Disability/Employment

Overview & Synopsis

Singapore’s PWD employment rate is at among the lowest in developed societies.

Knowledge Gaps

There is currently no representative statistic for number of disabled people in Singapore → to watch 2020 population census (n = 150,000).

There is no knowledge of retention rates/duration of disabled people in their various jobs.

Key Statistics & Figures

Numbers of PWDs who can potentially enter workforce

Close to 176,000 disabled people are of working age.

Employment Rate of PWDs

According to The Straits Times, five in 100 disabled people are estimated to be employed.

The Government has noted that three in 10 PWDs aged 15 to 64 are in employment.

Breakdown of employment rates in the group:

• 27.6 per cent for those aged 15 to 39
• 37.8 per cent for those between 40 and 49
• 26.1 per cent for those between 50 and 64
• 5.9 per cent for those who are 65 and older.

The sectors employing most of these people are community, social and personal services, food services, administrative and support services, and manufacturing. Together, they account for more than half of workers with disabilities.

Persons with disabilities comprised about 0.55% of the resident labour force. Most go into hospitality, F&B, wholesale and retail/admin support, with a median monthly income of $1,000 - $2,800.

• SG Enable has placed more than 1,200 PWDs in jobs within the past three years, in the retail, F&B, IT and other sectors. 
• PWDs comprise 0.55% of the resident labour force. Median monthly gross wage ranged from $1,000 to $2,800. 
• According to MOM data, more than 25% of PWDs aged 15 to 64 are employed
  • The sectors employing most of these people are community, social and personal services, food services, administrative and support services, and manufacturing. Together, they account for more than half of workers with disabilities.
  • 27.6 per cent of PWDs are employed, for those aged 15 to 39
  • 37.8 per cent for those between 40 and 49
  • 26.1 per cent for those between 50 and 64
  • 5.9 per cent for those who are 65 and older.
• 8,600 estimated to be employed in the public and private sector in 2017.

Theory of Change

Key Thrusts

1. Engaging & Equipping Employers
2. Job Matching & Placement
3. Training & Work Readiness
4. Continuing Career Development
5. Employment Protection

Employers understand PWD capabilities	↘
Employers know how to make workplace accommodations	→	Employers are willing to hire	↘
Employers find it financially feasible to hire	↗
		Employers & PWDs are matched	→	PWDs secure jobs	→	PWDs treated fairly at work & have career development
		PWDs are work ready	↗

Areas of Needs

Employers understand value PWD capabilities

• Study by Kathy Charmaz on workplace disclosures, for reference
• CNA podcast (10 May 2019) on whether Singapore uses Charity lens when supporting employment for people with disabilities 

Programmes	Gaps	Ideas
Inclusive Business Networks & Seminars Inclusive Business Forum (IBF) Singapore Business Network on Disability		Can there be more opportunities to dialogue with employers or partners such as WSG/MOM, such that the process may be more institutionalised/supported?
Disability education training for employers and co-workers of PWDs DPA Disability Awareness Talks Society Staples training for employers SPD Disability Etiquette Talks APSN Employer Education Workshops	PWDs continue to face discrimination in the workplace: see 2015 study by DPA and this DPA-IPS 2016-2017 participatory research	Speak to training attendees to assess efficacy of current training avenues.  Focus on practical strategies to communicate with colleagues with disabilities, rather than generic education. Encourage hiring managers to share their fears/stereotypes about hiring PWDs — this should be a standard part of companies’ disability education training, and official HR curricula in Singapore. Make it mandatory for co-workers working together with the PWD, HR and management-level staff to attend disability education training. Conduct research/collect data on disabled employees who were terminated or had to leave because employers did not accommodate their needs. Consider a rotational buddy system for disabled employees, to reduce buddy fatigue and allow co-workers to understand their PWD colleague better
SG Enable employer resources   Resources that assist employers in understanding, communicating and working with PWDs.	Employer’s misconceptions and false assumptions about the abilities of those with disabilities (only a handful of them are educated in SPED schools and do not have the necessary skills and credentials to obtain high-wage, high-skill jobs) [Need evidence] Limited effectiveness because it is hard to change employers' attitudes	Public education campaigns highlighting the strengths and abilities of those with disabilities and more career fairs for PWDs

Inclusive Business Networks & Seminars

Inclusive Business Forum (IBF) and “Fostering Inclusion At The Workplace” Seminar

• Inaugural IBF held in 2016 , second round on 25 Jul 2018
• Inaugural seminar held in 2017
• Inform businesses of the benefits of hiring PWDs and encourage more employers to hire PWDs 

Singapore Business Network on Disability

• Community of businesses in Singapore across various industries who work in collaboration to share (as appropriate) expertise, experience, networks and resources to help advance the equitable inclusion of persons with disabilities
• Started in May 2015 with AIG, Barclays, Dairy Farm, Deutsche Bank, EY, KPMG, Singtel, Standard Chartered

Employers know how to make workplace accommodations

Programmes	Gaps	Ideas
SG Enable-hosted Employer Resources   Resources that assist employers in understanding, communicating and working with PWDs.  Includes a Starter Kit, a Job Redesign Guide by MOM and SG Enable, Disability Etiquette Guides and HR matters guide/training to support disabled employees	Companies and their HR remain non-diversity ready [need data/evidence] [Anecdotal evidence by an in-service professional of more than 10 years - key comments that he always gets from employers: 1. "We don't know how to manage his/her behaviours or risk harm to himself/herself and others" 2. "Our staff is fearful and not very confident in working with them” 3. "What should we say or do when this or that situation happens"]
Singapore Business Network on Disability Community of businesses in Singapore across various industries who work in collaboration to share (as appropriate) expertise, experience, networks and resources to help advance the equitable inclusion of persons with disabilities Started in May 2015 with AIG, Barclays, Dairy Farm, Deutsche Bank, EY, KPMG, Singtel, Standard Chartered
Disability education training for employers and co-workers of PWDs DPA Disability Awareness Talks Society Staples training for employers SPD Disability Etiquette Talks APSN Employer Education Workshops	PWDs continue to face discrimination in the workplace: see 2015 study by DPA and this DPA-IPS 2016-2017 participatory research	Speak to training attendees to assess efficacy of current training avenues.  Focus on practical strategies to communicate with colleagues with disabilities, rather than generic education. Encourage hiring managers to share their fears/stereotypes about hiring PWDs — this should be a standard part of companies’ disability education training, and official HR curricula in Singapore. Make it mandatory for co-workers working together with the PWD, HR and management-level staff to attend disability education training. Conduct research/collect data on disabled employees who were terminated or had to leave because employers did not accommodate their needs. Consider a rotational buddy system for disabled employees, to reduce buddy fatigue and allow co-workers to understand their PWD colleague better

Employers find it financially feasible to hire

Programmes	Gaps	Ideas
Enabling Employment Credit (EEC) - Announced but not yet in place Will provide a wage offset of up to 20 per cent of the employee’s monthly income, capped at a maximum of S$400 a month and provided the disabled employee earns less than S$4,000 a month. This is said to cover "about 4 in 5 of current PwD employees." In addition, employers hiring PwDs who have not been working for at least six months will receive an additional 10% wage offset, capped at $200 per month, for the first 6 months of employment. Replaces the Special Employment Credit scheme, which subsidised 16% of eligible PWD employees' monthly income up to $240 per month, max 22% and up to $330 a month if the hired employee is a disabled + older worker 67 and above.	This EEC "carries the implication that disabled people are limited to taking up lower-paid jobs" when in reality" more disabled people are obtaining degrees and striving for professionals, managers and executive roles" - thus "some employers may only consider hiring a disabled person to fill a lower-paid position but not a higher-paid one". (by Jonathan Tiong)	Abolish the $4,000 monthly salary cap
Special Employment Credit (SEC) Extended to employers who hire PWDs in 2012 Subsidises 16% of eligible PWD employees' monthly income up to $240 per month, max 22% and up to $330 a month if the hired employee is a disabled + older worker 67 and above. As of December 2015, 4,500 employers received subsidies from the Special Employment Credit scheme for hiring 5,700 disabled workers. From 2012 to December 2016, $59 million in SEC credit has been disbursed to employers of about 10,000 PWDs WILL BE EXPIRING IN DEC'2020
Open Door Programme  Employers of PWDs eligible for grants and employment support services such as the Job Redesign Grant, Training Grant and other Recruitment and Job Support Services Since 2012, 140 companies have applied for ODP support. The average claim per company is $3000.  (NEW & TBC) Course fee subsidies will be raised from 90 per cent to 95 per cent for eligible training courses curated by SG Enable, while training allowance for both unemployed and employed PWDs will go up to S$6 per hour. A training commitment award of $100 per completed eligible training course will also be introduced.	Takeup rate is low, and many employers don’t know about the ODP despite its attractiveness. Listen to interview with DPA on CNA The Pulse 10 May episode.
Workfare Training Support (WTS) Scheme For Singaporean PWDs aged 13 and above and who don’t earn more than $2,000 a month, their employers can qualify for 95% course fee subsidy and absentee payroll funding when they sign employees up for any course approved for WTS-eligible courses	Accessing SkillsFuture training courses remain difficult for some. A blind individual with a Master’s degree in counselling called SG Enable asking for help to navigate available subsidies for training such as the WTS, but she was offered Sheltered Workshop training instead. [Need more data]

Employers & People with Disabilities are Matched

Assessment & matching

Ideally: PWDs understand their suitability for jobs and employers understand implications of hiring specific candidate

Programmes	Gaps	Ideas
BizLink Vocational Assessment Service Provides assessment for a disabled individual to determine strengths and weaknesses pertaining to work capacity Assist people with disabilities and/or special needs in exploring job opportunities and training Offer assistance and counselling to PWDs and/or their families on issues relating to disabilities or work-related issues
ARC Employability & Employment Centre (E2C) Programme Autism-specific pre-assessment, assessment, employability training, job placement and job support	An individual with autism received vocational assistance from ARC; he paid $494 (after subsidy) for the vocational assessment but was deemed unemployable, yet managed to secure a job later at Dignity Kitchen. Might hint at broader lack of job partnerships/opportunities in general
SG Enable — Job Advisory Job-readiness assessment by specialists such as occupational therapists/psychologists/employment coaches.

Fair Treatment & Career Development

Aware of fair employment practices, can seek recourse or have protections against discrimination and other unfair work practices

• Government favours promotional and educational approach; Laws may adversely affect businesses; Government wants to avoid market rigidity. Government’s view: kindness and compassion cannot be legislated. Nor can they be enforced. It follows, then, that moral suasion, raising public awareness and promoting civic consciousness are more realistic ways to bring about change.[1]
• Legislation is the way to change mindsets and attitudes because people are apathetic[2]

Programmes	Gaps	Ideas
Guidelines by Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) for fair employment practices Singapore adopts promotional and educational methods to prevent discrimination of PWDs at the workplace  Job seekers or employees who encounter discrimination due to their disability may approach TAFEP for assistance	TAFEP Guidelines is not strictly binding; lack bite; no legal recourse [Need data/evidence on efficacy of TAFEP claims] [Comment from an autistic man working in open employment: 1) in today's employment landscape where more than 50% employers value soft skills over hard skills, autistics are at a disadvantage because that is one inherent weakness for us. Whereas physical disabilities doesn't interfere with social skills (though of course there are other challenges they face). 2) It is less clear on what constitutes discrimination. E.g. if an employer doesn't hire a deaf person because the job requires answering phone calls (that is not discrimination) VS an employer doesn't hire a deaf person to do a desk-bound job that requires computer usage (that is discrimination, if the employer didn't assess him/her holistically and just wrote him/her off BECAUSE he/she is deaf). However, for autistics, due to the nature of our challenges, and the fact that soft skills cannot be totally avoided in the workplace, the line is blur on what is discrimination and what is not]	Anti-discrimination laws and/or ombudsman body together with public education. [Existing legislation we can study, adapt and adopt from are the Americans with Disabilities Act, the United Kingdom’s Equality Act and Australia’s Disability Discrimination Act, which are regarded as being the gold standard.
Employment Act	Employment Act - no legal recourse for offenders