Freelancers and Self-employed Workers in Workforce

Mr Ang Hin Kee asked the Minister for Manpower (a) how many freelancers and self-employed workers are there currently in the workforce; (b) what is the number of freelancers and self-employed workers that make regular contributions to their MediSave accounts; and (c) whether the Work Injury Compensation Act can be extended to workers who are freelancers and self-employed.

As of June 2015, 300,500 or 14% of 2,147,800 employed residents were self-employed persons (SEPs). Of these SEPs, 169,500 or 8% of employed residents were own account workers who operate their own business or trade without employing any paid worker.

Today, SEPs are required to contribute to their MediSave accounts so as to save for their healthcare needs. As of December 2015, 82% of SEPs have made regular contributions to their MediSave accounts. To encourage more SEPs to make timely and regular MediSave contributions, the Central Provident Fund (CPF) Board reaches out to SEPs via annual mailers and road shows and allows SEPs to make their MediSave contributions via instalments. CPF Board also works with various licensing authorities to ensure that self-employed licensees make regular MediSave contributions.

The Work Injury Compensation Act (WICA) requires employers to compensate their employees who have work-related injuries. As self-employed persons operate their own business or trade, there is no employer-employee relationship between them and their clients. As such, they are not covered under WICA. Nonetheless, we encourage self-employed persons to purchase adequate insurance to protect themselves in the event of a work injury. I am heartened to note that the National Trades Union Congress' Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit has been engaging various freelancer groups, such as taxi drivers and sports coaches, on this matter.