SINGAPORE - When gardener Johnny Chan joined the landscaping industry eight years ago he was trimming hedges and cutting grass with tools by hand.
But since then, machines have dramatically changed many of those tasks, and his job along with it.
What used to take three to four hours can now be done in just an hour, said Mr Chan.
"At the start, the work was tough. But after the first few years, (after) I was more familiar with the work and with the machines, the work is not so physically demanding," he told The Straits Times in Mandarin.
Mr Chan, 55, is now a landscape supervisor with Toh Chin Leong Construction, which is contracted by nature parks such as Gardens by the Bay.
Workers like him are covered under the Progressive Wage Model (PWM) for the landscape industry. Their minimum basic wages are set to rise by 6.3 per cent a year on average over six years from July 1, 2023.
Mr Chan declined to reveal his salary but a landscape supervisor's baseline wage under the PWM stands at $2,350 now and is expected to reach $3,380 in 2028.
The PWM is a ladder that sets out minimum pay and training requirements for workers at different skill levels. It is part of efforts to ensure that wages increase along with the skills, productivity and job responsibilities of employees in the sector.
Mr Chan said he wanted to join the landscaping industry because he had an interest in plants and because he was bored of the routine of his previous job as a delivery driver.
He has since enrolled in numerous courses, including ones on how to use machinery and ones that expand his knowledge about greenery and the environment.
Mr Chan said: "The work is challenging, with new technology and developments. I don't need a high salary as long as I can do work that I enjoy, but if I get opportunities to learn new skills and get a higher salary, I would be very happy."
Mr Felix Loh, Singapore National Employers Federation deputy honorary secretary, noted the challenge of an ageing workforce in the landscape industry, which has a median age of 60.
"The younger generation is more used to technology; we need to automate some operations (such as watering) to make it faster, to raise productivity, and some of these equipment, to operate them, you need higher skills," said Mr Loh, who is also Gardens by the Bay chief executive.
Two new job roles - landscape specialist and senior landscape specialist - have been introduced to encourage younger Singaporeans and permanent residents to consider joining the industry.
Students who graduate with the necessary qualifications may be placed on this track from July 1, 2023.
Mr Chan noted: "If young people are interested, I hope they can join the industry. There's a lot to learn, from people management to machinery operations."
