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With the Workplace Fairness Act expected to take effect by end-2027, now is the time for employers to review how they attract and hire talent. In this first part of a two-part series, we look at how job analysis and fair job advertisements can help build a stronger foundation for fair recruitment.
- Written by Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP).
Singapore’s Workplace Fairness Act (WFA), expected to take effect by the end of 2027, will prohibit employers from making adverse employment decisions based on, such as age, sex, and marital status across all stages of employment. These include pre-employment decisions (such as making job offers or inviting candidates for interviews), in-employment decisions (such as performance appraisals and promotions), and end-employment decisions (such as dismissals).
Recruitment is often the first stage where bias or unfairness can arise, sometimes unintentionally through the phrasing of job advertisements or inconsistencies in the hiring process. It is therefore a key focus area for employers preparing for the WFA.
Organisations should act early to adopt or strengthen fair recruitment practices. Reviewing policies, implementing consistent processes, and training those involved in hiring take time and sustained effort. Starting early not only reduces the risk of discriminatory decisions but also strengthen employers’ ability to attract a wider talent pool.
Under the WFA, discrimination may arise where an employer:
- Makes employment decisions that adversely affect an individual based on a protected characteristic.
- Issues or communicates discriminatory instructions or policies relating to employment decisions based on a protected characteristic (such as a policy directing hiring managers to hire only men).
- Publishes a job advertisement or description mentioning a protected characteristic as a requirement, advantage, disadvantage or disqualification for employment.
Employers do not need to start from scratch. For many organisations, preparation may involve reviewing and refining existing practices to ensure hiring decisions are made consistently and based on objective, job-related criteria.
This article outlines practical steps employers can take to strengthen the foundations of fair recruitment in preparation for the WFA and focuses on these two key areas:
Defining job roles to support fair recruitment practices
Recruitment decisions are more likely to become inconsistent or subjective when job roles and requirements are not clearly defined. This can make hiring decisions difficult to justify if challenged.
Conducting a job analysis helps employers develop a clear understanding of the role and its requirements. It also helps ensure that job advertisements and selection criteria are merit-based and support objective and transparent assessment of candidates.
Actions to take:
- Involve managers, supervisors and, where appropriate, employees familiar with the role to develop a clear understanding of the role and its requirements.
- Use a structured job analysis template to define tasks, qualifications, and other job requirements consistently across roles.
Reviewing job advertisements for fair hiring
Once the role duties and requirements are clearly defined, employers can use the information gathered through the job analysis process to draft job advertisements that accurately reflect the role.
Clear and fair job advertisements are an important part of fair recruitment. They help ensure candidates are assessed based on skills, experience and other job-related criteria.
Job advertisements should focus on job-related requirements and avoid words or phrases that may be discriminatory or unintentionally exclude suitable applicants. Common examples of potentially discriminatory phrases include specifying age requirements such as “Age 25 to 30 years old” or requiring language proficiency such as “Proficiency in both written and spoken Chinese and English” without a clear job-related reason.
Actions to take:
- Put in place a clear vetting and approval process before publishing job advertisements.
- Review all advertisements to remove non-job related or potentially discriminatory criteria, in line with the WFA and Tripartite Guidelines on Fair Employment Practices (TGFEP). Protected characteristics should only be included where they are a genuine requirement of the job or necessary to support national objectives.
- Ensure advertisements meet the requirements of the Fair Consideration Framework, including advertising on MyCareersFuture.
Looking ahead
Fair recruitment starts well before a candidate submits an application. By clearly defining job requirements and ensuring job advertisements focus on objective, job-related criteria, employers can strengthen hiring practices while laying the groundwork for WFA readiness.
In part two, we will look at how employers can put these principles into practice in their own organisations, from candidate assessment and structured interviews to recruitment documentation and job offers.
The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices (TAFEP) provides information and resources to help employers and HR professionals keep abreast of HR best practices.
For more resources on fair recruitment in preparation for the WFA, employers may refer to the ‘Fair Recruitment and Selection Handbook’ , the ‘Introduction to Fair Hiring’ e-learning course, and other resources on TAFEP’s one-stop resource page on workplace fairness at tafep.sg.
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