Industry’s first of its kind structured progression pathway to attract and build up a Singaporean core

The marine & offshore engineering industry contributed $3.6 billion to Singapore’s gross domestic product (GDP) and is crucial in cementing her position as a global trade hub. With an aim to increase this value-add to $5.8 billion and create 1,500 new jobs by 2025, there is a need to attract local talents for its long-term development and growth. However, some vocations in the industry remain unappealing to local talents due to its lack of career progression and perceived low pay2. In response, NTUC’s Employment and Employability Institute (e2i), Association of Singapore Marine Industries (ASMI) and NTUC’s Electronics, Marine & Engineering (EME) Cluster have launched two Career Development Plans (CDP) for Drafting Specialists and Quality Professionals respectively.

Career Development Plans for Drafting Specialists and Quality Professionals

The two CDPs aim to attract local talents into the industry via a structured progression pathway in terms of wages, skills, and job roles (Annex B & C). Candidates will undergo pre-determined training, pick-up skillsets directly relevant to their job role – resulting in productivity for the industry – while also receiving remuneration calibrated based on their skill levels. The CDPs are also based on a tiered approach to progressively build up skills and experience from entry to principal-level positions, which ensure long-term career prospects for the industry. Companies who are interested in the CDPs may work with ASMI and e2i for its adoption and recruitment needs.

More than 100 pilot vacancies will be made available at the SGUnited-e2i Marine Jobs & Skills Discovery from four early adopters of the CDPs – Dyna-Mac Engineering, Keppel Offshore & Marine, PaxOcean and Sembcorp Marine on 7 October 2021. The CDPs will be progressively rolled out to the rest of the industry depending on its response rate and is a good start in attracting and developing local talents in preparation for the upturn of the industry.

Strong partnership essential to tackle industry challenges

The Career Development Plans highlight the importance of strong partnerships to attract and develop local talents for the long-term. e2i and ASMI will be working closely with companies in recruiting and training a strong pool of Singaporeans for the sector, in preparation for the upturn.

Going beyond the Career Development Plans, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed today between NTUC’s e2i, ASMI and NTUC’s EME Cluster to cement the creation of a dedicated training & placement ecosystem for the marine & offshore engineering industry. The MOU signifies a collaboration to foster strategic partnerships and manpower plans to recruit, retain and redeploy local talent within the industry. This signing was witnessed by Mr Ng Chee Meng, Secretary-General of NTUC and Mr Simon Kuik, President of ASMI.