SINGAPORE: A programme to help vulnerable people, such as rough sleepers and those with mental health conditions, will be expanded from July, the SBF Foundation said on Wednesday. SBF Foundation, the social impact arm of Singapore Business Federation SBF, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Singapore Human Resources Institute, e 2 i and Tote Board to provide employability support for four vulnerable groups.
They are rough sleepers, long-term unemployed parents and caregivers of at-risk children, people with mental health conditions and women facing challenges.
Four partners will contribute their resources and expertise to build a more resilient and inclusive local workforce, said the SBF Foundation in a press release.
Over the next three years, the SBF Foundation aims to help 300 people a year from four programme partners - Daughters Of Tomorrow, the Singapore Association for Mental Health, New Hope Community Services and SHINE Children Youth Services.
They will be given personalised aid and dedicated platforms to help them enter or re-enter the workforce, said the SBF Foundation.
This follows its previous support for the employment of homeless people since 2017 and the expansion of its expansion to include unemployed parents of at-risk children in 2020.
A hundred employers have offered jobs to the two vulnerable groups. The partners of the program will address their social-emotional, financial and housing needs.
SBF Foundation will raise $1 million annually for the Employability Fund from the business community. The Fund was started in 2020 with an initial funding of S$800,000 from the SBF Foundation and Tote Board.
The SBF Foundation chairman, Hsieh Fu Hua, said that being employed provides a sense of security, achievement and purpose in life, and we want to bring together our members of the business community to work together to improve the employment prospects for Singapore's more vulnerable workers.
SBF Foundation wants to reach out to 120 employers to take part in Empower Circles to help them understand how to support individuals in challenging circumstances.
Empower Circles was founded in March 2021 and is a peer learning platform that helps promote hiring practices for the business community.