Take-up Rate of Volunteer Leave by Public Service Employees and Private Sector Companies Offering Such Leave and Their Take-up Rate

Debated in Parliament on 14 Feb 2022.

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The Minister reported that public service employees can use one day of volunteer leave annually, with hundreds taking it pre-COVID-19 and a decline during the pandemic, while additional volunteerism occurs through agency-organized activities.
For the private sector, a 2021 study found about 29% of surveyed companies offered paid volunteer leave, with an average take-up rate of 42% among employees at those companies.
The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre promotes corporate volunteerism and plans to release further findings in March 2022, while public sector volunteer efforts continue under initiatives like SG Cares and PS Cares.

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Chua Kheng Wee Louis

Mr Chua Kheng Wee Louis asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth (a) what is the take-up rate of volunteer leave by public service employees; (b) whether the Ministry has any data on the number of private sector companies that offer volunteer leave to their staff and the take-up rate for such companies; and (c) if so, what are they respectively.

Edwin Tong Chun Fai

As part of the national SG Cares movement, MCCY has been working closely with the Public Service Division (PSD) to champion staff volunteerism in all public sector agencies. Civil servants can utilise one day of volunteer leave to volunteer in any local charity with an Institution of Public Character status. This is an additional provision over and above their vacation leave. The yearly average take-up for volunteer leave by civil servants prior to COVID-19 was in the hundreds, although this figure has decreased during the COVID-19 period. However, the extent of volunteerism among officers goes beyond this as officers have been volunteering through activities organised by their agencies under the Public Service Cares initiative (PS Cares).

PS Cares provides officers the platform to engage and serve the community without the need for them to take leave. For example, in 2020 and 2021, about 4,350 officers volunteered in COVID-19 operation roles, including going door-to-door to help seniors register for vaccinations and supporting the mobile vaccination teams.

The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre (NVPC) promotes volunteerism in the corporate sector. As part of the Company of Good (COG) programme developed by NVPC, COG members are encouraged to put in place policies, such as paid volunteer leave, to promote corporate giving.

From the Corporate Giving Study 2021 conducted by NVPC, approximately 29% of the 1,014 companies surveyed had paid volunteer leave provisions for staff 1. For companies reported to have paid volunteer leave provisions, an average of 42% of the company's employees utilised volunteer leave. NVPC will be releasing the findings from the study in March 2022.

Summary written by AI (learn more)

The Minister reported that public service employees can use one day of volunteer leave annually, with hundreds taking it pre-COVID-19 and a decline during the pandemic, while additional volunteerism occurs through agency-organized activities.
For the private sector, a 2021 study found about 29% of surveyed companies offered paid volunteer leave, with an average take-up rate of 42% among employees at those companies.
The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre promotes corporate volunteerism and plans to release further findings in March 2022, while public sector volunteer efforts continue under initiatives like SG Cares and PS Cares.

Questions identified by AI (learn more)

Take-up Rate of Volunteer Leave by Public Service Employees and Private Sector Companies Offering Such Leave and Their Take-up Rate | PAPERCUTS

Take-up Rate of Volunteer Leave by Public Service Employees and Private Sector Companies Offering Such Leave and Their Take-up Rate

Debated in Parliament on 14 Feb 2022.

Summary written by AI (learn more)

The Minister reported that public service employees can use one day of volunteer leave annually, with hundreds taking it pre-COVID-19 and a decline during the pandemic, while additional volunteerism occurs through agency-organized activities.
For the private sector, a 2021 study found about 29% of surveyed companies offered paid volunteer leave, with an average take-up rate of 42% among employees at those companies.
The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre promotes corporate volunteerism and plans to release further findings in March 2022, while public sector volunteer efforts continue under initiatives like SG Cares and PS Cares.

Questions identified by AI (learn more)

Full Transcript

Chua Kheng Wee Louis

Edwin Tong Chun Fai

Summary written by AI (learn more)

The Minister reported that public service employees can use one day of volunteer leave annually, with hundreds taking it pre-COVID-19 and a decline during the pandemic, while additional volunteerism occurs through agency-organized activities.
For the private sector, a 2021 study found about 29% of surveyed companies offered paid volunteer leave, with an average take-up rate of 42% among employees at those companies.
The National Volunteer and Philanthropy Centre promotes corporate volunteerism and plans to release further findings in March 2022, while public sector volunteer efforts continue under initiatives like SG Cares and PS Cares.

Questions identified by AI (learn more)

Take-up Rate of Volunteer Leave by Public Service Employees and Private Sector Companies Offering Such Leave and Their Take-up Rate

Summary

Questions Identified

Full Transcript

Chua Kheng Wee Louis

Edwin Tong Chun Fai

Summary

Questions Identified

Take-up Rate of Volunteer Leave by Public Service Employees and Private Sector Companies Offering Such Leave and Their Take-up Rate

Summary

Questions Identified

Full Transcript

Chua Kheng Wee Louis

Edwin Tong Chun Fai

Summary

Questions Identified