Fixation of salary period 20.
—(1)
An
employer may fix periods, which for the purpose of this Act shall
be called salary periods, in respect of which salary earned shall
be payable.
(2)
No salary period shall exceed one month.
(3)
In the absence of a salary period so
fixed the salary period shall be deemed to be one month.
Computation of salary for incomplete
month’s work 20A.
—(1)
If
a monthly-rated employee has not completed a whole month of service
because —
(a)
he commenced employment after the first
day of the month;
(b)
his employment was terminated before
the end of the month;
(c)
he took leave of absence without pay
for one or more days of the month; or
(d)
he took leave of absence to perform
his national service under the Enlistment Act,
Cap. 93.
36/95.
the salary due to him for that month
shall be calculated in accordance with the following formula:
Monthly gross rate of
pay
x
Number of days the employee actually worked
in that month.
Number of days on which the employee
is required to work in that month
(2)
In calculating the number of days actually
worked by an employee in a month under subsection (1), any day on
which an employee is required to work for 5 hours or less under
his contract of service shall be regarded as half a day.
Time of payment 21.
—(1)
Salary
earned by an employee under a contract of service, other than additional
payments for overtime work, shall be paid before the expiry of the
7th day after the last day of the salary period in respect of which
the salary is payable.
21/84.
(2)
Additional payments for overtime work
shall be paid not later than 14 days after the last day of the salary
period during which the overtime work was performed.
21/84.
(3)
The total salary due to an employee
on completion of his contract of service shall be paid to him on
completion of the contract.
Payment on dismissal 22.
Subject
to the provisions of this Act, the total salary and any sum due
to an employee who has been dismissed shall be paid on the day of
dismissal or, if this is not possible, within 3 days thereafter,
not being a rest day or public or other holiday.
Payment on termination by employee 23.
—(1)
Subject
to the provisions of this Act, the total salary due to an employee who
terminates his contract of service with his employer under section
11 or after giving due notice to the employer as required under
section 10 shall be paid to him on the day on which the contract
of service is terminated.
(2)
Subject to the provisions of this Act,
the total salary due to an employee who terminates his contract
of service without giving prior notice to his employer as required
under section 10, or, if notice has already been given under that
section, but the employee terminates his contract of service without
waiting for the expiry of the notice, shall be paid to him before
the expiry of the 7th day after the day on which he terminates his
contract of service.
(3)
The employer may, subject to any order
made by a court or the Commissioner to the contrary, deduct from
the salary due to the employee such sum as the employee is liable
to pay in lieu of prior notice under section 11 (1).
Income tax clearance 24.
—(1)
Notwithstanding
sections 22 and 23, no payment of salary or any other sum due to
an employee on termination
of service shall be made to the employee by the employer without
the permission of the Comptroller of Income Tax under section 68
(7) of the Income Tax Act.
Cap. 134.
(2)
The
employer shall forthwith give notice of the termination of service to the Comptroller of Income Tax and
the payment of the salary or other sum due to the employee shall
not be delayed more than 30 days after such notice has been given
to and received by the Comptroller of Income Tax.
Payment to be made during working hours 25.
—(1)
Payment
of salary shall be made on a working day and during working hours
at the place of work or at any other place agreed to between the
employer and the employee.
(2)
Subsection (1) shall not apply where
the salary is paid into an account with a bank in Singapore, being
an account in the name of the employee or an account in the name
of the employee jointly with one or more other persons.
21/84.
No unauthorised deductions to be made 26.
No
deductions other than deductions authorised under the provisions
of this Act shall be made by an employer from the salary of an employee
unless they are required to be made by order of a court or other
authority competent to make such order.
Authorised deductions 27.
—(1)
The
following deductions may be made from the salary of an employee:
(a)
deductions for absence from work;
(b)
deductions for damage to or loss of
goods expressly entrusted to an employee for custody or for loss
of money for which an employee is required to account, where the
damage or loss is directly attributable to his neglect or default;
(c)
deductions for the actual cost of meals
supplied by the employer at the request of the employee;
(d)
deductions for house accommodation
supplied by the employer;
(e)
deductions for such amenities and services
supplied by the employer as the Commissioner may authorise;
(f)
deductions for recovery of advances
or loans or for adjustment of over-payments of salary;
(g)
deductions for income tax payable by
the employee;
(h)
deductions of contributions payable
by an employer on behalf of an employee under and in accordance
with the provisions of the Central Provident Fund Act;
Cap. 36.
(i)
deductions made at the request of the
employee for the purpose of a superannuation scheme or provident
fund or any other scheme which is lawfully established for the benefit
of the employee and is approved by the Commissioner;
(j)
deductions made with the written consent
of the employee and paid by the employer to any cooperative society
registered under any written law for the time being in force in
respect of subscriptions, entrance fees, instalments of loans, interest
and other dues payable by the employee to such society; and
(k)
any other deductions which may be approved
from time to time by the Minister.
(2)
For the purposes of subsection (1)
(e), “services” does not include
the supply of tools and raw materials required for the purposes
of employment.
Deductions for absence 28.
—(1)
Deductions
may be made under section 27 (1) (a) only on
account of the absence of an employee from the place where, by the
terms of his employment, he is required to work, the absence being
for the whole or any part of the period during which he is so required
to work.
(2)
The amount of any deduction referred
to in subsection (1) shall in no case bear to the salary payable
at the gross rate of pay to the employee in respect of the salary period
for which the deduction is made a larger proportion than the period
for which he was absent bears to the total period, within such salary
period, during which he was required to work by the terms of his
employment, and in the case of a monthly-rated employee the amount
of deduction in respect of any one day shall be the gross rate of
pay for one day’s work.
36/95.
(3)
If any employee absents himself from
work otherwise than as provided by this Act or by his contract of
service, the employer may, subject to any order which may be made
by a court or by the Commissioner on complaint of either party,
deduct from any salary due to the employee the cost of food supplied
to him during his absence.
Deductions for damages or loss 29.
—(1)
A
deduction under section 27 (1) (b) shall not
exceed the amount of the damages or loss caused to the employer
by the neglect or default of the employee and except with the permission
of the Commissioner shall in no case exceed one-quarter of one month’s
wages and shall not be made until the employee has been given an
opportunity of showing cause against the deduction.
(2)
All such deductions and all realisations
thereof shall be recorded in a register to be kept by the employer
in such form as may be prescribed.
21/84.
Deductions for accommodation, amenity
and service. 30.
A
deduction under section 27 (1) (d) or (e) shall not be made from the salary of an employee
unless the house accommodation, amenity or service has been accepted by
him, as a term of employment or otherwise, and the deduction shall
not exceed an amount equivalent to the value of the house accommodation,
amenity or service supplied and, in the case of a deduction under
section 27 (1) (e), shall be subject to such
conditions as the Commissioner may impose.
Recovery of advances and loans. 31.
—(1)
The
recovery of an advance of money made to an employee before the commencement
of a contract of service shall begin from the first payment of salary in
respect of a completed salary period, but no recovery shall be made
of any such advance made for travelling expenses.
(2)
Advances may be recovered in instalments
by deductions from salary spread over not more than 12 months.
(3)
No instalment under subsection (2)
shall exceed one-quarter of the salary due for the salary period
in respect of which the deduction is made.
(4)
Loans may be recovered in instalments
by deductions from salary.
(5)
No instalment under subsection (4)
shall exceed one-quarter of the salary due for the salary period
in respect of which the deduction is made.
Deductions not to exceed 50% of
salary. 32.
—(1)
The
total amount of all deductions made from the salary of an employee by
an employer in any one salary period, other than deductions under
section 27 (1) (a), (f),
(g) or (j), shall not exceed
50% of the salary payable to the employee in respect of
that period.
(2)
Subsection (1) shall not apply to deductions
made from the last salary due to an employee on termination of his
contract of service or on completion of his contract of service.
21/84.
Priority of salary to other debts. 33.
—(1)
This
section shall apply —
(a)
to workmen who are in receipt of
a salary not exceeding $4,500 a month (excluding overtime
payments, bonus payments, annual wage supplements, productivity
incentive payments and any allowance however described) or such
other amount as may be prescribed by the Minister; and
(b)
to employees (other than workmen)
who are in receipt of a salary not exceeding $2,000 a month
(excluding overtime payments, bonus payments, annual wage supplements,
productivity incentive payments and any allowance however described)
or such other amount as may be prescribed by the Minister.
(2)
When, on the application of a person
holding a mortgage, charge or lien or of a person who has obtained
a judgment or decree, the property of an employer is sold, or any
money due to the employer is garnished, the court ordering the sale
or garnishment shall not distribute the proceeds of the sale or
the money to the person entitled thereto unless the court has ascertained
and paid the salary due to all the employees employed by that employer
and to all employees engaged by a contractor or subcontractor and
working for that employer.
(3)
This section shall only apply —
(a)
to property on which those employees
were or are working;
(b)
where the property sold was or is the
produce of the work of those employees;
(c)
where the property sold is movable
property used or being used by those employees in the course of
their work; or
(d)
to money due to the employer in respect
of work done by those employees.
(4)
The amount payable to each such employee
under subsection (2) shall not exceed 5 months’ salary.
(5)
For the purpose of ascertaining the
amount due to any employee under subsection (2), the court may refer
the matter to the Commissioner with a request that he holds an inquiry
into the matter and forward his findings in respect thereof to the court,
and the Commissioner shall comply with any such request.
(6)
For the purposes of any inquiry under
subsection (5), the Commissioner shall have all the powers conferred
upon him by section 115.
(7)
For the purposes of this section, “employees” shall
be deemed to include subcontractors for labour and “salary” shall
be deemed to include money due to a subcontractor for labour.
21/84.
36/95.
Offence. 34.
Any
employer failing to pay salary in accordance with the provisions
of this Part shall be guilty of an offence.