NEA approves LTVP holders as hawker assistants to address labour shortages

Productivity programs were launched to reduce labour dependency.

The National Environment Agency (NEA) has announced a new initiative to address ongoing manpower shortages in Singapore’s hawker sector, an issue worsened by the pandemic.

From January 1, 2025, hawker stall owners will be allowed to employ Long Term Visit Pass (LTVP) holders with Letters of Consent as stall assistants, according to the  National Environment Agency (NEA).

Dr. Xu Le, Lecturer in the Department of Strategy and Policy at NUS Business School, noted that the new initiative will address ongoing manpower shortages in Singapore’s hawker sector, an issue worsened by the pandemic. 

“The hawker sector has been facing the tightened manpower and manpower shortage problems for a long time, and the reasons [are] because the locals have less interest in this industry,” she explained.

This new policy is part of a broader push by NEA to mitigate labour dependency in the hawker sector, which has also seen the rollout of productivity programs designed to encourage automation.

“The proposal is quite important because it can provide an immediate solution to the manpower shortage problem,” Dr. Xu said. This added workforce, he added, would give hawkers a wider pool of potential employees, allowing them to keep costs manageable and prices reasonable for consumers.

While the policy is expected to benefit hawkers, the successful integration of LTVP holders into the workforce will depend on additional factors such as training and support. Dr. Xu pointed out that hawker stall owners will likely need to provide on-the-job training and resources for LTVP hires to ensure smooth operations and high service quality.

“It really depends on what kind of training and support they are going to provide to this [group],” she said. “Usually, the hawker store owners will have to provide certain support, as well as the training.”

Aside from training, NEA has encouraged stall owners to explore automation solutions to further streamline their operations. Technology adoption, combined with new labour sources, is expected to increase operational efficiency and reduce overall labour dependency, which could, in turn, lower operational costs and improve profit margins.