NTUC launched the SLF-OTCi Fellowship scheme to tap the deep knowledge and wide experiences of leaders to coach and guide the next generation of union leaders.  Fellowship is conferred by the OTC Institute Board of Governors on outstanding retired unionists identified by NTUC.  Fellows are engaged through various platforms like dialogue session, fireside chats, training, etc. for communities, interest groups and NTUC departments.

Currently there are two SLF-OTCi Fellows in the Fellowship scheme :
 

1. Sister Diana Chia

Sister Diana Chia Siew Fui has served the Labour Movement for more than 25 years. She was a founding member of the Health Corporation of Singapore Staff Union (HCSSU) in 1989. She was elected HCSSU President in 1991 and subsequently, General Secretary in 2005. She played a critical role in the merger of HCSSU and the National University Hospital Employees’ Union into Healthcare Services Employees’ Union (HSEU). She was elected to the NTUC Central Committee in 1994 and became the first female NTUC President in 2011.

As Senior Nurse Manager at the Singapore General Hospital, Sister Diana has always placed strong emphasis on the welfare and well-being of working people. As NTUC President, she strengthened the tripartite relationship between the union, employers and Government; and promoted harmonious labourmanagement relations. She served on various tripartite bodies, including the Tripartite Workgroup to review the Employment Act, Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers, National Wages Council (NWC), the Industrial Arbitration Court and National Productivity Council.

To ensure effective leadership renewal and development within the Labour Movement, she gave strong support to the 3-Flow framework (Flow In, Flow Up and Flow On of union leaders). Furthermore, she led by example in making way to allow a new generation to take over at the apex of the Labour Movement’s leadership.

In recognition of her significant and invaluable contributions to the Labour Movement, the National Trades Union Congress is pleased to present Sister Diana Chia Siew Fui with the Distinguished Service (Star) Award.

2. Brother Lim Kuang Beng

Brother Lim Kuang Beng has been active in union work for 27 years. He was elected into the Branch Committee of the Singapore Aerospace Maintenance Co Pte Ltd (now known as Singapore Technologies Aerospace Engineering Pte Ltd) in 1989. A year later, the Singapore Industrial & Services Employees’ Union (SISEU) Executive Committee co-opted him as an Internal Auditor. Thereafter, he was elected to the Executive Committee and became General Secretary in 1996, a position he holds till today.

Brother Kuang Beng rallied SISEU to embark on engagement programmes with a vision to grow SISEU’s membership and strengthen its financial position. Today, SISEU is the second largest NTUC-affiliated union.

In 2003, he was elected into the NTUC Central Committee. He was then elected as Secretary for Financial Affairs in 2011, a position he held until 2015. He has been serving as Director of NTUC Enterprise Cooperative since June 2012 and NTUC Choice Homes Cooperative since September 2008. He previously served as a Director of NTUC Fairprice Cooperative from August 1999 to September 2008.

At the national level, he was a member of the National Wages Council for nine terms and Employee Panel Member of the Industrial Arbitration Court for 10 years. He chaired NTUC committees including the Membership and Employment and Employability Committees, and also served the Public Transport Council and Central Provident Fund Board.

Brother Kuang Beng believes in action when supporting NTUC initiatives that benefit members and unions. SISEU transferred 15 branches to sister unions to support NTUC’s membership strategy in 2011. In support of the 3-Flow leadership framework, SISEU amended its constitution in 2011 to ensure a healthy leadership pipeline. He actively mentors younger leaders by sharing his experience and knowledge.

To foster good labour-management relations, he worked with management to enhance re-employment terms for mature workers. Recently, his company set up a joint union-management Job Redesign and Reskilling Taskforce to make job processes more age-friendly.

In recognition of his significant contributions to the Singapore Industrial and Services Employees’ Union and fellow workers, the National Trades Union Congress is pleased to present Brother Lim Kuang Beng with the Comrade of Labour (Star) (Bar) Award.

Unions / NTUC Social Enterprises / NTUC Departments / Communities that are interested to engage the services of our Fellows can contact Sister Teo Ling Ling (otcinstitute@ntuc.org.sg)