Singapore rolls out unprecedented unemployment payouts – will it help?
The policy ‘U-turn’ is brought about by global disruptions that Singapore has been experiencing in recent years, an analyst says
When human resources adviser Julie Lee was made redundant in 2023 from a tech start-up, she sank into despair.
The 53-year-old, who had been retrenched twice before, felt burnt out and betrayed as she grew anxious about supporting her family, including her daughter, who was midway through her undergraduate degree in Australia.
“I felt I put my family through stress,” said Lee, who eventually started her own HR consulting business after 10 months of job searching.
During that period, she attended career coaching and courses to get fresh certifications and changed her professional title to chief human resource officer.
From next month, the Singapore government is expected to begin giving payouts to retrenched Singaporean workers under a new unemployment benefits scheme for those aged 21 and above. Payouts will be capped at S$6,000 (US$4,500) over six months without any spending conditions attached for recipients.