PM Lawrence Wong at May Day Rally 2025

President and Secretary-General of NTUC
President of SNEF
Brothers and Sisters from the Labour Movement
Comrades
Fellow Singaporeans
Good morning, Happy May Day!

Introduction

It is so good to be here and to see all of you gathered together for this happy occasion. I have spoken at May Day Rallies before. But today it is my first time doing so as your Prime Minister. Thank you for the warm welcome!

Today also happens to be the last day of campaign. Over the last nine days, our PAP candidates have been working tirelessly – many of them are here, including our candidates from the Labour Movement! We have walked the ground from dawn to dusk. We have knocked on doors; we have met Singaporeans all over Singapore in markets, coffeeshops, and MRT stations. Through it all, we have been supported by activists and volunteers –including many brothers and sisters from the Labour Movement. So, thank you, thank you everyone for your unwavering support!

Going Through Tough Times

This year, we have a double celebration. We have May Day, but we also have SG60.

And we have every reason to rejoice. Look at how far we have come in Singapore these last 60 years. It was not always an easy road. We have had our ups and downs. But through it all, we stood together, we stood united. Our workers gave their all to building this country. Our unions stood shoulder to shoulder with us. Singapore today is a testament to your dedication and resilience! This is your achievement.

Earlier this decade, we had to confront a crisis like no other. We had our worst full-year recession since independence. Businesses shut down. Unemployment soared during COVID-19. It feels like a bad dream now but I think many of us remember those dark days vividly still. But I also remember how everyone banded together and how we lifted each other up.

NTUC was at the frontline of all this – you led the charge to protect our workers. You worked with companies to minimise retrenchments, and to negotiate fair retrenchment benefits. You helped our displaced workers find new roles through the Jobs Security Council, which Sec-Gen mentioned just now. You provided assistance to those who needed it through the NTUC Care Fund and the Self-Employed Person Income Relief Scheme.

Because of your actions, we were able to minimise the impact of COVID-19. Our workers especially those across essential industries, whether it is cleaning, security, healthcare, power generation, continued working hard to keep Singapore going through those difficult times. For workers who were impacted, we helped them find jobs quickly. In areas where it is critical, we helped to retain our capabilities.

So, when the pandemic stopped, we were able to bounce back strongly. Look at what happened last year. Last year our GDP growth exceeded 4%. Remember in 2020, how Changi Airport was like a ghost town, literally. Earlier this year, traffic is already back at pre-COVID-19 levels. And in two weeks’ time, we will have the groundbreaking for Changi Terminal 5! At CNY this year, I visited the airport, I met many workers and union leaders – there were smiles all around. I asked them how was your bonus last year – their smiles got bigger! From one of our lowest points in history, we climbed back up to new highs. And it is because of you – our brothers and sisters.

So, this year’s SG60 May Day is a tribute to everyone in the Labour Movement. You held the fort in times of storms. You worked tirelessly behind the scenes. So I say to all of you: Thank you for your commitment and your dedication to Singapore and Singaporeans!

Confronting our Next Challenge

Unfortunately, just as we thought we were entering calmer waters, now a new storm emerges. We know the world has changed – and it is not changing back anytime soon. This is not just about what one country does. The fact is, trade barriers are going up; and the rules keep shifting. The tensions between the major powers, especially America and China – are heating up and will continue to do so. They are already in a trade war. Tariffs between them are sky-high. Even China-built ships going to US are being taxed. And most of the ships are built in China.

So you can imagine what will happen to global logistics. America is also targeting other regional countries that they think are bypassing their rules. E.g. America has tariffs on solar panels from China, but they can see that Chinese firms are going to ASEAN countries to make these panels and export to America. So now, they have imposed high tariffs on solar panels from a few ASEAN countries as well – Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand. Tariffs that are a few hundred percent, in some of these countries, as high as 3,500%. You might as well say, please do not export to America – it is literally like an import ban. There is no way you can export anything at this kind of tariffs. The businesses can close shop.

So far, Singapore has not come under the spotlight, but you can be sure we will be put under greater scrutiny as well. We must expect more pressure on us. And to navigate these pressures, it will take experience and skill. It will take people in government who have built up trust and close relationships with their counterparts in both America and China. These relationships take time to build. You cannot build this overnight. Trust, relationships, take time to cultivate.

So in this election, when Opposition Parties treat so lightly the loss of key ministers, I say please, please have a care for our country and for the wellbeing and livelihoods of every Singaporean. Imagine if we were in a team sport, take football as an example, if three to four members of the starting 11 in a football team are unable to play, what happens? Well, the coach can say, I have backups, I have reserves, sure. But everyone knows the team cannot function at the same level. It is the same in any organisation. And it will be so in our next Cabinet if we end up with such a loss; and that means we cannot have as an effective a team working for Singaporeans and Singapore. And these are the implications and consequences that I hope Singaporeans will consider carefully, because the challenges are real.

When we speak to companies – we know that the impact is real and growing. It is not just happening now, it is continuing to get worse. Orders are being cancelled or postponed. Investments are being held back; operations are being scaled down. All this will hit the global economy; America is already feeling it. It will be felt around the world, and it will hit Singapore too. MTI has already lowered its GDP forecast for this year – 0-2% now. For now, we think it is a matter of slower growth, but we really cannot rule out a full-blown recession. Which will then have impact on Singaporeans’ incomes as well as jobs.

And this is not just a short-term blip.

This storm will not pass quickly – it is not rain today, and then sunshine tomorrow. We went through this during COVID-19 and you might remember. During COVID-19, when the outbreak started, some people said do not worry, it is going to be like SARS – very short, a few months and it is going to be over. At that time, I said that the pandemic could be with us for a few years. Some people did not believe me – they said it is just scare tactics and fear mongering. But look what happened. We ended up with repeated waves of outbreaks. And eventually the pandemic only ended in 2023.

This new storm will be similar. It will be with us for some time. For exactly how long – no one can tell. But it is not going to be a one-year affair. So we have to be mentally prepared for the longer term, for the bumpy rides ahead, and do everything we can, to strengthen Singapore’s position, because this is the biggest challenge of all. It is Singapore versus this very uncertain and troubled world. And we must all of us do everything we can to strengthen Singapore’s position to get through this storm.

The uncertainties we face will add to the existing challenges we are already seeing today.

Like cost-of-living pressures. Cost pressures is a problem that started earlier because of global inflation – due to conflicts abroad, due to global supply chain disruptions. Inflation everywhere has started to ease, including in Singapore. In fact, we have come down faster than other countries. But these recent global developments may cause further disruptions, and may cause further price shocks.

Jobs will be impacted. In recent weeks, I met many of our union leaders – including Sister Thana, Brother Samad, and many others. I know many of you are worried about this. Sister Thana told me that SMEs are anxious about how tariffs would affect their businesses. Workers are also very concerned. Brother Samad shared with me the anxieties felt by our younger workers – whether there will be jobs that fit their aspirations. Brother Daniel from the Air-Transport Executive Staff Union, and Brother Govinden from the SATS Workers’ Union said to me: We have all worked so hard to get through COVID-19. Everyone is so tired. And now, things are finally better. We thought we could look forward to better days ahead. Do we really now have to go through turbulence again?

My heart went out to them – to all our workers who have given their all these past years.

Unfortunately, I could not give them the answer that they were hoping for.

Because the storm is already here; we are already experiencing turbulence. And it may well get worse.

But what I will promise is this: we will face this storm together. And we will overcome, just like we did it before!

This is why even during this campaign period, my team and I have not stopped working. We did not press pause. We simply could not afford to. I have been speaking with other world leaders – strengthening partnerships and securing new opportunities. Gan Kim Yong, Tan See Leng and others have been on call with their counterparts – keeping our economic ties strong and working out new frameworks for trade and investments.

Just like all of you in the unions, we share your concerns for our workers. Because every worker matters! It is my duty, it is my team’s duty, it is our collective duty to protect our workers, our families, and our country. And that is why I take this election so seriously. And that is why we want to be upfront with Singaporeans about the challenges we face. Others may say do not worry, it is okay, let us take this chance to rock the boat. But we will never take such risk with your lives, or our future.

The PAP will always look ahead to anticipate and tackle challenges and as a government that is what we have always done. We do not wait to the last minute to fight fires – because by then it is too late. And you saw this in the last term of government, when we saw there were gaps in our fiscal position. We acted on this. We implemented a series of tax changes in order to tackle this funding gap. The moves may not be popular, but they were the responsible thing to do. As a result of those steps, we are now in a healthy fiscal position – and so today when we look ahead, when we are entering these uncertain times, we have the resources to protect our workers and to tackle the challenges ahead. That is what responsible government is about.

In this year’s Budget, I had announced a comprehensive package of measures. For households – to ease your cost-of-living concerns. For workers – to uplift wages and boost your skills. And for businesses – to restructure, transform and stay competitive.

The measures in the Budget are still being rolled out progressively over the next few months. We will monitor the situation closely. And if conditions worsen, we are ready to do more. We will continue to help for as long as it is needed. And we will ensure we get through this storm.

The key person in charge of this work is no stranger to you. He is no stranger to the whole of Singapore. He is none other than Gan Kim Yong – he is heading the taskforce, together with other ministers, NTUC Secretary-General, and our tripartite partners. The Taskforce is hard at work. They are preparing and putting in place drawer plans to help businesses and workers. And they will announce more details when ready. We will make sure that we do everything we can to support our workers. Do not fear!

Opportunities Amidst Challenges

Brothers and sisters, the challenges ahead may be immense. But fortunately, it is not all doom and gloom. Even in the darkest of storms, there are rays of light – new opportunities for those who are prepared. And I want to make sure that every worker in Singapore is prepared.

What are some of these opportunities? For one, in Asia the growth story continues to unfold. Many countries in Asia, including parts of the Middle East, are amongst the fastest-growing economies today. So collectively it is a large market with a rising middle class. The region will continue to attract global investments. And we can position ourselves to attract our fair share of these investments.

Beyond Asia, we see potential in emerging regions like Latin America and Africa. Our ties with these regions are limited today because of distance. But the Singapore brand is known and respected there. And we can do more to link up with them for mutual benefit. So while others see risks, we are always on the look-out for new openings and new opportunities.

In fact, over recent months, I have met many CEOs of Multinational firms. They see the potential in Asia. And within Asia, they want to diversify their presence. So, they are keen to do more here in Singapore. Because they see Singapore as a reliable and a pro-business hub – secure, stable, and trusted. So, let us keep this going for as long as we can, that is our key competitive advantage.

Besides attracting new investments, we will help Singapore firms restructure and transform. Several have established themselves as regional or industry leaders, like Grab and Razer, just to name a few. We will do more to help the SMEs scale up. There are many Government schemes that can help them to transform, improve productivity, and also expand overseas.

But what is very heartening is that it is not just the government doing this, NTUC is doing its part to help them too. You do see this anywhere in the world. In other countries, unions fight businesses – the relationship is adversarial and confrontational. In Singapore, our unions have a different mindset, a better mindset. For our unions, it is not zero-sum. I win-You lose. You look for win-win.

And a very good example of that is the Company Training Committees (CTCs). This idea came from the Labour Movement. To bring businesses, workers and unions together. To identify the skills that are needed for the company to transform. And then, to develop plans to train and uplift the workers. So, everyone wins. The businesses transform, they stay competitive. Workers gain new skills, stay ahead of the curve, and as you heard just now in many cases, they get better wages too.

When the CTC idea was first presented to the Government back in 2019, we supported it wholeheartedly. Swee Keat was then Finance Minister, and he gave it his full support. When I took over from Swee Keat as Finance Minister in the FY2022 Budget, I provided $100 million in funding support for the CTC. The funds have been put to good use; and we see many positive outcomes. And last year, NTUC applied and asked for a top-up. So in this Budget, I was happy to provide another $200 million of funding to help NTUC scale up its CTC efforts.

And that is why now we have over 3,000 CTCs, benefitting more than 7,000 workers. That is real impact. It is real transformation for businesses and for workers too. Take the example of Gary Yong, he is a Supply Chain Manager in IORA, one of our many local SMEs. In the past, Gary’s work was manual. He tracked incoming and outgoing shipments by hand – tedious work that was susceptible to human mistakes. Through the CTC, the company worked with NTUC and the Singapore Manual & Mercantile Workers' Union to adopt digital tools to improve their shipment processing and inventory management. So Gary was trained, he was upskilled. Now, he does trend analysis and data-driven forecasting. Bigger responsibilities. Bigger job, bigger responsibilities, higher pay. And that is what CTCs can do for all our workers. That is why it is a good effort by the NTUC. That is why the Government is supporting you. That is why together we will make life better for every worker.

We will continue to back every worker across every stage of life. I know that new graduates from our Institutes of Higher Learning are concerned. They worry about getting a job, about building their careers in these uncertain times. I say to you, do not worry – we will be there for you. We will do more to step up career counselling, career sessions, job matching programmes. We will help you secure apprenticeships and traineeships. If conditions worsen, we know what to do. We have done it before in COVID-19 and we will have drawer plans ready to make sure that you are well taken care of. Some young people I meet are keen to pursue careers in different less conventional paths – in arts, in sports, media, for example. And indeed many more possibilities are opening up, because our economy today is more diversified and there are more possibilities to pursue. There is also more government support in these areas. So to our youths, I say whatever your abilities, whatever your strengths, there will be opportunities for you and we will help you chase that rainbow.

For those who are already in the workforce, especially for mid-career workers, we know the pace of change and innovation will be faster than ever. And that is why we invested heavily in SkillsFuture – to give you a substantial injection of skills. And many have benefitted from these programmes. In my budget speech this year, I cited the example of Ms Zarina Binte Abdul Rahman. She started out as an intern in Randstad Sourceright. This is a global recruitment agency. She is now an office administrator. But she is full of spirit, she wants to do better. And so she is upgrading her skills in business operations through a part-time diploma. She cannot do full-time studies because of her work and family commitments. But she is doing a part-time diploma in Business Practice in Nanyang Polytechnic. And so for workers like Zarina and all others, who want to upgrade yourself. You want to do better, you want to get better skills, more skills. We will be there to help you in your upgrading journeys! There are also seniors in our workforce – many tell us they would like to continue working. Some say it is not just because of the income; but they see work as something that gives them dignity and purpose; and enables them to stay active and healthy. That is a very positive mindset to have, and we will do more to support you. For example, we have provided wage support for employers to employ older workers. We have job-matching services to senior jobseekers. And now we have formed a new tripartite workgroup, chaired by Koh Poh Koon. They will study how to empower more of our seniors to stay in the workforce, and I look forward to their recommendations.

This is the way for us to secure a brighter future, even in this changed world. Between the PAP and the NTUC, we discussed and we have put together these plans. And as symbiotic partners, we will deliver them. We will deliver them for all workers and for all Singaporeans!

Tripartism

There is a reason why we can achieve so much together here in Singapore.

All these did not just happen by chance.

It happened because of one thing: tripartism. It is the PAP government, NTUC and the Labour movement, employers and business leaders all coming together working as partners, not at odds with one another. Always with the worker at the heart of all we do. Always with a shared commitment to uplift every Singaporean. We do not agree all the time, in fact, we often disagree. I assure you there is no groupthink. If there is groupthink, Singapore will not be here today. We do not fight with one another, but we fight together to secure better outcomes for every worker. And because of the deep bonds of mutual trust and respect, we can always find ways to accommodate one another, to give and take and find the best way forward.

Brothers and Sisters, you have heard this before, but it is worth reminding ourselves and repeating how unique, how exceptional this situation is here in Singapore. Just look around the world, you do not a find similar model like this. Let us cherish it, let us protect it. In other countries, unions will stand across the picket line – protesting, agitating, tearing down. Here we do not tear down, we build up. Here in Singapore, our unions are partners in nation building. You are not at the sidelines – you are at the decision-making table. You help shape policies. You help move things forward.

And because of this unique partnership, we have done what few others could do. We have kept unemployment low in Singapore. We have kept real wages rising consistently over decades. Most of all, we have kept Singaporeans united and confident in our future.

Ours is a partnership forged in crises and tested by time. Through every downturn. Through every major transformation. Through every challenge we have faced together. And for me it was forged in particular, battling COVID-19 together with all of you, side by side.

Exactly one year ago, right here at this May Day Rally platform, Senior Minister Lee announced that he was passing the baton of leadership to me. You were the first to witness the beginning of this leadership transition. This election will mark the completion of the transition.

So on 3 May, Singaporeans will decide on the next chapter.

And I ask Singaporeans: judge me and my team fairly. Examine what we have done and how we have led. If you believe, in your heart of hearts, that we have stayed true to our promise, that we are the best team to take Singapore forward in these turbulent times, then give us your support.

Whatever the outcome, I want to give all of you my word as the Secretary-General of the PAP: The PAP will never step away from the Labour Movement. We will walk with you as Brothers and Sisters, as comrades, side by side. We will work with you, shoulder to shoulder, for a better and brighter Singapore. This is my promise to you. This is my promise to all workers of Singapore!

The road ahead will not be easy. The winds will be strong. The seas will be rough. But if we stay united, we will weather this storm. Together, we have built this miracle called Singapore. Now we must sustain it, we must renew it. We must continue to write the Singapore Story – we will do so not just for ourselves, but for our children and grandchildren.

So, let us go forward with new resolve. Let us stand tall, stand together. And let us build a stronger, fairer, and brighter Singapore for all.

Majulah NTUC! Majulah PAP! One more time for Singapore – Majulah Singapura! Thank you! Happy May Day everyone!