Singapore

Organization responsible for the statistics

The statistics are collected, compiled and published by the Ministry of Labour.

Objectives and users

Not available.

Coverage

Strikes and lockouts

The statistics cover: The statistics do not cover unofficial strikes, sympathetic strikes, political or protest strikes or lockouts, or action such as working to rule, go-slows, overtime bans or sit-ins.

Minimum threshold None.

Economic activities

No particular branches of economic activity or sectors are excluded.

Workers

Workers directly involved only. The statistics cover regular paid employees only, including workers absent on sick or annual leave. Temporary, casual and seasonal workers, part-time workers, unpaid family workers and workers laid off are not included.

No particular occupational groups are excluded.

Geographic areas

Whole country.

Types of data collected

Concepts and definitions

Work stoppage

A temporary work stoppage effected by a group or groups of workers without the involvement of a trade union of employees.

This is a working definition for statistical purposes.

Strike (industrial stoppage)

The cessation of work by a body of workmen employed in any trade, industry or calling acting in combination, or a concerted refusal, or a refusal under a common understanding of any number of workmen who are or have been so employed to continue to work or to accept employment.

Lockout

The closing of a place of employment or the suspension of work or the refusal by an employer to continue to employ any number of persons employed by him in consequence of a dispute, done with a view to compelling those persons, or to aid another employer in compelling persons employed by him, to accept terms or conditions of or affecting employment.

These definitions come from the Trade Unions Act.

Methods of measurement

Strikes and lockouts

The basic unit of measurement used to record a strike is the case of dispute. The resumption of a strike that was interrupted but later resumes, still due to the same case of dispute, is considered to be the continuation of the same strike.

Work stoppages arising from the same case of dispute, occurring simultaneously or at different times, if continuous within the same period, in different establishments or local workplaces of the same enterprise are counted as one strike. Those resulting from the same case of dispute but occurring simultaneously or at different times in establishments or local workplaces of different enterprises are counted according to the number of different enterprises involved.

Workers involved

The number of workers involved is the maximum number of workers that took part during the course of the strike, even if some workers participated for only part of the duration.

Duration

The duration is measured in workdays from the date the strike began in the first economic unit involved up to the date it terminated in the last one.

Time not worked

Total time not worked is measured in workdays as the product of the number of workers involved and the duration. Overtime is not taken into consideration.

Classifications

Cause of dispute

(principal causes)

Reference period and periodicity

The statistics are compiled and published for periods of a year. They refer to strikes beginning during the particular reference period plus those continuing from the previous period.

Analytical measures

None.

Historical background of the series

Not available.

Documentation

Series available

Not available.

Bibliogrpahic references

Ministry of Labour: Year Book of Labour Statistics;

Idem: Annual Report.

Data published by the ILO

The number of strikes and lockouts, the number of workers involved and the number of days not worked, by economic activity.

Confidentiality

Not available.

International standards

Not available.

Methods of data collection

There is no legal obligation to report the occurrence of a strike. Information on strikes is obtained through an informal tripartite information network.

Publications