SINGAPORE: “Can employees in Singapore get dismissed without a reason?” A Singaporean worker recently asked this question online after seeing his friend experience it firsthand.
Posting on r/askSingapore, a Reddit forum, on Tuesday (Dec 24), the worker explained that his friend was unexpectedly handed a termination letter with immediate notice, leaving him blindsided.
The lack of a clear reason for the dismissal made the situation even more puzzling. The letter reportedly contained just one brief line: ‘Sorry, we must let you go.’
“It’s not a retrenchment but termination,” he added. “WOW, the employee did nothing wrong and can get terminated this way.”
The worker also wondered if this was an isolated incident or part of a broader trend among employers. “Are employees so vulnerable these days? I pity my friend because he is an honest and hardworking person with family commitments,” he said.
“This termination resulted in him not getting any year-end bonus or benefit, and he might only get a new job after CNY.”
“It’s the same when you resign. You don’t tell why you resign; you just submit a resignation letter…”
In the discussion thread, Singaporean Redditors explained to the worker that employers in Singapore can, in fact, terminate employees without giving a reason as long as they follow the right procedures outlined in the Employment Act.
One Redditor said, “A company can terminate without specifying a reason just like an employee doesn’t need to say why they are quitting. But they must give notice or salary in lieu of the notice period. That is, I pay you out the 1 month notice period, and we terminate today.”
Another commented, “It’s the same when you resign. You don’t tell why you resign; You just submit a resignation letter and serve your notice period or pay your notice period to the company if you want to leave asap.”
Still, a few encouraged the friend to approach the employer directly and ask for an explanation. One Redditor said, “They can terminate you without reason, but it’s your right to ask why. And, of course, ask for compensation.”
Either party can terminate a contract
The Ministry of Manpower (MoM) states that employees and employers have the right to end a contract, but they must follow the terms set in the contract for the termination to be valid.
This means that if either party decides to end the employment, they must stick to the proper procedures, such as giving the required notice or paying compensation if needed.
Regarding dismissals with notice, employers are not obligated to provide a reason, as per CMS law.
However, if the dismissal is due to poor performance and the employer fires the employee without notice, they must provide a valid reason for the termination. Failing to do so could result in a wrongful dismissal.
For dismissals due to misconduct, employers must present evidence and conduct an inquiry where the employee can share their side before making the final decision.
Other situations can make a dismissal wrongful, such as if it’s based on discrimination (age, race, gender, religion, marital status, family responsibilities, or disability) or if it’s used to strip an employee of entitlements or benefits (like maternity leave).
Dismissals can also be wrongful if an employee is fired for exercising their rights, like after filing a claim with the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) regarding salary issues.
In these cases, employees can file a wrongful dismissal claim with TADM within one month of their last day of employment.
Read also: Jobless Singaporean says it’s harder to find a job in SG than in UK
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