SMS S. Iswaran's reply to Parliament questions on the measures that MTI have in place to prepare the potential workforce planning to work in the IRs

Question for Written Answer

Name and Constituency of Member of Parliament
Madam Ho Geok Choo, Member for West Coast GRC

Question
To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry what measures does his Ministry have in place to prepare the potential workforce planning to work in the Integrated Resorts to successfully adapt to the specific mindsets and outlook required by that industry.

Answer
The two Integrated Resorts (IRs) will create around 20,000 jobs over the next three years. Most will be in the areas of F&B, hotels, gaming and attractions. These jobs require workers with the skills, knowledge and attitude that are similar to the requirements of tourism establishments in general.

The Tourism Talent (TOTAL) plan launched in October 2007 by WDA and STB will help to support employment growth in the tourism industry. The TOTAL plan aims to train 74,000 workers for the tourism industry with an investment amount of more than $360 million in the next three years through a three-pronged approach focusing on pre-employment training (PET) for students, continuing education and training (CET) for adults and industry development to attract local workers. There is already heightened interest in tourism related courses in our institutions. The polytechnic and ITE student intake in tourism courses in 2007 are 2½ times that of 2005 and we expect this to grow further in the coming years.

WDA has also made good progress in adult training. Between January 2007 and June 2008, more than 30,000 individuals were upgraded under the Tourism Workforce Skills Qualification (WSQ) programme. These individuals, who represent a good mix of new entrants to and existing workers in the industry, will help meet the needs of the overall industry and the IRs.

Customer service is a requisite for all jobs in these industries. The training programs, whether at the pre-employment or continuing education level, have a core component on the service element. To bring further focus on service excellence, WDA has put in place a Service Excellence Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) framework. This program equips trainees with a comprehensive set of skills and attitudes for operational, supervisory and managerial positions. To date, more than 18,000 workers have been trained under the Service Excellence WSQ framework. WDA targets to train a further 50,000 workers under this framework by 2010.

WDA also recently launched the Certified Service Professional (CSP) programme targeted at new entrants into the hospitality industry. The CSP is a 5-day intensive training programme aimed at developing the service mindset, passion and qualities required of a service professional. This is done through an experiential process involving many real-life tourism-related service applications. Going through scenarios based on real-life workplace practices, such as daily roll calls and dealing with demanding customers, provides a sense of realism to the participants that will shape their expectations of the service sector. WDA targets to train 36,000 workers under the CSP programme by 2010.

Beyond these broad-based programs where the IRs could draw skilled and trained workers, STB is working directly with tourism establishments to meet their specific training needs through the Training Industry Professionals in Tourism (TIP-iT) scheme. In fact, Resorts World at Sentosa (RWS) will be utilizing this scheme to send over 1,300 of their new hires in batches to Genting Highlands and Universal Studios Park for up to 3 months to gain exposure to casino and theme park operations.

SPRING will also be working with the IRs on a Customer Centric Initiative (CCI) to set and maintain high service standards in the resorts. Under the CCI, SPRING will support efforts by the IRs in assessing service levels and identifying service gaps. This can then form the basis for developing service strategies and blueprints to bring about effective and efficient service systems and processes.

With the Government working closely with our industries and the IR operators directly, I am confident that our workforce will be ready with the necessary skills, mindsets and outlook needed to work in the IRs and related areas.