Companies raise concerns over subsidy refund in proposed ELI scheme

Companies oppose the requirement for employers to refund subsidies if employees leave within 12 months

Representatives of companies have raised concerns over the inclusion of a contentious clause in the proposed employment-linked incentive (ELI) scheme. Under two key programmes, employers are required to refund the government-provided subsidy if an employee’s job ends within 12 months of recruitment.

This issue is of import as over 24 million youth are expected to benefit from these schemes, which form the crux of the ELI initiative.

The matter was discussed during a stakeholder consultation with employer associations on September 3, attended by senior officials from the Ministry of Labour & Employment. The government has requested stakeholder