SINGAPORE - This Labour Day marks the start of a new core team of tripartite leaders for Singapore, said outgoing labour chief Lim Swee Say on Friday, at the annual National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) May Day Rally.
Mr Lim will take over as Manpower Minister from Mr Tan Chuan-Jin next week, while Mr Chan Chun Sing will be the new labour chief.
At the Singapore National Employers Federation, Mr Robert Yap recently succeeded Mr Stephen Lee as president.
"The future is full of challenges and opportunities. Let us move forward together with trust and confidence," said Mr Lim.
In his speech, he also highlighted the contributions of ordinary workers through the past five decades, from building factories and modernising the port to working in the first pharmaceutical companies here and saving lives during the Sars outbreak.
"To keep doing well, we must keep looking ahead, prepare ourselves and our children now to turn future challenges into opportunities," he said to some 4,000 unionists, employers and government officials gathered at The Star Performing Arts Centre,
Mr Lim also lauded the contributions of pioneer labour leaders and national leaders, especially founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.
"The reason we are able to succeed till now where many others have failed is because of Singapore triparitism."
