Construction firms can expect more support, says minister

Higher foreign worker levy rebates possible amid manpower crunch from border curbs

Manpower Minister Josephine Teo (right) during yesterday's interview with Money FM DJ Howie Lim. The minister noted that since the Covid-19 pandemic struck last year, the construction workforce has declined by about 15 per cent at least. ST PHOTO: YO
Manpower Minister Josephine Teo (right) during yesterday's interview with Money FM DJ Howie Lim. The minister noted that since the Covid-19 pandemic struck last year, the construction workforce has declined by about 15 per cent at least. ST PHOTO: YONG LI XUAN

Companies in the construction sector could receive higher foreign worker levy rebates as the Government considers additional support after recent border closures led to arrivals from several countries being denied entry, putting the squeeze on manpower supply.

In an interview with MoneyFM yesterday, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo noted that since the Covid-19 pandemic struck last year, the construction workforce has declined by about 15 per cent at least.

"The outflow (of workers) continues, but the inflow is very restricted," she added.

The Government has had to be "very careful, not because we don't want to help the construction sector but because there are certainly risks involved, and we want to be able to manage that", said Mrs Teo, explaining the restrictions on workers arriving from overseas.

She added that the Ministry of Manpower, Ministry of National Development (MND) and the Ministry of Trade and Industry are looking at how the Government can provide stronger support to the construction sector.

"For the companies in construction, marine and process industries, because of the safe management measures that they've had to implement, that impacts operations to a much larger degree and all other companies that also have to deal with (the measures)," said the minister.

To help these companies, additional support has been given to them in the form of foreign worker levy rebates, said Mrs Teo.

"We're taking a closer look at whether there can be further support in that direction, and MND is also looking at how they can help with the costs that have invariably skyrocketed as a result of this tightness in the manpower," she added.

These affected companies can expect new support measures to be announced soon, said Mrs Teo.

The minister's comments come days after it was announced that emergency legislation - to address the severe disruption to the construction sector arising from the curbs on the entry of migrant workers - is in the works.

Announcing this in his May Day Rally speech last Saturday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said the proposed laws will help ensure the burden is shared more fairly between the contractors, the developers and the buyers.

The legislation is expected to be introduced on Monday, when Parliament holds its next sitting.

Last year, the sector received help through job support, levy waivers and rebates, and construction restart grants.

Legislation was also passed to defer litigation and liquidated damages and to mandate the extension of time as well as sharing of costs from delayed finishing dates.

In her radio interview yesterday, Mrs Teo said the pandemic has also resulted in employers assessing whether they are being overly reliant on foreign manpower for their key functions - leading to risk.

"This risk may not go away, even when the travel restrictions are lifted, and on an ongoing basis, it makes sense for them to build up their Singaporean core," she said.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on May 08, 2021, with the headline Construction firms can expect more support, says minister. Subscribe