Hiring part-time employees can be a smart move for any business looking to improve efficiency and manage costs. From seasonal staffing needs to budget constraints, part-time employees can offer a range of benefits to businesses of all sizes.
However, hiring part-time employees in Singapore can be a complicated process because you have to follow employment laws like submitting CPF contributions and providing leave entitlements. Read on to find out everything you need to know about hiring part-time employees in Singapore!
Who is considered a part-time employee?
According to the Ministry of Manpower, a part-time employee is a person who is under a contract of service to work less than 35 hours per week.
What should an employment contract for part-time employees include?
An employment contract is a legal agreement between an employer and a part-time employee. By including the following key details in an employment contract, a company can communicate clearly with part-time workers and avoid possible disputes:
Job scope and responsibilities: Clearly describe the duties and responsibilities of the job, including any specific skills or qualifications required.
Working hours: Specify the number of hours the part-time employee is expected to work per week or month and the days and times they are expected to be on the job.
Compensation: The contract should detail the part-time employee's hourly basic pay rate, as well as gross hourly rate of pay (hourly basic pay rate plus allowance). It should also include bonuses, incentives, and other compensation they may be eligible for.
Termination and notice period: Mention the notice period required for termination of the contract and specific grounds for termination.
Confidentiality and non-disclosure: The contract should include clauses to protect trade secrets if the employee has access to confidential or proprietary information.
How to calculate the salary for part-time employees?
A part-time employee’s salary should be proportionate to that of a full-time employee with similar duties and skills, and the hourly and daily pay rates can be determined using the following formula:
Hourly basic rate of pay
(12 x Monthly basic rate of pay)/(52 x Number of hours worked in a week)
Daily basic rate of pay
(12 x Monthly basic rate of pay)/(52 x Number of days a part-time employee is required to work in a week)
Examples
Employee A works 15 hours per week, and the monthly basic salary is $1,800.
Hourly basic rate of pay = (12 x $1,800)/(52 x 15) = $34.62/hour
Employee B works 3 days per week, and the monthly basic salary is $2,000.
Daily basic rate of pay = (12 x $2,000)/(52 x 3) = $115.38/day
Do part-time employees have to make CPF contributions?
Yes, CPF contributions are payable for part-time employees who are:
Yes, a part-time employee will get overtime pay if he or she exceeds the normal daily working hours as stated in the employment contract. The overtime pay of part-time employees is calculated as follows:
If Hours Worked
Overtime Pay Calculation
Exceed daily working hours but less than a full-time employee's normal hours
At your basic hourly rate of pay
Exceed a full-time employee's normal hours
At your basic hourly rate x 1.5
Example
Employee C is a part-time employee who works for 5 hours a day, and the daily working hours for a full-time employee are 8 hours. The basic hourly rate of pay for Employee C is $10 per hour.
If Employee C works for 8 hours on a particular day, he has exceeded his daily working hours but hasn't exceeded the full-time employee's normal hours. Therefore, he is entitled to overtime pay for the additional 3 hours worked at his basic hourly rate.
Overtime pay = 3 hours x $10 per hour = $30
However, if Employee C works for 9 hours that day, he will work overtime for a total of 4 hours and exceed a full-time employee’s normal hours by 1 hour.
Total overtime pay = 3 hours x $10 per hour + 1 hour x $15 per hour = $45
Are part-time employees entitled to public holiday pay?
Yes, part-time employees are entitled to public holiday pay, and here is how it is prorated:
(No. of working hours per year of a part-time employee / No. of working hours per year of a similar full-time employee) x No. of days of public holiday of a similar full-time employee with equal length of service x No. of working hours in a day of a similar full-time employee
Example
A part-time employee D works 20 hours per week, which adds up to 1,040 hours per year (assuming he works all 52 weeks). A full-time employee in the same role works 40 hours per week, which adds up to 2,080 hours per year.
Assume both the part-time and full-time employees have the same length of service. The full-time employee is entitled to 11 public holidays per year, and each of her workdays consists of 8 hours.
The calculation would be as follows: (1,040/2,080) * 11 * 8 = 44 hours
Employee D would therefore be entitled to 44 hours of public holiday pay per year.
Are part-time employees entitled to a bonus or variable payment?
Bonuses and other variable payments are not required unless they are written into the employment contract.
Even though they are not mandatory, employee bonuses are a great way to say thanks to your staff for their hard work. Read more about the most common types of bonuses in our “Bonus Guide for Employers in Singapore”!
Are part-time employees entitled to annual leave?
Part-time employees are covered by the Employment Act and are therefore entitled to annual leave as long as they have completed at least 3 months of service. The amount of annual leave they get will be based on how many hours they work compared to a full-time employee of the same job.
Are part-time employees entitled to sick leave and medical benefits?
Likewise as annual leave entitlement, part-time employees are also entitled to paid sick leave as long as they have worked for at least 3 months. They should also fulfil the following requirements:
Inform the employee within 48 hours of absence
Obtain a medical certificate (MC) from a medical practitioner registered under the Medical Registration Act or Dental Registration Act
It is also mandatory for employers to provide reimbursement for medical consultation fees when an employee takes a sick leave.
Why use Payboy HR software to manage your part-time employees?
While Excel or Google Sheets can be used to manage your part-time employees’ pay or leave days, there are some drawbacks to doing so:
Time-consuming: Maintaining a spreadsheet to manually track your part-time employees’ hours and leave days can be time-consuming, especially if you have a large workforce. Data entry, record updating, and making sure the data is accurate can all take a lot of time.
Error-prone: Manual data entering into a spreadsheet raises the chance of typos or other data entry problems.
Challenging to produce insightful reports quickly: Putting together insightful reports will require more time and effort on Excel or Google Sheets, instead of just a click of a button on a HR software.
Limited security: Spreadsheets lack the specialised software's level of protection, making them susceptible to data leaks.
If you're looking for a way to manage your part-time employees with ease, Payboy HR software may be just what you need. With our fully compliant, customisable, and integrated system, you can easily manage your part-timers every time, everywhere, without any hassle. Our Leave Management module lets you manage leaves digitally, syncs seamlessly with Shift Scheduling to keep track of your part-time employees’ availability, and automatically calculates their encashed or unpaid leave in the Payroll Processing module!
100% compliant and 100% peace of mind
Forget about payroll and levy (SDL and FWL) calculations, CPF contributions, as well as IR8A submissions. Our software will automatically calculate them for you and keep you compliant with the latest regulations from MOM, CPF and IRAS.
Covers any work arrangement
We’ll take care of the unique payroll requirements for each working arrangement including full timers, part timers, freelancers and contract staff.
Transparent, Accurate and Simple
Full visibility on how payroll is calculated automatically based on shifts, attendance, leave and submitted claims, within an intuitive experience.
Customisable itemised payslips
Our software will automatically generate itemised payslips for your employees.
Fully integrated with your preferred platforms
We’ll fit into your ecosystem seamlessly and keep your finance team happy. Learn more about our integrations with Xero, Financio, and Quickbooks.
Streamline your HR processes with Payboy today!
As a PSG-approved HRMS, Payboy provides a robust system to help you manage your HR tasks so that you can focus on your business and people!
With our wide range of modules, you can customise a solution to meet the specific needs of your business:
Reach out to us if you are keen for a free demo on how we can help you save hours and give you some peace of mind on payroll and other HR matters so that you can focus on your business and people.
