Introduction
Welcome to our workshop on the Workplace Fairness Act 2025 and its Practical Applications in Singapore! Consider these real-world scenarios to see how the upcoming legislation will impact everyday HR decisions:
Scenario 1: An employer rejects a candidate for a job opening. When the candidate asked why he was turned down, the employer cited his Caucasian ethnicity and his inability to speak Chinese as the main reasons. The employer mentioned that their workplace predominantly comprised employees of Chinese ethnicity, and that the candidate would not be a good “fit” for the team as he was not Chinese. The employer also mentioned that all his employees conversed in Chinese in the workplace and that it would be unreasonable to expect them to switch to English to accommodate the candidate.
Scenario 2: Two candidates applied for the same hotel's job openings for the Telephone Operator and Room Attendant positions. Coincidentally, both were five months pregnant. When they turned up for the interview, the employer told them that they were both qualified for the positions, but to resubmit their applications only after they had given birth.
Scenario 3: An employee who had worked as a Purchasing Executive for five years applied for a flexible work arrangement (FWA) to work from home for two days in a five-day work week, as she needed to look after her mother-in-law, who had suffered a severe stroke and was bedridden. The HR Manager rejected her request as the company’s FWA policy extended only to employees who had to care for immediate family members, not in-laws.
Do these scenarios count as workplace discrimination? What are the consequences for the employer? Does the job candidate or employee have any remedy against the employer?
The Workplace Fairness Act 2025 (the “Act”), estimated to come into effect by end-2027, protects against certain discriminatory behaviour relating to employment and establishes fair employment practices. The Act was subsequently amended by the Workplace Fairness (Dispute Resolution) Bill to provide for mediation of workplace fairness disputes and to provide for civil actions for a statutory tort of discrimination.
This one-day workshop aims to introduce participants to the Act and equip them with the knowledge required to handle scenarios like the above. It will also discuss the practical issues arising from the Act, such as the difficulties faced when reporting cases of discrimination to employers who may retaliate, the processes for handling grievances, and the time bar for bringing claims against errant employers.
Learning Objectives
By the end of this comprehensive workshop, participants will be equipped to:
• Master the Scope of the Workplace Fairness Act 2025: Grasp the fundamental principles and legal scope of the upcoming legislation. Understand exactly which employers are covered and identify exemptions, such as contracts for service and platform work.
• Identify Protected Characteristics & Discriminatory Practices: Accurately identify all protected characteristics under the Act, including age, sex, pregnancy, caregiving responsibilities, race, religion, and mental health conditions. Learn to recognize what constitutes workplace discrimination during critical employment decisions like hiring, performance appraisals, promotions, and dismissals.
• Fulfill Key Employer Obligations: Ensure full HR compliance by understanding mandatory employer obligations. Learn the best practices for developing a robust grievance handling process, enforcing strict anti-retaliation measures for reporting employees, and fairly considering the local workforce for job opportunities.
• Navigate Legitimate Preferences and Exceptions: Determine when "genuine requirements of the job" apply. Know exactly when your organization can lawfully prefer certain candidate characteristics without breaching fair employment guidelines.
• Mitigate Organizational Risk and Penalties: Assess and minimize legal risk by understanding the severe consequences of non-compliance. Navigate the new framework of administrative penalties, corrective directions, civil penalties, and the newly established statutory tort of discrimination that allows employees to seek damages or employment reinstatement.
Course Outline
A competent HR practitioner must have the skills and knowledge of the following:
- Introduction to Workplace Fairness
Who does it apply to?
a) All employers (save for certain prescribed categories)
b) Does not cover arrangements such as contracts for service and platform work
- Protected Characteristics
What characteristics of individuals cannot be discriminated against?
a) Age
b) Nationality
c) Sex
d) Marital Status
e) Pregnancy
f) Caregiving responsibilities
g) Race
h) Religion
i) Language ability
j) Disability
k) Mental health condition
- What counts as “discrimination”?
Making “employment decisions” on the grounds of a protected characteristic. a) Hiring
b) Appraising performance; promoting; demoting; providing training
c) Dismissing; retrenching; terminating employment
Issuing directions, instructions or policies that discriminate against protected characteristics.
Publishing advertisements or job descriptions that provide for a protected characteristic as a qualification or disqualification.
- What obligations do employers have?
Obligation to develop a process for handling grievances.
Obligation not to retaliate against an employee for reporting a grievance.
Obligation to fairly consider the local workforce for job opportunities.
- Are there any circumstances where employers may legitimately prefer certain characteristics of employees?
Genuine requirement of the job.
Minimum age.
Preferring citizens and PRs.
Preferring individuals belonging to a particular religious group for religious offices.
Preferring only individuals with disabilities.
- Penalties and remedies
Administrative penalties.
Corrective directions.
Civil penalties.
Enhanced penalties for serious contraventions.
Action for discrimination (statutory tort of discrimination).
Damages/reinstatement of employment.
Methodologies
Lecture and case study.
Who Should Attend
- Human Resource Practitioners
- Industrial Relations Practitioners
- Lawyers
- In-House Legal Counsels
- Line Managers/Executives
- Any other persons interested in grasping a good understanding of the Workplace Fairness Act 2025.
Workshop Registration
Please visit this page to register.
