COVID-19: Enhancements to Work Life Grant

Updated:

Unfortunately the application for Work Life Grant has ended and will no longer be taking in new applicants. Applications submitted before 18th August 2020 will still be processed.

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Work-Life Grant (WLG) is an existing scheme by Workforce Singapore and the Ministry of Manpower, to promote work-life harmony in the workplace by offering incentives for Flexible Work Arrangements (FWAs) or Job Sharing. This funding support aims to help companies implement and sustain FWAs and job sharing arrangements for all Singaporean and Permanent Residents employees.

In total, each company can receive up to S$105,000 of funding support under the Work-Life Grant, over 2 years:

- FWA incentive provides funding of S$2,000 for every local worker on FWAs, up to S$70,000 over 2 years; 

- Job Sharing incentive provides funding of S$3,500 for every local worker, up to S$35,000 over 2 years. Job Sharing incentive is for employees who request for job sharing arrangements, have at least a 12 month employment contract with the company, and earn a gross monthly salary of at least S$3,600 before the arrangement.

Companies need to implement and provide proof of regular usage of FWAs such as compressed work week, part time work, time banking and rotating shifts, for a period of at least 6 months. Other types of FWAs can be considered on a case by case basis.

Job Sharing arrangements will also be claimable, when two or more employees share responsibilities of one full time job, but work at different times. Job sharers may work only part of the day or the week, or only alternate weeks. 

Upon application, companies should describe the current situation, the proposed FWAs to be implemented, and how employees will benefit from the FWAs. Companies will also have to appoint a Supervisor or Manager to track the usage of FWAs for 6 months. 

To be eligible for WLG approval and claim, companies must provide the following documents:

• Proof of adoption of the Tripartite standard on FWAs
• Proof of regular usage of FWAs and/or job sharing
• Impact evaluation report using template provided (depending on which organization you apply WLG with)
• List of employee(s) who is/are regular users of FWAs
• Copies of employees’ employment contracts (with a minimum contract term of 12 months) and CPF Form 90
• For Job Sharing incentive, companies must have put in place a formal arrangement to redistribute workload amongst the employees and remunerate accordingly. The employees taking on the redistributed work can be existing employees or new hires with a minimum employment contract term of 12 months.

How to apply

SNEF, NTUC’s e2i and Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) are the only official Programme Partners for Work-Life Grant.

If you’re interested, you can apply to SNEF, NTUC’s e2i or SMF.

Read also: COVID-19: Smart Towkay's Essential Business Survival Guide for This Pandemic

Although application for Enhanced Work-Life Grant (COVID-19) has ended, you may want to refer below for more information:

On 7th April 2020, enhancements to Work Life Grant (WLG) were announced to better help companies receive funding support during the Covid-19 period. WLG promotes work-life balance in companies by offering an incentive of $2,000 for every local worker on FWAs, up to 35 workers per company. During this Covid-19 period, companies only need to have their workers on Flexi-Work Arrangements (FWAs) for one month instead of the usual six months to qualify. Which is great news for companies that have already been implementing telecommuting and staggered work hours even before the “circuit breaker” period.

Companies can start applying for the Work-Life Grant from today (20th April 2020) and the lower requirements will apply after the “Circuit Breaker” period ends on 1st June 2020.

***The Towkays at Smart Towkay will also be applying for this scheme for their precious employees, so updates will be posted later when we have more information on the application process.***

***UPDATED: We have sent in our application for the Enhanced Work-Life Grant, and the process is quite straightforward and easy. We have applied via SNEF Grant Portal (Click here!) where you can log in using your Corp Pass. Then click on "Apply for a Grant now", and choose "Enhanced Work-Life Grant", where it will bring you to the next page where you select "Enhanced Work-Life Grant (COVID-19)".

Do take note of the list of documents that are required and you should prepare them before submission:

1. List of Employees who you will be claiming for (including their full NRIC)

2. Last 3 months of your organization's CPF 90

3. Employee Handbook (optional)

There will be a few questions that you need to answer, the main ones are:

Q3. Please describe the situation that has led to the organization wanting to implement FWAs.

Q4. Please describe how the FWAs will benefit the employees.

Q5. Add employees - Names, Designation and Job Scope.

You need to do a short write-up for Questions 3 and 4, followed by uploading the last 3 months CPF 90.

Then you can click on "Submit" and that's it!

Remember to bookmark the page, and you can go back to the portal to check on the status.***

Please refer to the below FAQs on Covid-19: Enhancements to Work Life Grant.

Q. What is new in the enhancements for Work-Life Grant announced on 7 April 2020?

A. In light of the COVID-19 situation and MOM’s intent to encourage companies to sustain implementation of work-from-home and/or staggered hours beyond mandatory social distancing regulations, we have enhanced the WLG criteria to make it faster and easier for companies to receive funding support for such arrangements.

The enhanced WLG criteria will only take effect during periods where there is no mandatory requirement for companies to offer work-from-home and staggered hours arrangements (i.e. when period of circuit breaker measures is over, from 5 May onwards)

Both the current and enhanced WLG will run concurrently.

Q. Where can companies apply for the Enhanced Work-Life Grant (WLG)?

A. Employment and Employability Institute (e2i), Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF), and Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) are the appointed Programme Partners for Work-Life Grant (WLG). Please approach any of the Programme Partners to apply.

Applications must be submitted directly by the companies. Third party applications through consultants or vendors will not be accepted. MOM, WSG, SNEF, NTUC-e2i and SMF do not endorse any consultants or vendors and their services or products.

Q. When can companies start to apply for the enhanced WLG criteria and what is the expected processing time?

A. Even though the enhanced WLG criteria will only take effect when the period of circuit breaker measures is over, i.e. from 5 May 2020* onwards, Companies can apply for the enhanced WLG from 20 April 2020, by approaching the Programme Partners – NTUC-e2i, SNEF and SMF.

We expect a surge in applications and seek your understanding that your application processing time may vary depending on the volume of applications received. Programme Partners will endeavour to acknowledge applications within 3 working days.

* Date may be subject to change if the period of circuit breaker measures is extended.

Q. Can companies apply for both versions of the WLG FWA Incentive (FI), i.e. current WLG criteria and enhanced WLG criteria?

A. While both versions will run concurrently, companies are only able to apply for one version of the WLG FI. Companies that apply for WLG from 20 April 2020, can choose either the current or the enhanced WLG criteria.

The maximum claim amount for WLG FI remains at $70,000 per company (i.e. $2,000 per employee, up to 35 employees).

Q. Under the enhanced WLG criteria, can companies submit multiple claims over 4 months?

A. No. Companies have to make their claim in a single tranche, within 4 months of the issuance of the Letter of Offer. However, their claim could consist of unique employees showing a month-long, daily adoption of work-from-home and/or staggered hours, for different months within the 4 months.

Example: 

If a company is awarded a Letter of Offer for 35 employees on 1 June, 25 unique employees can utilise work-from-home and/or staggered hours arrangements daily in June, and 10 unique employees can utilise work-from-home and/or staggered hours arrangements daily in July. The company can then submit one consolidated claim for the 35 unique employees after July, but before end of September.

Q. What can the WLG funding be used for?

A. WLG funding is on a per worker basis. Companies will be funded $2,000 per worker, for each worker on daily work-from-home and/or staggered hours arrangements for a month, capped at $70,000 per company. These monies can then be used in any way the companies requires to put in place work processes to implement work-from-home or staggered hours arrangements, including (but not limited to) costs for software/hardware.

Under the enhanced WLG criteria, can companies show evidence for a combination of work-from-home and/or staggered hours, daily over a month?

We recommend for companies to implement work-from-home, where practicable. However, if it is not, employers should adopt safe-distancing measures at the workplace, including staggered hours. In such situations, we will allow work-from home and/or staggered hours.

Q. What happens if the COVID-19 pandemic is over before companies have made claims under the enhanced WLG criteria?

A. The COVID-19 enhancements to WLG are only for the period of COVID-19 pandemic. However, we will honour Letters of Offer that have been awarded. Companies awarded Letters of Offer under the enhanced WLG criteria will still be allowed to make claims within the Letter of Offer's period of 4 months. No extension of Letters of Offer will be given.

Q. Can a previous WLG applicant whose claims have been fully disbursed reapply under the enhanced WLH criteria?

A. No. This will be considered having multiple applications for WLG, which is not permitted. Companies that have already benefitted from the WLG would generally be better able to implement FWAs for its workers. The limited funds available under the WLG can be better used to support other companies to adopt FWAs for the benefit of their workers.

Q. Can companies with open Letter of Offer whose claims have been partially disbursed switch over to the enhanced WLG criteria? What about companies with open Letter of Offer but no claims to date?

A. No. Once WLG monies have been partially claimed, companies cannot amend its Letter of Offer to be on the enhanced WLG criteria.

Companies that have not made any claims under the current Letter of Offer, will be permitted a one-time switch over to the enhanced WLG criteria.

Q. Can companies apply for WLG FI and/or JSI under the current WLG criteria even after 7 April 2020?

A. Yes. Companies will be allowed to apply for WLG FI and/or JSI under the current WLG criteria.

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