SINGAPORE: UOB said on Wednesday (Oct 26) that it is offering 200 jobs in Singapore with flexible work arrangements for women with parental and caregiving duties.
The jobs comprise full-time and part-time roles and gig work at the bank’s various business units, such as front-line bank branch operations, corporate functions and back-end operations.
The initiative is an expansion of UOB’s gig employment programme which was first rolled out in November last year to provide flexible work for its retired employees.
According to the bank, jobs under the initiative are “specially catered” to the needs of women who require more flexibility at work due to familial responsibilities, such as mothers with newborn children or women who have to shoulder elderly caregiving responsibilities at home.
Working hours can be adjusted based on needs. This means that women can take up permanent half-day work arrangements, work full- or part-time based on hours of their choice, or opt for project-based gig work.
Employees under this programme will receive “equal pay” and enjoy the same benefits, such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage, as their peers with similar roles in the bank, subject to their employment status, UOB said.
New hires will also get to embark on a programme with Mums@Work – a career portal that pairs women looking for flexi-work with potential employers – which will prepare them for their return to the workplace.
Mr Dean Tong, UOB’s head of group human resources, said: “Women should be encouraged, not penalised, for supporting the needs of their families while pursuing their careers.
“UOB is proud to partner our female colleagues in their journey to achieve balance between their careers and personal lives, and excelling on both fronts.”
The bank on Wednesday also launched an in-house academy that will help upskill and certify its 5,000-strong technology and operations workforce.
Fresh graduates and budding professionals can also apply for internship opportunities, as well as programmes involving structured classroom sessions and on-the-job training.
One such programme is the Technology Development Programme, which offers structured training over 12 months to participants in areas such as cybersecurity, software and IT infrastructure.
Open to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) graduates, as well as also non-STEM majors from universities, polytechnics and ITEs, the programme will allow participants to receive industry-recognised certifications in their areas of expertise upon completion.
The academy is also partnering the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) to grow the bank’s technology and operations talents, and will jointly set up an accelerator to support financial technology education and innovation.
Beyond that, UOB also inked three other memorandums of understanding with the Singapore Institute of Management, the National University of Singapore and the Institute of Banking and Finance to further develop the capabilities of its employees in technical expertise, as well as soft skills.
