Absence of labour chief from Cabinet a temporary arrangement, says PM Wong
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NTUC secretary-general Ng Chee Meng said in a statement on May 6 that he had asked PM Wong not to assign him any position in government.
PHOTO: ST FILE
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SINGAPORE - The labour chief will be part of the Cabinet “before too long”, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on May 21.
The current labour chief or NTUC secretary-general is Mr Ng Chee Meng, who is also the MP for Jalan Kayu SMC. He had earlier asked PM Wong to not assign him any position in government
PM Wong said the secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress has traditionally held a position in the Cabinet.
“I value this link and I know the NTUC does too,” he said at a press conference to announce the refreshed Cabinet slate.
“Ng Chee Meng has requested not to be offered a position in government so that he can focus on his work in NTUC and Jalan Kayu. I respect his wishes.
“But to be clear, this is a temporary arrangement, and I look forward to having the labour chief being part of the Cabinet before too long.”
PM Wong added: “Meanwhile, my government will continue to work closely with the labour movement and will ensure that the views of NTUC and union leaders, and the interests of Singapore workers, are fully taken into account in our deliberations and decisions.”
Mr Ng said in a statement on May 6 that he had asked PM Wong not to assign him any position in government.
This followed controversy just after the 2025 General Election, where Mr Ng won the newly carved-out Jalan Kayu single seat with 51.47 per cent of the vote
In the statement, Mr Ng apologised in response to criticism about his conduct at a Ministry of Education dialogue in 2017, and also addressed a photo that had surfaced of him at a group dinner with Fujian gang member Su Haijin, who was later convicted of money laundering
Mr Lim Chee Onn was the first labour chief to be appointed as a minister in the Prime Minister’s Office in 1980.
Mr Ng has been NTUC secretary-general since 2018.
The position is elected by union delegates and the NTUC central committee once every four years at the NTUC National Delegates’ Conference.
Mr Ng is the first labour chief in decades to not hold a Cabinet position.
Asked to elaborate on wanting the labour chief to be part of the Cabinet before too long, PM Wong said he was in close touch with Mr Ng.
“At some point, when he’s ready, when we think that things have improved and stabilised, whether it’s him, whether it’s someone else, I can’t say. But certainly, my wish is for an NTUC secretary-general to be in the team.”
