Singapore links career health, reskilling and job redesign in new SWDA-SMRT workforce partnership

Singapore’s Skills and Workforce Development Agency (SWDA) has formalised a partnership with SMRT to strengthen career development, reskilling and workforce transformation as businesses navigate technological change and slower workforce growth.

Speaking at the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on September 4, Senior Parliamentary Secretary Shawn Huang said Singapore’s continued economic success would depend on how effectively businesses and workers adapt to changing technology, evolving business models and demographic pressures.

“Employers are central to this effort,” Huang said, stressing the need for businesses to invest in their people, redesign jobs and build skills aligned with emerging workforce needs.

The partnership is among the first formal collaborations SWDA is establishing with key industry players following the agency’s formation. It is designed to bring workforce development closer to business transformation while creating more opportunities for employees to reskill and progress in their careers.

Under the MOU, SWDA and SMRT will strengthen career support through SWDA’s Career Advisory Programme, which provides personalised guidance to employees navigating career progression or transitions. The two organisations will also support mid-career workers seeking to reskill through Career Conversion Programmes (CCPs) and explore further opportunities for workforce transformation and job redesign.

The partnership will also use SMRT’s island-wide media network to share information with Singaporeans on career health, skills development and lifelong learning.

Huang highlighted CCPs as an important pathway for workers seeking to move into new industries and roles. Since 2016, SMRT has onboarded more than 750 CCP participants, including workers who moved into the rail sector from manufacturing, wholesale trade and the built environment.

Among them is Ng Kim Guan, an assistant station manager at Siglap station who previously worked as a taxi driver. He joined the CCP in 2023 and received training in rail operations, railway safety, train operations and commuter service. He subsequently contributed to preparations for the opening of Siglap station in June 2024 and now also serves as a Service Champion at SMRT.

Another example is Siti Aisha, an assistant station manager at Shenton Way station, who transitioned from the security industry into rail operations through the CCP. After more than three years with SMRT, she has progressed in her career while contributing to commuter safety and daily rail operations.

According to Huang, such transitions demonstrate how partnerships between government and employers can help address manpower needs while giving workers opportunities to acquire skills for new careers.

The partnership builds on SMRT’s wider role in workforce capability development. As a former SkillsFuture Queen Bee, the company worked with the Singapore Institute of Technology to introduce Kaizen practices to 70 enterprises.

Beyond supporting individual workers, SWDA is also providing broader workforce transformation assistance to businesses. Its Enterprise Workforce Transformation Package supports employers in areas including job redesign, worker training and workforce transformation initiatives.

For individuals, SWDA provides career guidance, skills upgrading and job transition support. Its CCPs are intended to help workers reskill for new or redesigned roles while helping employers build talent pipelines aligned with evolving business requirements.

Huang said workforce transformation would require strong leadership from businesses and called on more industry leaders to take an active role in capability building.

The SWDA-SMRT partnership therefore points to a broader approach to workforce development in Singapore, where reskilling is being linked with career mobility, job redesign and business transformation rather than treated solely as a training exercise.