SINGAPORE — Some 3,000 blue-collar workers here in the waste management sector, including garbage collectors and refuse sorters, will come under the progressive wage model (PWM), which stipulates minimum salary levels for employees depending on the level of their skills and training.

In a media release on Tuesday (Jan 26), the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said that the expansion of this model to the waste management sector is a step towards better wages and well-being for lower-wage workers.

Similar to other sectors, the PWM will provide workers in the waste management sector with a clear career roadmap as they upgrade their skills and productivity, it added.

The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) first proposed the wage model for the waste management industry last year.

The model — first used in 2012 and has since been rolled out to the cleaning, security, landscape, and lift and escalator sectors — is a framework where wages are pegged to skills, productivity and career development.

It was a hot topic in Parliament late last year, with the Workers’ Party pushing for a S$1,300 minimum wage, while the Government argued that such a policy could lead to increased unemployment as businesses face higher costs.

The Government also brought up figures to show that the PWM had helped lift the wages of 80,000 cleaners, security guards and landscape workers by 30 per cent in recent years.

Ms Melissa Tan, chairman of the Waste Management and Recycling Association of Singapore, had earlier said that the median wage of blue-collar workers in this sector is around $2,000 a month.

Firms in the sector, which employ some 16,000 workers — a large proportion of whom are foreigners — have found it a challenge to attract Singaporeans because the industry suffers from a reputation problem, she had said.

On Tuesday, MOM said that a tripartite committee chaired by Mr Fahmi Aliman, NTUC’s director of operations and mobilisation and Member of Parliament for Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency, has been formed to oversee the implementation of the wage model for the waste management sector.

The committee, which includes representatives of the Government and the Singapore National Employers Federation, will develop job ladders, training requirements and wage benchmarks of the PWM, and ensure the model is tailored to the unique conditions of the sector.

It aims to release its recommendations in the second half of this year.

Mr Lim Peng Soon, 46, who has been working with waste management firm SembWaste for the last six years, was one of the workers who welcomed the upcoming development.

The service leader said: “I picked up more work skills, learnt how to drive different types of vehicles and earned more salary as I got promoted. I think the wage model is good.”

Mr Neo Hong Keat, managing director of SembWaste, said that since its people are the firm’s most important asset, it is important to upskill the workforce in a structured manner. This will allow workers to realise their potential, increase their wages and move up the career ladder.

“We see the PWM as an important step in this direction. When implemented, it provides the framework and discipline for this sector to systematically upskill our limited manpower resources to sustain and enhance the essential service of waste management for the public,” he added.

The waste management sector was featured in the first of TODAY’s eight-part series Where the Jobs Are, which looks at overlooked sectors which offer interesting opportunities for young job seekers in a challenging job market.