Singapore is seeking public input to find ways to help individuals attain the elusive end goal
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‘Work-life harmony’ has been in the limelight lately in Singapore. The latest update – the government announced that Manpower Minister Josephine Teo will soon lead discussions with Singaporeans to determine the best way to improve work-life harmony.
Insights from the dialogue sessions will help the government with policy changes and implementations, said Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Heng Swee Keat.
However, a lot is currently stacked against the quest for the elusive ‘harmony’ as Singaporeans struggle to cope with the overwhelming stressors in their lives.
For a start, a recent Cigna survey found that nine in 10 Singaporeans are stressed at work. What’s worse, almost half (45%) push on despite the stress, showing no signs nor talking about their struggles. Almost one in eight say their stress is unmanageable.
Significantly more women than men, 71% compared to 66%, also feel they work in an ‘always on’ corporate culture. To better manage stress, they want their employers to focus on flexible work arrangements, special paid leave and opportunities to work from home.
In a paradoxical twist, despite the growing demand for flexi-work, a Randstad study found that more than half of employees fear the freedom to manage their work schedules will increase the expectation to be ‘always on’ – and eventually interfere with their personal lives.
As more companies provide employees with digital devices such as smartphones and laptops, employees may feel compelled to be ‘always on’ and are not always sure how and when to disconnect.
About 56% of the employees feel that they are unable to disconnect from work. Women are less likely to feel that agile working has interfered with their personal life as compared to men.
In a Facebook post, Minister Teo commented on how Singapore can inch closer to attaining the highly sought-after ‘harmony’.
“On so many issues related to work-life harmony, our expectations of each other shape behaviour much more powerfully than policies,” she wrote. “This is why I think this topic deserves and demands our collective thinking and actions.
“What choices must we as individuals make for better work-life harmony? How can we, as the whole of society, better support each other to balance work, personal and family commitments?”