S'pore needs to recognise value of hands-on and care work: Wong

Singapore's economy places too much of a premium on cognitive abilities, and does not sufficiently value those engaging in hands-on and heart work such as technical, service and community care roles, said Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Tuesday.

This trend is seen, worryingly, in a growing divergence between the starting pay for Institute of Technical Education (ITE), polytechnic and university graduates, he said.

The median starting salary for a university graduate is now almost twice that of an ITE graduate, with the earnings gap increasing over their lifetimes, he noted at the Singapore Economic Policy Forum.

The event was organised by the Economic Society of Singapore in partnership with the Singapore University of Social Sciences and in support of Forward Singapore - a year-long exercise aimed at strengthening the social compact.

Mr Wong said Singapore must pursue a twin strategy: stay open to top talent, but also redouble efforts to develop and support every local worker and professional to get the skills they need to succeed.

"We must do more to recognise the value of hands or heart work across the economy. There is a need for painstaking effort, industry by industry, to look at ways to redesign jobs and raise productivity, to upgrade skills, and establish better career progression."

These efforts are already taking place in the pre-school sector, he said. "Some may become specialist teachers in fields like early intervention for children with special needs; or those with the aptitude and capabilities might take on leadership positions - to mentor teachers, develop teaching practices, or even oversee not just one pre-school centre but a cluster of pre-school centres," he added. "This is something we must strive to do across all sectors of the economy."

Singapore is already tackling the wage gap between people engaged in "head work" and "hands and heart work" through various ways.

It has tightened foreign worker quotas, raised the local qualifying salary, and raised lower-wage workers' pay through the Progressive Wage Model (PWM). "This has resulted in real wage growth for our lower-wage workers over the past decade, and we are working to expand the PWM to more sectors and occupations," said Mr Wong.

Singapore is also investing in the quality of vocational instruction in its institutes of higher learning. It is levelling up its ITE skills-based curriculum to give students deeper industry-relevant skills, and increasing the number of work-study diplomas, Mr Wong noted.

He also called on firms to recognise the value of different types of work, redesign processes and jobs, and pay workers well. The Government will support firms, he added.

"All of us as Singaporeans must do our part, and be willing to pay more and bear the higher cost of goods and services delivered by our fellow workers. We must move away from preconceptions that academic success should be prized above all others. Instead, we must respect those who labour with their hands and hearts, and confer upon them the same status as other paths," Mr Wong said.

"We must also give them opportunities to advance in their respective fields, and not pigeonhole them into specific tasks, or hold them back unfairly."

This requires fundamental mindset shifts - by employers in hiring, training and promotion, and through mutual respect among Singaporeans, he added.