Singapore National Day Rally: Employees to get enhanced family friendly benefits and retrenchment support

At a glance

• At the National Day Rally Speech on 18 August 2024, the Singapore Prime Minister announced important policy changes that will impact employers and employees in Singapore.
• From 1 April 2025, eligible male employees will have a statutory right to four weeks' paternity leave instead of the current two weeks.
• The amount of maternity leave or adoption leave that an eligible wife can share with her eligible husband will increase from four weeks to six weeks (from 1 April 2025 onwards) and then ten weeks (from 1 April 2026 onwards).
• The government will provide limited financial support to lower paid workers who have been retrenched through a new SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme.

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At the National Day Rally Speech on 18 August 2024, the Singapore Prime Minister announced important policy changes that will impact employers and employees in Singapore.

First, the government will enhance its parental leave offering. Eligible male employees will have a statutory right to four weeks' paternity leave (double the two weeks currently offered), and there will be an increase in the amount of maternity leave or adoption leave that an eligible wife can share with her eligible husband. 

Second, the government will provide limited financial support to lower paid workers who have been retrenched through a new SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme.

Further details of the policy announcements are set out below. If you have any questions or need to take steps to comply with the new framework, please contact David Smail.

Four weeks' paternity leave mandatory

At present, working fathers have a statutory entitlement to two weeks of Government Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL) provided they meet certain eligibility criteria. Since 1 January 2024, employers have been encouraged to grant an additional two weeks of GPPL on a voluntary basis to working fathers, which will be reimbursed by the government. However, this is not mandatory – employers are able to choose whether or not to offer the additional two weeks on a voluntary opt-in basis.

From 1 April 2025 onwards, the two weeks of voluntary GPPL will become mandatory. This means that eligible working fathers with Singapore citizen children born on or after 1 April 2025 will be entitled to a total of four weeks of GPPL. This will be paid by the government, up to the prevailing cap of SGD2,500 per week.

Employees must give minimum notice of at least four weeks before taking GPPL. 

Increase to shared parental leave

At present, a working father can apply to share up to four weeks of his wife’s 16 weeks' Government-Paid Maternity Leave (GPML) or 12 weeks' Government-Paid Adoption Leave (GPAL). 

Government-Paid Shared Parental Leave (SPL) is subject to the wife’s agreement and the following eligibility criteria:

• the child is a Singapore citizen;
• the child's mother qualifies for GPML or GPAL and agrees to share her leave benefits with the father; and
• the father is / was lawfully married to the child's mother at the relevant dates.

The current SPL scheme will cease from 1 April 2025 onwards. A new SPL scheme will be implemented in two phases to provide additional paid parental leave to be shared between both parents: 

• with effect from 1 April 2025, the statutory entitlement will be six weeks of SPL to be shared between both parents, and each parent will be entitled to three weeks by default; and
• with effect from 1 April 2026, the statutory entitlement will be ten weeks of SPL to be shared between both parents, and each parent will be entitled to five weeks by default. 

Employers should take note of the following additional requirements: 

• The new SPL scheme will be in addition to GPML and GPPL. 
• SPL should be taken within the first 12 months of the child's birth. 
• Employees must give minimum notice of at least four weeks before taking SPL. 
• Parents have the flexibility to reallocate their share of the SPL to each other. Changes should be submitted via the LifeSG website or application within four weeks of the child's date of birth. 
• Employers and employees are encouraged to mutually agree on leave plans, which should contain the following details: 
  • number of weeks of SPL to be taken; 
  • whether the SPL will be taken in one continuous block or in separate smaller blocks; and 
  • start and end dates of the SPL. 
• If there is no mutual agreement, parents can take SPL in a continuous block (after GPML or GPPL) within the first 26 weeks of the child's birth. 
• All SPL will be paid by the government, up to the prevailing cap of SGD2,500 per week.
• Employers can verify their employees' SPL sharing arrangement and submit leave reimbursement claims via the Government-Paid Leave Schemes portal: profamilyleave.msf.gov.sg.

The changes are a welcome step in Singapore's promotion of family friendly benefits, and are aimed at removing the assumption that mothers should always be the primary caregiver. 

Employers should review their current parental leave policies to ensure they are compliant with the changes when they come into effect.

Support for Retrenched Workers Through SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme

A new SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme will be implemented from 1 April 2025 to provide temporary financial support of up to SGD6,000 over six months to support involuntarily unemployed individuals. Involuntary reasons would include retrenchment, cessation of business, dismissals or termination due to illness, injury or accident. 

To apply, employees must have earned an average monthly income of SGD5,000 or less (for the duration of their previous employment within the last 12 months), amongst other requirements. To qualify, employees must demonstrate an active job search seeking new employment and have participated in related activities (such as attending career coaching and participating in eligible training courses). Further details on the application process will be made available closer to April 2025.