SMRT partners NTUC and NTWU to uplift 20,000 public transport contract workers with higher wages and safer jobs

Around 20,000 workers contracted to support the public transport system will soon have higher wages, safer workplaces, and career advancement.

SMRT Corporation forged a partnership on 31 October 2025 with NTUC and the National Transport Workers’ Union (NTWU) to uplift its contractors and their workers, given that many of them face limited access to training and opportunities.

Under the agreement, SMRT will be the first public transport operator appointed as a Queen Bee for the next three years, empowering its network of contractors to embrace technology, enhance workforce capabilities, and strengthen safety and rail reliability.

Singapore’s rail sector is on track for strong growth, with local network expansion plans in place from 2026 to the 2030s, such as the Jurong Region Line Stage 1, the Downtown Line extension (DTL), and the opening of the Cross Island Line, Singapore’s eighth MRT line. Additionally, the first Singapore Rapid Transit (RTS) Link train is expected to begin passenger service by December 2026.

With these developments, the Queen Bee partnership is timely as it effectively enables the simultaneous advancement of more workers’ careers. It also positions SMRT, one of the rail operators on the Rail Reliability Taskforce, to contribute to tackling rail reliability and service disruptions as the taskforce submits its final recommendations by the end of this year.

Empowering workers within the public transport network

With NTUC’s support through the partnership, over 200 SMEs within SMRT’s contractor network will be introduced to the NTUC Company Training Committee (CTC) initiative and the CTC Grant.

These SMEs can now look forward to NTUC CTCs to strategise their training and upskilling plans, and NTUC CTC Grants for up to 70 per cent funding for productivity projects.

Ultimately, workers in these SMEs will benefit from higher productivity and redesigned jobs, leading to wage increases, career progression, and safer workplaces.

“What NTUC is innovating beyond the Company Training Committees is what we call a cluster Company Training Committee to access new possibilities that NTUC did not outreach before,” said NTUC Secretary-General Ng Chee Meng, who witnessed the signing of the landmark agreement.

“By leveraging the CTC initiative, we are enabling industry leaders like SMRT to spearhead sector-wide transformation and upskilling, benefitting up to 20,000 workers across the public transport ecosystem.

“This will ultimately lead to better safety and reliability for commuters, and better wages, skills and jobs for our workers,” Mr Ng added.

Over 3,700 NTUC CTCs have been formed to date across different industries in Singapore, with more than 10,000 workers benefiting from higher salaries and career prospects through various CTC projects.

NTUC Assistant Secretary-General and NTWU Executive Secretary Yeo Wan Ling added that the collaboration focuses on enabling contractors in the public transport sector, who are often underserved.

“Hence, it is very important for us to ensure that we allocate sufficient resources to ensure that all parts of this ecosystem are adequately funded and resourced, especially when it comes to looking at what our workers would need.

“This would include upskilling and better career planning. And with all of these, we hope that this will enable us to deliver better productivity,” she said.

Enabling contractors to thrive in a competitive landscape

With NTWU’s support, the partnership will also see SMRT impart its established Kaizen philosophy of continuous improvement to its contractors. To date, the company has set up three Kaizen learning centres and trained 163 participants from 65 companies. Kaizen is a Japanese business philosophy that emphasises making small changes over time to drive goals within a company, such as greater efficiency, higher quality, and less waste.

Through the collaboration, the rail operator will also share its Safety Culture 3.0 approach with its SME network. Around 35 safety initiatives and regular forums will be gradually introduced to their contractors to share best practices and raise safety awareness.

“This MOU [Memoranda of Understanding] marks a key milestone in strengthening industry performance and safety standards across the sector. By empowering them [our contractors] to adopt new technologies and raise standards, we can further enhance the safety and overall performance of Singapore’s public transport,” SMRT Chairman Seah Moon Ming said.

A strong advocate of the union, SMRT will also share the benefits of union support with its contractor base. Currently, around 70 per cent of the company’s employees are union members.

“Many smaller companies may not fully see the benefits of unionisation. Yet, strong union partnerships help retain talent, protect workers, and gain access to NTUC training and support.

“This MOU includes developing a playbook for effective labour-management relations,” Mr Seah elaborated.

SMRT suppliers welcomed the Queen Bee collaboration. TNT Surveillance Pte Ltd Director Joshua Tan shared that his company is looking ahead to the workforce development and structured upskilling to elevate safety and operational performance. The company is also keen on the NTUC CTC initiative and the NTUC CTC Grant.

NSL OilChem Waste Management Pte Ltd Executive Director Jeffrey Fung said that his company has already participated in a few of SMRT’s Kaizen safety initiatives and is now looking forward to finding out more about the CTC initiative.

The Singapore transport operator is also leveraging artificial intelligence to improve operational efficiency. Their in-house AI-enabled decision support system, known as Overwatch, enhances situational awareness and operational reliability, thereby improving service recovery response times. NTUC, SMRT and NTWU will continue to explore such technologies to enhance worker and business transformation.

Want to take your business and workforce transformation to the next level? Find out more about the NTUC Company Training Committee initiative today.