On 19 July 2026, the Ministry of Manpower (“MOM“) announced that the minimum annual leave entitlement for outsourced workers covered by the Progressive Wage Model (“PWM“) will be increased from seven days to ten days. This change will support approximately 60% of outsourced workers across five PWM sectors (Cleaning, Security, Landscape, Lift and Escalator and Waste Management).
Current Issue
Under the Employment Act, employees are currently entitled to a minimum of seven days of annual leave. This increases by one day per year of service, up to a maximum of 14 days.
Outsourced workers are employed and deployed by their employer (i.e. the service provider) to work at the premises of a client company under an outsourcing contract. When there is a change in service provider, outsourced PWM workers may be rehired by the incoming service provider to work in the same role or location. However, as a matter of common practice in the five sectors mentioned above, their annual leave entitlement will be reset to the minimum seven days.
Addressing the Issue
In raising the minimum leave entitlement for outsourced PWM workers to ten days, with the concurrence of tripartite partners, MOM seeks to ensure that such workers receive leave entitlements that better reflect their continuous years of service. This will also help safeguard their employment conditions when their employers are changed.
The higher baseline leave entitlement is intended to help further professionalise outsourced PWM sectors, many of which deliver essential services, by improving worker retention and service continuity.
Implementation
To give businesses sufficient time to adjust, the increase will be implemented progressively from 2029 onwards. The specific implementation timeline will be discussed by the respective sectoral Tripartite Clusters, with further details to be shared closer to the implementation date.
For existing outsourced employees, the new minimum should not affect the annual increase in leave that outsourced employees are currently entitled to under the Employment Act. Workers who already receive leave benefits above this new minimum should continue to receive them.
Click the following link for more information:
- MOM Press Release titled “Government to Raise Leave Entitlement For Outsourced Progressive Wage Model Workers From 7 Days to 10 Days” (available on the MOM website at www.mom.gov.sg)
If you have any queries on the above, please reach out to our Team set out on this page.
For regional Employment matters, please see Rajah & Tann Asia’s Employment Practice for more information.
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