Question

Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry in view of the feedback on the manpower crunch in the hospitality and food and beverage sectors, what is the Ministry’s assessment on (i) the impact to customer satisfaction or service standards and (ii) the overall impact on our reputation as a business and travel destination.

Written Answer by Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong

1. Singapore’s reputation as a business and travel destination continues to be strong. When compared to nine key competitor cities, Singapore is still among the top travel destinations for both leisure and business travellers, according to STB’s February 2022 Brand Health Survey of Singapore’s top 15 markets. There is a robust pipeline of business and leisure events lined up in Singapore for the rest of 2022. These include the FIND – Design Fair Asia Congress, Food & Hotel Asia and the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.

2. We understand that businesses in the hospitality and F&B sectors are facing challenges as demand surges with the resumption of movement and activities post-COVID. To supplement the tight domestic labour market, we have moved quickly to reopen borders for foreign workers to meet the sectors’ needs.

3. At the same time, we encourage businesses to continue to press on with their efforts in digitalisation and job redesign, as well as raising productivity. This can help them maintain or improve their quality and standards of service. We will continue to work with the hospitality and F&B industries to help them transform so that they not only serve local customers well, but will also welcome back our overseas visitors with quality service, products and experiences.