A training grant for persons with disabilities (PWDs) and credits for their employers to offset wages are among measures to be rolled out to enhance the employability of this group of workers.
Announcing this in Parliament on 3 March, Minister of State for Manpower Zaqy Mohamad noted that while three in 10 PWDs aged 15 to 64 have a job, the ministry wants to do more to give them an boost.
One enhancement is to boost the training grant under the Open Door Programme to provide more funding support for employers who send PWDs for training and for PWDs who want to upskill. This programme helps PWDs to enter suitable jobs.
Course fee subsidies under the grant will be raised from 90% to 95% for eligible training courses curated by SG Enable, an agency dedicated to enabling PWDs.
Both unemployed and employed PWDs will receive a training allowance of $6 an hour, up from $4.50 previously. And they will receive another $100 when they complete the course.
Employers of PWDs will also get help to offset up to 20% of the employee’s salary, capped at $400 a month. This comes in the form of a new Enabling Employment Credit, which will replace the existing schemes that are expiring this year.
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Source: The Straits Times, 4 March 2020