AVIATION SECTOR COMMITS TO SENDING WORKERS TO FILL MORE THAN 17,500 TRAINING PLACES
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5 April 2020
MEDIA RELEASE
AVIATION SECTOR COMMITS TO SENDING WORKERS
TO FILL MORE THAN 17,500 TRAINING PLACES
~These efforts will see aviation workers undergoing
some 39,500 days of training ~
1. All major aviation companies have committed to sending their workers to fill more
than 17,500 training places, even as the industry continues to grapple with the
suspension of flights. This was affirmed at a closed-door dialogue hosted by NTUC
Secretary-General (SG) Ng Chee Meng on Friday, 3 April 2020. Attendees at the
dialogue include Mr Goh Choon Phong, Chief Executive Officer, SIA; Ms Vanessa
Ng, Senior Vice President, Human Resources, SIA; Mr Campbell Wilson, Chief
Executive Officer, Scoot; Ms Theresa Tan, Vice President, HR, Scoot; Mr Ng Chin
Chwee, Chief Executive Officer, SIA Engineering Company; Ms Zarina Piperdi,
Senior Vice President, HR, SIA Engineering Company; Mr Alex Hungate, Chief
Executive Officer, SATs; Ms Lilian Tan, Chief Human Capital Officer, SATs; Ms
Cham Hui Fong, Group Director, Workforce, NTUC, and Ms Sylvia Choo, Director,
Unions, NTUC.
Whole of Sector Commits to Upskilling Workers
2. These top leaders represent the key players in the aviation sector. They were
invited to discuss the ongoing challenges brought about by COVID-19 over a one-
and-a-half-hour dialogue, held at NTUC Centre, One Marina Boulevard. At the
session, the topic of leveraging downtime to expedite workers’ training and
upskilling in terms of developing real technical capabilities and capacities was
brought to the fore. This includes training for workers including PMEs in the sector,
to accelerate a digital shift across all levels.
3. NTUC SG Ng Chee Meng shared his hopes that the aviation sector will continue
to plug into the strong and positive bilateral ties it currently enjoys with NTUC and
1our unions, and to work hand-in-glove to ensure that workers are taken care of.
The session ended with the respective companies reaffirming their commitment to
work closer with NTUC and their unions to develop the capabilities and productivity
of their workforce, in preparation for when the economy recovers.
4. NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng said, “We had a frank and fruitful
discussion. It has been a very challenging time for both our companies and
workers. It is therefore heartening to see our aviation sector unions and companies
working together to send workers to fill more than 17,500 training places. In these
times, schemes such as the Jobs Support Scheme will help companies save
manpower cost as they invest in their workforce. NTUC and our unions stand
ready to work with companies through set ups such as Company Training
Committees to upskill and upgrade our workers during this downtime, so that when
the storm clears, both company and worker can be better positioned to exploit all
the opportunities that the world will show us again.”
Train to Save Jobs
5. Already, the sector has seen some early training initiatives take flight. For example,
supported by NTUC LearningHub (LHUB), Scoot will be sending some 1,900 flight
crew and cabin crew for digital awareness training. This represents more than 75%
of Scoot’s total workforce. The training, which will include home-based learning,
aims to help participants develop awareness of emerging technologies and build
self-confidence in leveraging technology. To date, the first batch of 23 flight crew
and cabin crew have completed the training course, with the rest set to follow
within the coming months.
6. This follows through the recent enhanced training and support package for the
aviation sector that was announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance
Minister Heng Swee Keat. In addition, NTUC had also previously committed an
additional $500,000 that will be made available to help unionised companies in the
2sector send their workers for training. 1 These schemes aim to help companies
save costs while upskilling their workforce – not only in preparation for the future,
but ultimately to save jobs.
7. Looking ahead, other courses that will be made available to workers include
change management, project management, service excellence related courses
and technical training. For example, cabin crew could undergo courses to upgrade
their skills in the areas of frontline service while pilots could benefit from training
in areas such as managing fatigue. For others, training will be made available in
areas such as handling of dangerous goods, cargo documentation, aircraft
maintenance amongst others. These efforts will translate to more than 39,500
training days.
Ramping up Training Capacity and Support
8. As a key training provider, NTUC LHUB is rapidly ramping up its training capacity
to meet demand from the various sectors, and this will be augmented by Virtual
Live Classes (VLCs) options. NTUC LHUB has curated a series of courses for the
Aviation sector, to ensure that Aviation workers can use this downtime to upskill
and emerge stronger. The series includes courses on mindset change, service,
technology and data.
9. Mr Kwek Kok Kwong, CEO of NTUC LearningHub said, “Working closely with the
Labour Movement and employers, NTUC LearningHub is acting swiftly to help
Aviation workers and companies build their resilience and adaptability by gaining
new skills. We believe that upskilling is even more important in times of change. It
is heartening to see that many trainees have remained positive and have kept their
minds so open to upgrading their skills. Companies can also use this time to seize
the opportunity to transform, enrich their workforce and keep their eyes on long-
term goals. NTUC LearningHub will walk this journey with workers and companies
so that together, we can overcome challenges and emerge even stronger.”
1 [Media Release] Air Transport Sector gets enhanced training and support package to upskill workers and save jobs
3Help for Affected Workers to Secure Work and Support Themselves
10. Ongoing efforts to optimise excess capabilities, including manpower, also formed
part of the dialogue. To help affected workers secure temporary assignments and
augment their income, the NTUC Aerospace and Aviation Cluster is also tapping
on the wider union and Labour Movement network. The cluster will aggregate
manpower needs identified by unionised companies within the sector as well as
across sectors, and work with companies’ human resources personnel to send
workers for job interviews. Since mid-last week to date, some 500 aviation workers
have signed up to be referred for temporary assignments that are available. This
includes Scoot, who through the union network, is facilitating temporary
assignments for their crew by posting pre-approved job openings in its internal
communications portal for employees to peruse and apply. A number of crew
members have since taken on jobs to help manage crowd control and help with
temperature screening at Mercatus Co-operative, an NTUC Social Enterprise.
Likewise, SIA has also facilitated such temporary work arrangements for workers
to take up roles such as SG Clean Ambassadors and Safe Distancing
Ambassadors.
Going forward
11. The NTUC Aerospace and Aviation Cluster will continue to work with companies
to keep workers in their jobs and retrain them for when the economy recovers.
###
Chinese Names and Terms 中文名称与词汇
National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) 全国职工总会 (职总)
Ng Chee Meng 黄志明
Secretary-General, NTUC 职总 秘书长
Cham Hui Fong 詹惠凤
Group Director, Workforce, NTUC 职总 工作群 总长
Sylvia Choo 朱素秋
Director, Unions, NTUC 职总 工会处 处长
NTUC Aerospace and Aviation Cluster 航空与航天业工会群体
4Kwek Kok Kwong
郭国光
Chief Executive Officer
NTUC LearningHub 职总恒习私人有限公司总裁
Campbell Wilson 查贝尔 威尔森
Scoot Chief Executive Officer 酷航首席执行官
About National Trades Union Congress
The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) is a national confederation of trade
unions as well as a network of professional associations and partners across all
sectors in Singapore. NTUC’s objectives are to help Singapore stay competitive and
working people remain employable for life; to enhance the social status and wellbeing
of our members and working people; and to build a strong, responsible and caring
labour movement. NTUC’s vision is to be an inclusive labour movement for all collars,
ages and nationalities. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement, which
comprises 59 affiliated unions, five affiliated associations, 12 social enterprises, six
related organisations as well as a growing ecosystem of U Associates and enterprise
partners. For more details on NTUC, please visit www.ntuc.org.sg.
About NTUC LearningHub
NTUC LearningHub was corporatised in 2004 with the vision of transforming the
lifelong employability of working people. We work with both corporate and individual
clients and provide learning solutions in areas such as Infocomm Technology,
Healthcare, Employability & Literacy, Business Excellence, Workplace Safety &
Health, Security, Human Resources and Foreign Worker Training.
To date, NTUC LearningHub has helped over 21,000 organisations and achieved over
2.5 million training places across more than 500 courses with a pool of over 400
certified trainers. As a Total Learning Solutions provider to organisations, we also
forge partnerships and provide a wide range of relevant end-to-end training solutions
and work constantly to improve our training quality and delivery.
Visit www.ntuclearninghub.com for more information.
About Scoot
Scoot is the low-cost arm of the Singapore Airlines Group. Scoot took to the skies in
June 2012 and merged with Tigerair Singapore in July 2017, retaining the Scoot brand
and positioning it well for a new chapter of growth. Scoot has carried over 65 million
guests and now has a fleet of 20 state of the art, widebody Boeing 787 Dreamliners
and 29 young and modern Airbus A320 family aircraft, with two more Boeing 787
Dreamliners, 30 Airbus A320neo and 16 A321neo aircraft on order. Scoot’s network
presently encompasses 67 destinations across 15 countries and territories, with six
more destinations from Indonesia to join the network by the second half of 2020. Scoot
provides – in addition to fantastic value airfares – a safe, reliable and contemporary
travel experience with a unique attitude – Scootitude. Offering amenities including on-
5board Wi-Fi Internet connectivity and in-seat power on selected flights as well as the
ability to redeem and accrue Singapore Airlines Group KrisFlyer miles, Scoot was
voted 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 Best Low Cost Airline (Asia/Pacific) by
AirlineRatings.com and ranked in the Top 10 of the World’s Best Low-Cost Airlines in
2015 and 2018 by Skytrax. In 2019, Scoot won “Best Low-Cost Carrier” at the 30th
TTG Asia Awards and the Travel Weekly Asia 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards. Scoot
is passionate about making travel attainable for all and enabling people to embrace
the full potential of traveling and seeking new experiences. Book your tickets at
FlyScoot.com or contact our Call Centre. Find out more on FlyScoot.com,
Facebook.com/FlyScoot, Instagram.com/FlyScoot, and Twitter.com/flyscoot.
For media queries, please contact:
National Trades Union Congress:
Lim Li Yin
Principal Consultant
Strategic Communications
DID 6213 8192
HP 9170 7622
Email liyin@ntuc.org.sg
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