Parents of S'poreans my age wanted us to be doctors, lawyers & accountants, but AI may disrupt them too: Ng Chee Meng

The forthcoming AI revolution may hold immense opportunity, but there will be inevitable disruption and displacement for workers, said NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng at the St. Gallen Symposium Singapore Forum on Jan. 22.

Just like in the first Industrial Revolution, in Singapore parlance, this means "rice bowls" of workers will be broken, he said.

To head off potential unrest from so much disruption, there must be a fair and just transition to help those affected, Ng added.

Not just blue-collar workers, but doctors and lawyers too

Ng was speaking at the annual forum, addressing various disruptions across the world that will inevitably impact Singaporeans.

One of these forces is the rapid advance of AI and its transformation of the economy.

Ng observed that AI is no longer a "frontier" technology, but a "general-purpose" one, similar to electricity and computing that will affect all sectors of the economy, not just a few.

The labour chief pointed out this means NTUC won't just represent blue-collar workers affected by AI disruption, but white-collar ones as well.

He shared that for Singaporeans his age, their parents encouraged them to take up jobs such as bankers, accountants, doctors and lawyers because they were seen as more secure.

However, they will be at risk of disruption too, thanks to AI.

NTUC will therefore need to champion their interests as well, in a fair manner that can sustain the whole ecosystem.

A fair and just transition

Ng said that such a fair transition must be a critical element in the response to AI disruption, and not just an afterthought.

If it is the latter, a "vicious cycle" will emerge where to to 25 per cent of the population will disown the technology and its possibilities, and the opportunities along with it.

But what will such a transition look like?

Ng pointed to the example of NTUC and its work with its tripartite partners.

They created the Progressive Wage Model (PWM), a Singaporean version of a minimum wage coupled with productivity growth, that increase the salaries of lower-wage workers to help them cope with modern challenges.

The vision set by the tripartite partners is to raise wages for the lower-wage workers to two-thirds of the median wage, through the PWM and other means.

Ng also pointed to the effort by the government to pass the Platform Workers Act to ensure they have CPF contributions, workplace injury compensation and union representation.

In Singapore, seniors are also able to continue working if they so choose, while others benefit from SkillsFuture subsidies and NTUC Company Training Committees.

"All these were designed with a win-win outcome in mind, so when the whole of society progresses, all workers regardless of collar can progress in conjunction," Ng said.

NTUC has been engaging some 40,000 workers in conversation, from the lower rungs up to CEOs for the past three years, to learn about the concerns on the ground, hear out suggestions and avoid blind spots.

Ng feels Singapore has a good chance to succeed if even the lower-level workers feel empowered to have a conversation with the leaders of industry and the future.

Other challenges

In his speech, Ng also covered other "disruptive forces", such as changing and instable geopolitics, shift to de-globalisation and an ageing population.

Singapore will have to navigate these challenges to safeguard its national security, reconsider its economic relevance amidst trade re-alignment and preventing social divisions from pulling society apart.

But this is how Singapore can respond.

Singapore may be a "price-taker" on the international stage due to our small size, but this does not mean it has "no agency" to influence events.

Our ministries advocate the rule of law and work with counterparts in other nations to work in our common interests, with the Singapore Armed Forces as the final guarantor of security.

Ng also encouraged everyone to embrace the disruptions taking place and turning it to our advantage.

"New business models should be encouraged and supported. NTUC supports good businesses.

Employers, institutions and workers themselves must take ownership – redesigning jobs, embedding training into new business models, and planning career pathways early."

If such adaptations can be made successfully and opportunities seized, we can reap rich rewards, much like societies did in the first Industrial Revolution.

Top image from NTUC.