Turning to underemployment, a topic that was raised by West Coast GRC MP Patrick Tay and Aljunied GRC MP Sylvia Lim, the minister said Singapore’s resident time-related underemployment rate has been declining over the past decade and currently stands at 3.3 per cent.
Singapore adopts a time-related definition that refers underemployment as part-time workers who are willing and able to engage in additional hours. This is the only form of underemployment that has a recognised statistical definition internationally, said Mrs Teo. Ms Lim, in her Budget debate speech last week, mentioned a 2017 survey done by the Ong Teng Cheong Labour Leadership Institute. The study adopted a multi-factor definition that included wage and qualification, and yielded an underemployment rate of 4.3 per cent. In her speech, the opposition MP had called on the Government to study underemployment more thoroughly and monitor its effects on society.