SINGAPORE: The proportion of employees and job seekers who faced discrimination fell again in 2023gkbet, according to a Fair Employment Practices report by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

That signals that there have been "sustained improvements" in workplace fairness standards in Singapore, the ministry said in a press release on Tuesday (Sep 24).

But the majority of those who faced discrimination did not seek help, and discrimination based on age remained the most prevalent form.

Last year, 6 per cent of employees experienced unfair treatment at work, down from 8.2 per cent in 2022 and 8.5 per cent in 2021.

In 2018, 24.1 per cent of employees faced workplace discrimination.

For job seekers, 23.4 per cent said they were discriminated against in 2023 during their job search, slightly lower than 23.8 per cent in 2022. In 2021 and 2018, the percentage was 25.8 and 42.7 respectively.

The big drop since 2018 can be attributed to awareness among employers about how they should treat workers, an MOM spokesperson said at a media briefing on Tuesday. 

This year's report comes as preparations are made for a new law on workplace fairness, which is set to be introduced in parliament this year.

The legislation will require employers not to discriminate against employees based on protected characteristics such as age, nationality, sex, marital status, pregnancy status, race and disability.

Among employees and job seekers, age, race and nationality were the top forms of discrimination.

In 2023, more job seekers felt they were discriminated against based on age and nationality compared to 2022.

Of jobseekers aged 50 and over, 37.9 per cent said they experienced age discrimination. That compares with 12.2 per cent of those under 50 years old.

MOM said the ministry, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices, the National Trades Union Congress and Singapore National Employer Federation have collectively put in effort to promote fair employment practices.

A bigger proportion of employees now work in companies that have formal procedures to manage workplace discrimination. More than 63 per cent of resident employees worked in such firms as of last year, compared with 59.8 per cent in 2022.

"There has been a steady rise in the proportion since 2018 (49.6 per cent), a positive sign toward further improvements in workplace fairness standards," said MOM.

However, there are still areas for improvement that MOM said can be addressed by the upcoming workplace fairness legislation.

Age discrimination is one such area. The proportion of jobseekers who faced unfair treatment due to their age rose from 16.6 per cent in 2022 to 18.1 per cent in 2023.

The new law will send a "stronger signal that age discrimination of job seekers is not acceptable," said Mr Ang Boon Heng, director of the manpower research and statistics department at MOM.

People also need to be encouraged to seek help when facing discrimination.

Employees said they were mainly afraid of being marginalised at work or causing work relations to be more awkward. They were also concerned about their careers being negatively impacted. 

In 2023, only 29.3 per cent of those who experienced discrimination sought help, compared with 35.3 per cent in 2022.

"This also means that around 7 in 10 who experienced workplace discrimination did not seek help," said Mr Ang.

"More can be done to strengthen employees’ confidence in reporting workplace discrimination," MOM said, noting that workers will be protected against retaliation when reporting discriminatory work practices under the workplace fairness legislation.

Employers will be required to put proper grievance handling processes in place.

"By strengthening protections against workplace discriminationgkbet, employers will benefit from a more engaged workforce, strengthen positive reputation, and build a harmonious workplace that attracts and retains talent – all of which leads to better business outcomes," the ministry said.

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