Tripartite Guidelines
On Non-Discriminatory Job Advertisements
Tripartite Guidelines On Non-Discriminatory Job Advertisements
Candidates for jobs should be selected based on merit, experience,
capability and other relevant job requirements. This is in line with
the principle of meritocracy in Singapore.
The Singapore Constitution states that all persons are equal before
the law and are entitled to equal protection under the law. In line
with the principle of equality and good employment practices, employers
should not select candidates on grounds of race, religion, descent
or age, which are of no relevance to a job. Towards this objective,
the Singapore National Employers Federation, together with
the National Trades Union Congress and the Ministry of Manpower,
has formulated a set of tripartite guidelines to serve as a reference
for employers in the selection of candidates.
To help enhance Singapore’s international competitiveness, Singapore
employers have to hire the best and most suitable candidates for the
job. They cannot afford to deprive themselves of talents by selecting
candidates of a particular race, religion, age or gender. As Singapore
moves towards the 21st century and a knowledge-based economy,
it is increasingly important to adopt good human resource practices,
including non-discriminatory employment practices. We note that only
a small minority of employers have adopted discriminatory criteria
in recruitment practices and would like to encourage them to make
use of these tripartite guidelines so that they can select the best
candidate for the job, based on their job requirements.
Criteria Which Should NOT Be Used In Job
Advertisements: RACE
Race
should NOT be a criterion for the selection of job candidates
as multi-racialism is a fundamental principle in Singapore and selection
based on race are unacceptable. Employment advertisements which include
statements like "Chinese preferred" and "Malays preferred"
are thus unacceptable.
RELIGION
Religion is unacceptable as a criterion for recruitment EXCEPT in
cases where employees have to perform religious functions as part
of the job requirement. In such cases, the requirements should be
clearly and objectively presented.
MARITAL STATUS
Marital status is an irrelevant criterion in employment, as jobs can
be performed equally well by either married or single persons.
AGE
Employers should avoid stipulating age as a requirement for employment.
However, if a younger person is required to carry out physically-demanding
work such as fire fighting, the required physical attributes or other
job-related criteria should be clearly described rather than indicating
an age limit.
UNacceptable examples:
Candidates below 35 wanted for clerical or executive positions.
Candidates below 35 preferred.
Instead…
Physical work required. Applicants will be shortlisted only after
passing physical fitness test.
Selected candidates required to handle heavy equipment
GENDER
Where practical requirements of the job dictate the need for employees
of a particular sex, this must be supported by acceptable rationale.
