Singapore social service sector pay guidelines up by 5% on average

Pay guidelines rose by an average of 8 per cent in the 2024 financial year, for example.

The move comes amid growing demand for manpower in the sector to address the demands of an ageing population, and new and more complex needs such as mental health and social isolation issues, said the MSF spokesperson.

In 2024, MSF said another 2,000 key social service professionals are needed over the next five years. These include social workers, therapists, counsellors, care staff and psychologists.

The ministry has also adjusted funding for programmes to enable SSAs that it funds to pay their staff according to the latest guidelines.

Since its 2023 financial year, MSF has set aside over $170 million to help SSAs running MSF-funded services to implement salary adjustments.

The ministry’s spokesperson said that SSAs should also review and adjust their operational budgets so they can sustainably meet operational needs.

Over the past three years, MSF and NCSS said they have worked with SSAs to help them adopt the guidelines progressively, and plan to step up such efforts in the next few years.

The SSAs interviewed said that they follow the guidelines or it would be tough for them to attract or retain their staff.

Mr Asher Low, executive director of Limitless, an SSA that provides mental health services for youth, said: “We follow the guidelines as much as we can. It is also much easier to match the starting salaries, though the salaries at reference point can be quite high.”

One challenge faced by smaller organisations like Limitless, which has 31 employees, is that they have to increase salaries of all staff to match the guidelines. This is despite the fact that not all – or even few to none – of their programmes are funded by the MSF.

It would be unfair to remunerate staff differently, whether they are running MSF-funded programmes or not, said Mr Low.

So the charity has to raise funds to cover higher salaries, which can be challenging, he said.

Mr Narasimman Tivasiha Mani, executive director of Impart, said that the charity makes it a priority to follow the guidelines for junior staff and those with more experience. Impart, which supports youth facing adversity, has fewer than 20 employees.

The latest pay guidelines also mean that the salaries of management staff take a hit, as none of Impart’s programmes are funded by the MSF and fund-raising has always been challenging.

Mr Narasimman said his pay is “way below” the recommended $12,680 for heads of agencies managing an organisation with a budget of less than $3 million a year.

Ms Ng Su-Ling, Care Corner Singapore’s director of people and organisation development, said the salary guidelines provide transparency on pay expectations and signal that the social sector is committed to fair and competitive salaries.

“They help to correct the perception that career pathways and progression in social services are limited,” she added.

Ms Ng said that Care Corner, which has more than 570 employees, has aligned its salary structure with the guidelines on a year-on-year basis. 

“While the guidelines are helpful, we recognise that base salary is only one component of overall remuneration. There is a risk that employees or job candidates may draw conclusions based solely on monthly salary figures, without considering the total annual compensation package, benefits, organisational culture, values alignment, and the nature of the role itself,” she said.

“A more holistic view is often needed to make fair assessments on pay parity.”