dream88 Commentary: How much will the SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme help unemployed Singapore residents?
SINGAPORE: The SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support schemedream88, introduced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong at the National Day Rally, signals a departure from Singapore’s long-standing reluctance to offer unemployment benefits.
The new scheme provides lower- to middle-income individuals with up to S$6,000 over six months if they lose their jobs. Payouts begin at up to S$1,500 per month, declining in subsequent months.
To qualify for the scheme, Singaporeans and permanent residents must be unemployed due to involuntary reasons such as retrenchment or illness, have earned S$5,000 or less per month, be actively engaged in searching for a new job, among other conditions. About 60,000 people - 60 per cent of involuntarily unemployed individuals - are expected to be eligible for the scheme each year.
The SkillsFuture Jobseeker Support scheme will be rolled out for citizens in April 2025, and for permanent residents in the first quarter of 2026.
While Singapore's unemployment support scheme is relatively conservative in comparison to what is offered by Western nations, it indicates that the government is now willing to reconsider traditional policies given changing labour market realities.
This shift acknowledges that different times require different forms of assistancedream88, mainly when technological disruption creates a mismatch between the skills in demand and the expertise available in the labour pool.
