Internships in Singapore: Employment Act
The Employment Act covers every employee who is engaged in Singapore under a contract of service, including interns. An employer should accord statutory benefits prescribed under the law to an intern if he/she is performing work and has work arrangements similar to that of a regular employee in the organisation. Click
here for details.
Hours of Work, Overtime & Rest Days
Under the Employment Act, an employee should not be required to work for more than 8 hours in one day or more than 44 hours in a week. However, he/she may be required to work overtime if he consents to do so, subject to the limit of 12 hours per day and totaling 72 hours per month. Under the Act, the employer must pay the employee for the extra hours of work or for working on his rest days or public holidays. The rate for overtime work should be no less than one and a half times his hourly basic rate of pay. An employer must grant the employee one rest day (which is not paid) in a week, which may be on a Sunday or any other day.
Click
here for details.
Annual Leave
An employee is entitled to Annual Leave (prorated) if he/she has worked for at least 3 months. Click
here for details.
Sick Leave
An employee covered by the Employment Act is entitled to paid sick leave (prorated), including medical leave issued by a dentist if:
- The employee has served the employer for at least three months.
- The employee has informed or attempted to inform the employer of his/her absence within 48 hours. Otherwise, the employee will be deemed to be absent from work without permission or reasonable excuse.
- The sick leave is certified by the company’s doctor, or by a government doctor (including doctors from approved public medical institutions). Click
here for details.