Smaller companies like baby-product outfit Hegen and clothing brand Love, Bonito told TODAY that they, too, have spaces to cater to the needs of breastfeeding mothers — the latter for retail-based employees as well.
But these family-related benefits do come at a cost.
Employers and HR experts say accommodating flexible working arrangements affects productivity, especially for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), who struggle to cope when workers go on extended leave, as it can be a challenge to hire temporary replacements and redistribute workloads.
Ms Carol Tan, the head of HR for the Singapore and Australia branches of one such company, Cigna Healthcare, said that while government funding has gone some ways in subsidising hiring temporary help, the bigger challenge is in finding help with the right skill sets who are, at the same time, willing to take up temporary positions.
Those who have to pick up the slack left by absent colleagues, meanwhile, face burnout.
One advertising executive told TODAY that she experienced an overwhelming period of about three months when two of her colleagues went on maternity leave at around the same time, leaving her to take over their workloads while juggling her own responsibilities simultaneously.
“I was happy to help as welcoming a child is a very special moment in one’s life. But I didn’t realise how much there was to do — it was all too much for one person to handle,” said the 27-year-old who declined to be named as she still works at the same company.
While overcoming these challenges is far from straightforward, experts said the key is to stay ahead of the curve by anticipating such resource constraints and planning ahead, ensuring that the company does not “crumble” when employees go on caregiving or parental leave.
For one, companies can proactively adopt “scalable and tailored” approaches, said Mr Kenji Naito, group chief executive officer of recruitment firm Reeracoen.
These include phased return-to-work programmes, cross-training employees to cover roles during leave periods and using technology to maintain productivity.
Ms Christina Ching, vice-president of HR and communications for Singapore LNG, added it is imperative for employers to manage the energy of those employees who are taking on the workload of their colleagues who are away.
“This means that employers need to be mindful to ensure there are regular pause moments for employees to recharge and reflect,” she said.
SQUARING THE CIRCLE
While companies can adopt such proactive measures, not all experts are convinced that family-friendly policies can take centrestage without having an impact on business operations and competitiveness.
Associate Professor Tan Ern Ser, a sociologist at NUS, believes this delicate balance of policy and productivity is a “zero-sum game”.
Similarly, Mr Kelvin Seah, an adjunct lecturer who is a pioneer member of The Ordinary Dad, a community of stay-home fathers, worries that as work-life balance policies increasingly become the norm, SMEs may start shifting towards hiring primarily singles or foreign talents.
But the more important issue that needs to be tackled is the nation’s long-standing obsession with productivity and global rankings, said Mr Seah, 54.
“We need to ask ourselves, what are we striving so hard for? Can Singapore live to be less efficient, less productive in terms of absolute quantitative measures?
“Because if we can, then we can slow down and breathe — and then maybe family has a chance,” he said.
