The ministry, he suggested, could "base (quotas) upon wages of Singaporean workers" instead of the numbers employed.
He proposed that only companies which employ full-time locals with a minimum monthly wage of S$1,500 be eligible for work permit applications for foreign workers.
"This may better serve the needs of both Singaporeans and businesses. Doing so will incentivise businesses to upgrade the skills of their Singaporean workers and to invest in technology which enhance productivity in order to attain and justify higher salaries for Singaporean workers," urged Mr Gan.
Increasing the foreign worker levy, he added, would only increase business costs, and neither employer nor worker benefits in the end.
Meanwhile, Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports Halimah Yacob re-iterated the need to create good jobs, cautioning that failing to do so would result in a widening income gap.
This especially so, when "there are jobs that are created especially in the services sector, that pay little, provide poor benefits and are not quality jobs, which will continue to depress wage growth".
Non-Constituency MP Lina Chiam also raised concerns about wage growth, highlighting the need to create "sustainable jobs" with "reasonable remuneration". The "efficiency of labour" should also be examined with indexes such as value-added per worker, she suggested.
MP Ang Wei Neng (Jurong GRC) felt that the job market has room for more graduates, and called for support to produce more graduates, such as increasing subsidies and providing more bursaries for undergraduates in private institutions.
ORIGINAL SOURCE
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