Forum: Public Service has established workplace grievance processes 

We thank Liew Meow Koon for his letter “Why does Workplace Fairness Act not cover public servants?” (July 8) and for his support for the Workplace Fairness Act.

The Public Service has zero tolerance for workplace discrimination, and we uphold the key principles of the Workplace Fairness Act and the Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices.

We maintain fair and merit-based employment practices, and have put in place policies, grievance-handling and escalation processes, and accountability mechanisms.

Officers who are found to have committed workplace discrimination face disciplinary actions. 

Given the sensitive nature of various areas of public service, such as national security and law enforcement, the handling of workplace disputes and grievances may involve confidential operational information that cannot be readily disclosed or examined in external proceedings.

As such, it would not be appropriate for external bodies, such as the Employment Claims Tribunals, to handle grievances or resolve workplace disputes involving public officers.

While public officers are not covered under the Workplace Fairness Act, complaints are addressed through the Public Service’s grievance-handling and disciplinary processes, which are aligned with the Workplace Fairness Act and Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices.

Both the public and private sectors are held to the same standards: Employment decisions should be based on merit, and discrimination has no place in our workplaces.

We will continue to work closely with tripartite partners to uphold and promote fair and merit-based employment practices in Singapore.

Tan Li Sheng
Divisional Director
Workplace Policy and Strategy Division
Ministry of Manpower 

Ng Kaijie
Director
HR Policy
Public Service Division