Freelancers and SEPs Eligible for Government Paid Leave Scheme and Plans to Increase Awareness and Take-up Rate

Ms See Jinli Jean asked the Minister for Social and Family Development for each year since 2019 (a) what are the numbers of freelancers and self-employed persons who are eligible for each unique Government paid leave scheme, respectively; (b) what are the numbers of persons from this group who have submitted claims yearly for each unique scheme during the same time period, respectively; and (c) how does the Ministry plan to increase (i) awareness and (ii) absolute take-up of the schemes.

Based on household and labour force survey data, we estimate that an average of about 1,500 and 4,100 self-employed mothers and fathers, per year, were eligible for Government-Paid Maternity Leave (GPML) and Government-Paid Paternity Leave (GPPL), respectively, between 2019 and 2022. An average of about 1,000 self-employed mothers and 1,200 self-employed fathers had submitted claims for GPML and GPPL, respectively, over the same period.

We estimate that an average of about 31,100 and 25,300 self-employed parents, per year, were eligible for Government-Paid Child Care Leave (GPCL) and Extended Child Care Leave (ECL), respectively, between 2019 and 2022. An average of about 5,400 and 1,400 self-employed parents had submitted claims for GPCL and ECL, respectively.

The above numbers for self-employed persons include eligible freelancers, as the survey data does not differentiate between the two groups. Freelancers will, similarly, need to have been engaged in a particular trade, business, profession or vocation for a continuous period of at least three months and have lost income from ceasing to be actively engaged during the leave period to be eligible for the Government-paid leave schemes. Data for 2023 is not yet available.

The Government has been working with tripartite partners to raise awareness and take-up of the various Government-Paid parental leave schemes to those eligible, including among self-employed persons and freelancers. For instance, information on these schemes have been disseminated through publicity efforts on Government platforms as well as through our tripartite partners' networks. For those who require more specific advice, we have also partnered with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) to conduct webinars as well as clinics at NTUC's Freelancers and Self-Employed Unit Centre, to guide them through the leave reimbursement process. We will continue our efforts to encourage take-up of our parental leave schemes.