The Tripartite Cluster for Retail industry’s recommendation aims to raise wages, strengthen career progression and support skills upgrading for resident retail workers
[SINGAPORE] A new set of progressive wage model (PWM) recommendations for the retail sector were announced by the Tripartite Cluster for Retail (TCR) industry on Monday (Aug 11).
The recommendations will mean that retail workers will have a PWM wage increase of at least S$130 from when the new recommendations take effect on Sep 1.
The PWM recommendations were first unveiled in 2022, which had set a three-year schedule of sustained PWM wage increases till 2024. They were submitted by the tripartite partners – the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), Ministry of Manpower and the Singapore National Employers Federation.
These recommendations aim to raise wages, strengthen career progression and support skills upgrading for retail workers in Singapore. They will cover more than 53,000 retail workers on the island.
Enhancements include improvements to the PWM wage schedule, career ladder and training requirements. For example, the recommended PWM baseline gross wages for a full-time retail assistant will rise from S$2,175 to S$2,305 per month as at Sep 1, 2025, to S$2,435 the year after and S$2,565 from September 2027.
Job roles and descriptions across the retail PWM have also been recommended to be refined, incorporating aspects such as the expectation of an increased use of digital tools. The TCR also recommended an expansion of the approved workforce skills qualification training modules.
TCR chair and NTUC assistant secretary-general Yeo Wan Ling said: “As the retail sector transforms and faces headwinds, so must our approach to helping our retail workers adapt and make progress in their career and wages.”
The recommendations come amid falling footfall for brick-and-mortar shops as e-commerce and overseas retail competition intensifies, said an NTUC statement. They also arrive before the launch of the Johor Bahru-Singapore rapid transit system link in December 2026. The fast shuttle link between the two cities will make it more convenient for Singapore residents capitalising on the ringgit exchange rate to shop in Johor Bahru.
Retail businesses are also facing rising operational costs, manpower shortages, and evolving customer expectations driven by omni-channel shopping behaviours, said the statement.
Share with us your feedback on BT’s products and services