long you have worked for your employer. You are entitled to 7 days annual leave if you have worked for 12 continuous months with the sam e employer. Thereafter, you will get 1 extra day for every addition year of work up to a maxim um of 14 days. After working for 3 m onths, you are entitled to pro-rate your annual leave. In calculating the pro-rated leave, any frac tion which is les s than half a day s hall not be counted, and if it is more than half, it s hall be counted as 1 day. Your employer can forfeit your annual leave if you absent yours elf from work for m ore than 20% of the number of working days in the month or year. g) Sick Leav e After 6 m onths of work, you are entitled to 14 days of non-hos pitalis ation s ick leave and 60 days of hospitalisation leave. If you are hospitalised for less than 46 days in any 1 year, your entitlement to paid sick leave s hall not be m ore than a total of 14 days and the num ber of days you are hospitalised. All sick leave must be certified by a medic al officer or a doctor and you m ust inform your employer within 48 hours that you are on sick leave otherwise you will be deem ed to be absent from work. h) Re trenchment and Re tire ment Benefits Your employer c an retrench you if you are no longer needed or if there is a reorganisation of your employer's business. Your employer need not give any reasons and he cannot be stopped from employing new workers after a retrenchment exerc ise. If your em ployment agreement promises to pay some money on retirements but not upon ending of your employment by reason of the em ployer c easing to carry on business from whatever reason, or, by reason of the employer transferring the whole or part of his undertaking or property as the case m ay be (event), the law will entitle you to the same amount of money upon that event happening. (Section 47(2)) If you have worked for less than 3 years with your employer, the Act says that you are not entitled to any retrenchment benefits at all. However, the Court of Appeal (the highest court in Singapore) has decided that the Act does not s uggest that if you have worked for 3 years and m ore, your employer must pay you retrenchm ent benefits. Retrenchm ent benefits are therefore payable only if your contract of service (or a collective agreement if you a union member) says s o or if your employer decides to pay you ex-gratia (gratuitous) retrenchment benefits.

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The Law Society of Singapore > for Public > You & the Law > Employment
The Act says that if you have worked for les s than 5 years with your employer, you are not entitled to any retirement benefits. The Act, however, does not say that if you have worked for at least 5 years with your employer, you are automatic ally entitled to retirement benefits. The amount of retirement benefits is not stated in the Act and must be negotiated between yourself (or your trade union) and your em ployer. CPF savings are now generally considered to be retirement benefits.

Retrenchment -- What Are Your Rights?

Termination of Contract of Service


The period of notice for either you or your employer to terminate your c ontrac t of service should be s tated in your contract. It should not be less than the following guidelines in the Act:
Period of Employment less than 26 weeks 26 weeks but less than 2 years 2 years but less than 5 years 5 years or more Period of Notice not less than 1 day not less than 1 week not less than 2 weeks not less than 4 weeks

Notic e can be given at any time, but it must be dated and given in writing. Either you or your employer can choose to waive your right to notice. Either party c an als o c hoose not to wait for the notice period to expire. In this c ase, the party who does not wish to wait for the expiry of the notice period mus t pay the other s alary in lieu of notice. Notic e of termination need not be given if there has been a breach of the terms and conditions of the c ontract of service. For example, if your employer fails to pay your salary, or if you feed that you have been asked to do something whic h will involve danger, violence or disease which is not stated in the contract of service, you may leave your employm ent without giving notice. (It is advisable to seek advic e from your lawyer or the Ministry of Manpower before doing this). On your part, your employer need not give you notice if you absent yourself from work for m ore than 2 days without prior leave or without reasonable exc use or attempting to inform your employer. The employer can, instead of dismiss ing you, do the following: instantly downgrade you; or instantly suspend you without pay for a period not exceeding 1 week. If you think that your employer has acted wrongfully, you can complain to the Ministry of Manpower within 1 m onth of the dismissal.

Maternity Leave
Female em ployees are entitled to maternity leave 4 weeks before and 4 weeks after delivery of their child. Alternatively, you and your employer may agree to a period of 12 weeks com mencing not earlier than 28 days before the day of your confinement and at the latest, the day of delivery.

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You and your employer can also agree to a period of 8 weeks starting, at the earliest, 28 days before the day of confinement and at the lates t, by the day of confinement itself. Under this arrangement, you and your employer can agree to one or m ore further periods, in total am ounting to a maximum of 24 days. Thes e periods mus t be within 6 months after the date of confinem ent. To be entitled to full pay during maternity leave, you m ust have worked for at least 180 days before delivery of the child. You are only entitled to full pay during m aternity leave for your first two children. If you worked on any day during your benefit period before c onfinement, you are entitled to receive your gross rate of pay for that day, plus an am ount equal to a days pay at the gross rate, or, alternatively, you are entitled to a days leave after your benefit period ends. Note: a benefit period is the period where you are on maternity leave, but you are entitled to paid at your gross rate of pay. You m ust inform your employer at least 1 week before you comm enc e your maternity leave and also inform your employer of the date of delivery of your child as soon as possible. If you do not give the notic e, you will only be entitled to half pay unless you have good reason for not giving the notice. Maternity leave is your entitlem ent and it is illegal for your employer to ask you to give up your maternity leave. During m aternity leave, you are entitled to be paid your full s alary as usual, but you are not allowed to claim for sick leave. Your employer is not entitled to term inate your servic e and neither are you allowed to give notice of termination using your maternity leave as the notic e period. If your em ployer gives you notice of dism iss al for no good reas on within a period of 3 months before your c onfinement, you are still entitled to your us ual paym ent. If you feel that you have been dis mis sed without good reason, you s hould refer the matter to the Minis ter of Manpower within 2 m onths of your confinement date. However, if you work in another job when you are supposed to be on maternity leave, you c an be dism iss ed. If your employer knowingly em ploys you at any tim e, in a period of 4 weeks after your confinement, he is guilty of an offence.

Bonus (AWS)
If your employer has agreed with you, before 28 August 1988, to pay you an Annual Wage Supplement (AWS) of m ore than one month, that AWS shall continue to be payable until otherwis e agreed. With effect from 26 August 1988, your c ontract of servic e c annot provide for AW S of more than one m onth in one year. Depending on your employer's profits, your performance and contribution, you may get an additional variable payment. This is us ually recom mended by the Minister through the National Wage Counc il or through negotiations with your employer.

Making a Complaint
If you have any disagreement with your employer about your salary, the terms of your contract or your rights under the Act, you can m ake a complaint to the Minis try of Manpower. The fee for making a c omplaint is $3.00. You must do so within 1 year of the incident that you are complaining about. If your com plaint is about the termination of your contract, you must complain within 6 months of the termination. If you think your employer will leave Singapore to avoid paying your s alary, you can apply to the Commissioner to ask that your employer give a guarantee to remain in Singapore until the salary is paid. The Commissioner will inform the party whom you are c omplaining against and summon him and any other interested party to attend an inquiry into the com plaint. The Commissioner may hold a prelim inary inquiry and parties are given a change to s ettle the m atter at the preliminary inquiry. If a s ettlem ent is reac hed, the Commissioner shall make an order to record the term s of the settlement and the order shall be as effective as an order made after an inquiry. At the inquiry, the Commis sioner will hear evidence from all sides to the dispute and then m ake the necessary order. The order can be to dismiss the claim or to order a party to pay a s um of m oney to satis fy the claim. The Comm issioner can make an order in the abs ence of one party if that party fails to attend the inquiry. Any party not satisfied with the Com mis sioner's order can appeal to the High Court within 14 days of the decision.

Employment of Children and Young Persons


Children below the age of 14 years are not allowed to work in an indus trial undertaking unless it is family bus ines s where only family members are employed. An industrial undertaking includes m ines , quarries , factories, s hipyards, busines ses and companies carrying out construction work, trans port (including bus, ship, car, lorry) operators.

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Children of 12 years and above m ay be employed in a non-industrial undertaking to do light work suited to their capacity. A certificate by a medic al officer shall be conclusive of whether any work is suited to that particular c hild. No young person (ie between 14 and 16 years ) shall be em ployed in any industrial undertaking declared by the Minister to be one whic h cannot em ploy young persons. Any employer who breaches any of the above com mits an offence and can be jailed for up to 6 months and/or fined up to $1,000 for the first offenc e an up to two years and/or $2,000 for a subsequent offence. Work approved and supervised by the Minis try of Education or the Institute of Technical Education, Singapore (ITE) carried on any technical, vocational or industrial training sc hool or institute and employment under any apprenticeship programme approved and supervised by the ITE are not subjec t to the above provisions.

Workmen's Compensation
If you, as an employee: em ployed under a contract of service any offic er or employee of the Government included by the President as an em ployee submit a claim for workmens com pens ation through the Minis try of Manpower; or Claim dam ages under common law against your em ployer for breac h of duty or negligence. You c an claim only one of the above.

Common Law Claim


You must show that your employer has failed to provide a safe sys tem of work, or breac hed a duty required by law or that your em ployers negligence caus ed the injury. This m ay involve comm enc ing legal proceedings, which m ay take up more time and expenses. Damages under comm on law are however usually m ore than an award under W orkmens Compensation. Com mon law damages include compensation for pain and suffering, loss of wages, medical expenses and any future loss of earnings.

Workmen's Compensation Claim


All you have to show is that the injury aros e out of an in the course of employment. No negligence or breach of statutory duty on the part of your employer need be s hown. The procedure is relatively simple and c heap. Awards are however lim ited. Awards are bas ed on the age of the injury suffered by him /her. Under the Work Injury Compens ation Act, you may c laim work injury com pensation if you, as an employee: sustain injuries or dies in a work-related acc ident; or contract occupational diseases arising out of your work. If you meet with an accident while travelling in transportation operated by or for your employer, or in pursuance of arrangements made by your employer, this is considered to be in the cours e of em ployment and is potentially liable for c ompensation. If you are hurt while within work premises, or while doing som ething to avert an em ergency or to res cue or protect life or property, this is considered to be within the c ourse of employment. You c annot claim if your injury is due to you being under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or if the injury is self-inflicted or self-aggravated.

Occupational Disease
There is a scheduled lis t of diseases which if c ontracted by you as an em ployee, in your oc cupation, will entitle you to claim compensation. The diseases include deafness , asbestosis, industrial dermatitis. You s hould cons ult the Ministry of Manpower or a lawyer for further information.

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