by Lim Chong Yah (Nanyang Technological University) & Rosalind Chew (Nanyang Technological University)

This book consists of articles written by twenty authors, including three eminent academicians from Australia and Britain. It provides first-hand information on the National Wages Council (NWC), and its contributions, which includes the promotion of tripartism, as an instrument of economic growth. The book is divided into six parts. Part I introduces the book. Part II provides details about the NWC, its operations and its structure. Part III covers the macroeconomic impact of the NWC, including the impact on productivity, competitiveness, investment and growth. Part IV covers the impact of the NWC on wages and the wage system in Singapore. Part V provides a theoretical perspective on the importance of the NWC to productivity growth and productive efficiency. Part VI takes a look at the incomes policy practice of another country in the region, Australia, which provides a good point of reference for the NWC.

• Introduction:
  • The National Wages Council: A Keynote Address (C Y Lim)
  • The National Wages Council: Themes and Issues (R Chew)
• Structure and Objectives:
  • The National Wages Council: The Politics of Consensus (C Y Lim)
  • The National Wages Council: Targets and Goals (C Y Lim)
  • The National Wages Council: Issues and Initiatives (C Y Lim)
  • A Legal Perspective of the National Wages Council (W L Tan)
• Macroeconomic Impact:
  • Tripartism in Singapore: The National Wages Council (S B Chew & R Chew)
  • Productivity-Wage Linkage and Competitiveness: The Role of the State (S H Lee)
  • Unit Labour Cost, Industrial Restructuring and Productivity Change in Singapore's Manufacturing Sector (Y Cao)
  • Factors Shaping Singapore's Wages and Unemployment and the Role of the National Wages Council (H T Hoon & H L Kee)
  • The National Wages Council, Central Provident Fund and Home Ownership (B N Tay)
  • The National Wages Council and Women in Singapore (Y S Yu-Foo)
  • A Long-Term View of Labour Migration, Foreign Investment and Growth in the Singapore Economy (P J Lloyd)
• Impact on Wages and Wage System:
  • The National Wages Council and The Wage System in Singapore (Y T Then)
  • Output, Employment and Wage Determination in Singapore (R Chew)
  • Remuneration and Older Workers (J G Bauer)
  • Flexiwage and Performance Appraisal in Singapore (I K-H Chew & E S Tan)
  • A Comparison of Occupational Wage Structures in Singapore and Other Countries (D Robinson)
• Theoretical Perspectives:
  • Issues in the Macroeconomic Management of Wages, Competitiveness, Profitability and Productivity in Singapore (K H Tan)
  • Training Costs and Efficiency Wages (Y Wu)
• Consensual Incomes Policy in Australia:
  • Incomes Policies and Wages Outcomes in Australia, 1983 to 1996 (W Hogan & S King)