SINGAPORE: Greater challenges lie ahead for Singapore in the post COVID-19 world, and there is a need to keep an open mind in order to build and improve on the system of social safety nets already in place, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in Parliament on Wednesday .
“More importantly, it levelled everyone up, giving them the means to improve their lives through their own efforts.”“Our economy is maturing. Incomes are growing less rapidly. There is a higher premium on specialised skills and education,” he said. “As a result, when someone loses his job, especially as a mature worker, it is harder for them to move to another job, especially across different sectors.
But as these are “peacetime measures”, they were not enough when the COVID-19 pandemic hit, he pointed out. Hence there was a need to implement multiple emergency measures such as the Jobs Support Scheme and the COVID-19 Support Grant among others, he noted. “If they lose their jobs, they find it harder to find another similar job, particularly at the same pay, so they are at greater risk of long-term unemployment.” he said.
“Older workers are staying in the workforce longer. And over the last five years, real wages of our bottom quintile have consistently grown faster than median wages,” he said. “And that clearly shows that our approaches areBut with greater challenges ahead, Mr Lee said the Government needs to do more, and is ready to do so.
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