Introduction
Mr. Deputy Speaker Sir,
I rise today in support on the Motion of Thanks to our President.
Every one of us knows a family sitting around their dining table, talking about the future.
They see the headlines about global instability, about AI changing the world, and they worry.
They ask the quiet questions we all ask: In a world of such turmoil, is my family's future secure?
In an age of disruption, is there still a place for me?
These are not abstract questions, Mr. Deputy Speaker. They are real. They are heartfelt. The President’s address gave us that answer. It was a confident, resounding Yes.
And the reason for that answer is the very anchor of my speech today.
It’s our nation’s secret weapon: our unique ability to pull together when the world is pulling apart.
Tripartism, our model of unity, is more than just tradition; it is our answer to the future.
The Enduring Principles of Tripartism
Singapore’s unique brand of tripartism – the collaboration among the Government, employers, and unions – has long been the bedrock of our industrial relations and a key competitive advantage.
At its core, tripartism is founded on a shared conviction to strive for industrial peace with justice.
In the early days, our founding fathers stood at a crossroads.
The world told them that for a union to be effective, it must be adversarial, locked in a perpetual struggle with employers and the government.
It must at least seen to be independent.
They saw other nations crippled by this very conflict, caught in a zero-sum game of strikes and standoffs, where for one side to win, the other had to lose.
In such a game, they knew a small nation like ours could never win.
Our pioneers chose a different path. A harder path but a better path.
Mr Lee Kuan Yew said in 1969 that “the unions of Singapore are not here to fight against management. They are here to work with management, to ensure that we survive, grow, and prosper together.”
Tripartism is not a zero-sum game.
We believe in being partners in progress, not partisans in conflict.
This philosophy of fair play and gain-sharing remains our compass: pro-business, pro-worker, and pro-future.
The Soul of Our Movement: Upholding the Dignity of Every Worker
This partnership is built on more than just economic pragmatism; it is built on a shared moral conviction.
Mr. Deputy Speaker, the President challenged us to question "deep-seated assumptions about what constitutes valuable work."
This speaks to the very soul of our Labour Movement.
It’s a promise we keep for our lower-wage workers from our cleaners to our security officers like what Labour Member of Parliament Melvin Yong had said too.
For years, these workers had worked hard but saw their wages stagnate. They worried about their families’ future.
Today, because of the Progressive Wage Model, they are not just earning a better wage.
They have been trained to be more productive and could take on better jobs, a team supervisor.
The PWM didn’t just give them a bigger paycheck; it gave them a new sense of pride, a new set of skills, and a new answer about their future.
That is the soul of our movement. We don’t just talk about dignity; we build pathways to it, one worker at a time.
Trust: Our Bedrock Amidst Uncertainty
The success of this model hinges on mutual trust and respect, fostered through consistent engagement and a shared commitment to national interests.
Our reservoir of trust was not built in times of ease; it was forged in the crucible of crisis.
From the 1985 recession, when unions accepted wage cuts that were later restored, to the 2008 Global Financial Crisis with its “Cut Costs to Save Jobs” philosophy.
During COVID-19, our tripartite partners showed they were willing to make difficult decisions for the greater good. For example, instead of implementing layoffs, DBS Bank worked closely with DBS Staff Union to assure workers and sustain business continuity and career resilience, hiring more than 2,000 people including 1,000 new roles for fresh graduates and mid-career PMEs pivoting into technology roles.
This spirit of "We First" is the bedrock that allows us to face today’s challenges with unity and confidence.
Mr Goh Chok Tong once said, “We can never take tripartism for granted. It is a precious asset that has taken years of trust-building.”
This reservoir of trust is what enables us to face new challenges today – global instability, trade wars, and the transformative impact of Artificial Intelligence.
In a turbulent world, Singapore’s stability and predictability are rare advantages.
Unionists: Actively Shaping Better Outcomes
Our unionists are at the core of this effort.
The 1969 Modernisation Seminar set aside confrontation for collaboration – a turning point that enabled decades of progress.
Likewise, today, union leaders prepare the way for transformation by serving on the Boards of economic agencies, on national task forces, and in Company Training Committees aligning workers’ training with business transformation.
When they walk into those tough negotiations, they don’t just bring charts and figures. They bring the stories of our people with them.
They are the ones who can look a CEO in the eye and say, “Let me tell you about the family that is struggling to keep up with their bills.”
They bring the reality of the coffeeshop into the conference room.
They mobilise the ground in support of national strategies, thereby increasing our chances of success.
In difficult conversations like the annual National Wages Council negotiations, our union leaders keep us honest by reflecting workers’ anxieties about the cost of living, and by advocating for fair gains-sharing and just transitions.
This insider role allows unionists to shape policy for the better, not just criticize from the sidelines.
Every time a unionist helps a retrenched worker find a new job, they are not just finding a salary; they are restoring a person’s dignity.
Every time they ensure fair gains-sharing, they are strengthening our social fabric.
They are the guardians of fairness, the champions of opportunity. They are the ones on the ground, every single day, building the 'We First' society the President spoke of, one worker at a time.
This reflects what Senior Minister Mr Lee Hsien Loong once said: “Our unions are not afraid to speak up for workers, but they do so in a constructive spirit, with the long-term interest of workers and the nation at heart.”
We have seen this in practice. Earlier this year, the Union of Security Employees, which I advise, weighed in on Certis’ policy requiring its frontline workforce on medical leave to share their live location.
Following our engagement, Certis agreed to stop the practice, and brought in USE to strengthen communications and workplace practices.
At the same time, the union supported Certis’ technological transformation through the CTC Grant, enhancing both company productivity and workers’ wages above Progressive Wage Model increases.
Tripartism in the 4G Era
As each new generation of leaders emerges, so must new understandings of how we work together to bring Singapore forward.
We were heartened when then-DPM Lawrence Wong joined NTUC to launch Our Workers’ Compact in 2023, declaring that “NTUC is the most important partner of the Government.”
That statement touched the hearts of many unionists and signaled clearly the 4G leadership’s commitment to this partnership.
NTUC’s Role in the 4G Era
NTUC will continue to support the PAP Government in securing growth, future-proofing the workforce, and addressing new needs that arise.
Our support must be anchored in a shared commitment to the wellbeing of our workers.
We treasure our duty as our workers’ keeper. This means there will be times we disagree on the path forward.
It means having the courage to tell the government when a policy, however well-intentioned, will hurt our workers on the ground.
We will continue to be unabashed in our feedback, because true partnership is not defined by the absence of disagreement, but by the strength to work through it to find the best outcome for Singapore and Singaporeans.
And the challenges will be tough. The President outlined the immense change brought about by AI. In some countries, this has predictably caused deep anxiety, as workers see jobs being shed almost daily.
Mr Deputy Speaker, our hallmark Tripartism is what enables us to face the great challenge of our time: the transformative impact of Artificial Intelligence.
Let me take some time to share about a man I met recently at a job fair which happened after a retrenchment.
We'll call him Alex. He was at a job fair, and I was there to see how I can help them find a job. At the scene, you could see good people wrestling with uncertainty and disappointment.
He was retrenched after the wave of digitization and AI changed the business landscape.
Alex is in his early 50s, but he’s got the energy of someone half his age. And he told me his story I can’t shake.
He said, “I knew this day was coming.” For ten years, he saw the world changing. So, he did what he was supposed to do. He took courses. He earned diplomas on his own time, after long days at work. He tried to get ahead of the curve. He played by all the rules.
But it wasn’t enough. He still couldn't find a safer job, a growth job in the company. He did everything we ask of our workers, yet he felt like he was running in place. On a treadmill.
And as he spoke, I could hear the one thing that chips away at a person’s soul: the feeling that your hard work doesn’t count anymore.
WHAT DOES SKILLS-FIRST MEAN?
Alex’s story is not just one man’s story. It can be the Tripartite story. It can be Singapore’s story.
It’s the story we have to write the next chapter for, right now. Because this wave of AI, it isn’t just another technology.
It’s a force that is asking us a fundamental question: What kind of economy or country do we want to be?
Do we want to be a place where technology creates a world of winners and losers, where hardworking people like Alex get left behind?
Or do we want to build a future where technology serves all of us, where innovation lifts everyone up?
I think the answer is clear. But it won't happen on its own. It requires a choice. It requires a new commitment.
That commitment must start with a skills-first approach.
It’s a promise that what you can do matters more than the piece of paper you hold.
That your potential to learn is more valuable than the credential you have.
It’s a promise that if you put in the work, like Alex did, it will lead to somewhere real: a better job, a better wage, a better life.
For employers, it means shifting focus from paper qualifications to practical capabilities.
It’s about hiring, rewarding, and promoting based on what an individual can do and learn, not just what their qualification says.
It is about being intentional in our training. Workers such as Alex shouldn’t have to train fruitlessly, it’s about involving the worker in building the transformation plan together.
For workers, it means taking ownership of their career health, continuously building new competencies, and staying agile enough to pivot to new roles.
The Labour Movement is fully committed to working on this approach with our tripartite partners.
Our mission has always been to protect our workers through every economic wave, and the age of AI is no different.
And we do have a successful Singaporean model to follow.
Imagine being a prime mover driver at our port for twenty years.
You take pride in your job. Then one day, you hear that an automated guided vehicle (AGV), a robot, is coming to do what you do. Mohamed Rahaizad Bin Hassan, a Prime-mover driver was one of those faced with this reality.
In many places around the world, that’s where the story ends — in conflict, strikes, and lost livelihoods, like the paralysing port strikes we saw in the U.S. in 2024.
There, the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) saw automation as a threat to be fought.
They launched a strike across U.S. East and Gulf Coast ports.
But in Singapore, because of the deep trust between our Singapore Port Workers Union (SPWU) and PSA, we chose to write a different ending.
Years before the first AGV was put in operation in Tuas, they sat down together.
They mapped out every affected job. They planned a journey of reskilling. That driver wasn't replaced; he was upskilled.
Today, Mohamed Rahaizad is an Operations Supervisor with better working life and wages. And AVs are making our ports more productive than ever.
We turned a story of fear into a story of opportunity. That is the power of our partnership. The power of Tripartism and trust.
Principles for Adoption of New Technologies
Thus, we have clear principles to follow in the incorporation of AI and automation. It is to Be Transparent, Be Fair, Be worker-centric.
First, tripartite partners must work closely together to chart a common path. This means being transparent in the transformation and involving the unions and workers to forge a transition pathway.
Second, workers must be given fair gains from improvements in productivity. A world in which only shareholders and a select few benefit from economic transformation is neither desirable nor sustainable.
Third, we must be worker-centric to adopt a just transition for Singapore and the Singaporean worker. This embraces a We-first mentality and culture, and put it to work.
At the heart of this AI transformation are our people.
Let us commit, together, to building a future where technology serves humanity, where our companies thrive, and where every worker can look ahead with confidence and dignity.
Mr Speaker, in Chinese, please.
当今世界风高浪急，人工智能带来许多冲击与担忧。新加坡能安身立命，靠的就是我们独有的“劳资政三方的紧密合作”精神：政府、雇主与工会携手，不分彼此，共渡难关。正如李光耀先生所说，工会不是对抗的，而是与管理层一起“同生共荣”。过去在经济危机时，我们选择“先国家、后自我”，才换来今天的稳定与繁荣。面对AI带来的转型，工会不会让工友孤单作战。全国职工总会将继续陪伴每一位工友，一起提升技能，守护就业，公平分享成果。只要我们坚持“大我”精神，携手并肩，新加坡工友就一定能走过风雨，迎来更美好的明天。
Mr Speaker, my fellow Labour MPs have also shared their various concerns about the key issues that must be dealt with to support workers in this term of government. Let me highlight two other areas of focus.
First: Supporting Our Youth and Future Workforce
Our unionists have gone down to many campuses to meet with our young Singaporeans.
Between April and July this year, NTUC engaged 12,000 youths across our IHLs.
We heard their anxieties – about skills gaps, weaker hiring sentiment, and AI’s impact on entry-level roles.
Their anxieties are real, and we must double down to support them.
To complement the Government’s GRIT traineeships programme, NTUC Youth is equipping youth jobseekers with job search skills, networking, and mentorship, while e2i expands targeted career fairs.
We must consider expanding our SkillsFuture Mid-Career Training Allowances to younger workers.
In addition, we must broaden and expand upon Career Conversion Programmes to equip them for AI and sustainability-related roles.
Second: Managing Economic Restructuring
Restructuring must always prioritise workers’ wellbeing. Past lessons, such as the Public Transport Tripartite Committee’s approach during the bus contracting model, show how deep engagement safeguards jobs while enabling transformation. For example, in the transition to the bus contracting model, the Public Transport Tripartite Committee developed a “two-envelope” bidding system that ensured operators bidding for routes commit to consulting unions and safeguarding workers' wellbeing as part of their proposals.
In addition, the LTA and National Transport Workers Union engaged extensively with 5,000 workers. We look forward to renewing this to better our workers’ livelihoods and welfare, 10 years into the bus contracting model.
Thus, in managing the impact of economic restructuring, we must make it a priority to take care of workers who will be impacted and ensure sufficient lead time for planning and outreach to assure workers on their concerns.
Today, as co-chair of the Economic Strategies Review Committee No. #5, I am working with MOS Goh Pei Ming and our tripartite partners to ensure workers receive sufficient lead time, planning, and support in every restructuring process.
Conclusion
Mr. Speaker, the world will not get any calmer. The forces of disruption will not slow down. But we have something special here. Something tested in crisis and renewed with purpose. A belief that we are all in this together. So, this is our common path.
In a world that is dividing, we will choose to unite. In a world of gridlock, we will choose to build. In a world of anxiety, we will choose to create hope.
Our model of tripartism isn’t just an asset; it is our identity. It is the belief, passed down through generations, that we can adapt, we can transform, and we can emerge stronger, so long as we do it together. As one united people.
Mr Speaker, I support the Motion.
