We agree with Mr Cheong Wing Kiat (Insightful reports on tacking low birth rate the Japanese way, Dec 30) that raising children is among life’s most beautiful endeavours, and collaborative efforts from the Government, employers and the wider community are essential to build a Singapore Made For Families, where marriage and parenthood are achievable, enjoyable and celebrated.

As Mr Tan Soon Hock (Make it easier for young working couples to have more babies, Jan 2) has rightly pointed out, and as observed in Japan’s case, workplace support is key.

Our surveys and engagements with couples have similarly shown that managing work and family commitments is one of the key considerations when making parenthood considerations.

To better support working parents, we have progressively enhanced parental leave over the years, the most recent being the doubling of government-paid paternity leave to four weeks and unpaid infant care leave to 12 days per year, which started in 2024. 

Tripartite partners also continue to promote family-friendly workplace practices to help employees manage work and family commitments. These include launching the Tripartite Standard on Unpaid Leave for Unexpected Care Needs in 2018, and the Tripartite Standard on Work-Life Harmony in 2021.

This year, we will also introduce the Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement (FWA) Requests, which will set norms and expectations on how employees can make requests for FWAs and use them responsibly, and how employers can manage requests for FWAs properly and fairly.

We will continue to work closely with tripartite partners to encourage employers to build family-friendly workplace cultures and implement human resource practices that allow them to achieve their business objectives and support their employees at the same time.

Amelia Tang
Senior Director, National Population and Talent Division
Strategy Group, Prime Minister’s Office