Singapore employers must act now to prepare for the Workplace Fairness legislation and other compliance risks
The second half of 2025 and beyond marks a turning point in Singapore’s employment law landscape, with major legal shifts on the horizon that could carry lasting consequences for employers and HR professionals. Among these, the upcoming Workplace Fairness legislation (WFL) could create significant legal challenges, according to Toh Wei Yi, partner at Harry Elias Partnership.
The legislation, passed in parliament in January, will take effect in 2026 or 2027, and hold employers to a high standard.
“The WFL requires the employer to ensure that there are no discriminatory practices at all stages of employment,” Wei Yi explains. “The WFL presents the potential for increased complaints of discrimination by employees, which would also amount to breach of the WFL.”
This law covers everything from recruitment and promotion to termination decisions. HR leaders are expected to rethink how their organizations make and document employment decisions. Wei Yi warns that one of the most common missteps employers will make is poor documentation.
“Since the prohibition of workplace discrimination covers all stages of employment, including in-employment (promotion, performance appraisal), employers may need to consider and refine how decisions are made even in the in-employment stage,” Wei Yi says. “The decisions and reasons for the decision should be properly documented so as to be able to withstand scrutiny in the event of a challenge by an employee.”
“We expect that the sufficiency of records and documents may be a problem for employers, in terms of documenting their reasons for recruitment, in-employment and termination decisions. Without good records, employers may face difficulties defending any claims of discrimination by its employee or former employee.”
In the face of these demands, companies should act now. Employers can start by drawing up or improving internal policies addressing what is appropriate workplace conduct. They can also look to refine their processes for record keeping to determine what is the most efficient method of documenting employment decisions, Wei Yi says.
Work Injury Compensation Act
Other legislation also looms large in the second half of 2025. The Work Injury Compensation Act 2019 (WICA) is set to raise the financial stakes for employers significantly starting November 1.
The maximum compensation for work-related death will rise from S$225,000 to S$269,000, while compensation for permanent incapacity will jump from S$289,000 to S$346,000, and failing to act in time could create major compliance headaches.
“This will inevitably result in higher costs to employers, who should review their WICA insurance coverage before November 1, 2025, in order to be ready to comply with the legislative revision when they take effect,” she explains.
“Employers may not complete the review of their insurance coverage in time, which may lead to them not being able to comply with the amended legislation come November.”
Tripartite guidelines
Meanwhile, a separate but closely watched development may hit employment contracts across the country. In 2024, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) announced its intention to release guidelines on restraint of trade clauses. Those guidelines have not yet been published but could still appear in the second half of 2025.
“Whilst these are not legislation, these tripartite guidelines are an important part of the employment law landscape and employers are expected to comply with these guidelines,” Wei Yi says.
Though the content of the guidelines remains unknown, employers should brace for a potential shift.
“We can generally assume that employers may need to reconsider the scope of the ROT clauses in their employment contracts, having regard to the characteristics of the employee in question,” she adds.
Meanwhile, the Tripartite Guidelines for Flexible Work Arrangements (FWA), which took effect on 1 December 2024, now require employers to handle employee requests for flexible arrangements more transparently.
“Employers are expected to comply with them to establish a procedure for employees to submit their requests for FWA,” Wei Yi says. “Employers therefore have to establish an internal procedure for its employees to submit these FWA requests, for the consideration of each request and the reasons justifying the decision made in respect of the request,” she adds.
Platform Workers Act
In parallel, HR teams continue grappling with legislation that has already taken effect in 2025. The Platform Workers Act 2024 came into force on January 1, creating new responsibilities for platform operators.
The Act establishes three main obligations: CPF contributions from both operators and workers, financial compensation for work injuries, and legal recognition of platform worker representation. These duties come with technical and administrative burdens that platform operators must navigate or risk falling out of compliance.
“Platform operators will need to set up the interface with CPF Board to enable contributions to be made and purchase work injury compensation insurance for platform workers,” Wei Yi h says. “They will also need to set up processes for injury reporting to the Ministry of Manpower and maintain detailed records of platform workers they have entered into a platform work agreement with.”
2026 and beyond
Looking ahead, there are signs that Singapore’s regulatory regime may broaden further. Toh points to international trends as potential indicators of future change.
“It may be possible, in future, for an extension of the protection against discrimination to characteristics such as sexual orientation and gender identity, which is already present in other countries,” she says. “It is also possible that the future workplace discrimination law may develop to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on an employee’s requested work arrangement.”
That makes anticipation, not just reaction, a strategic priority for HR leaders.
“Given the extensive provision of the WFL, it is advisable for employers to start drawing up or improving its internal policies addressing what is appropriate workplace conduct, and refining their processes for record keeping,” Wei Yi says.
