More than half of PMEs feel the need to upskill amid AI disruption: NTUC survey

[SINGAPORE] More than half of Singapore’s professionals, managers and executives (PMEs) feel the need to upskill to stay relevant in the face of disruption caused by artificial intelligence (AI), a survey by the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) has found.

The Labor Movement said on Monday (9 February) that the findings reflected growing concern among PMEs that “current skills and career paths may not be keeping pace with AI disruption”. It added: “We are always aware of PME’s fears and concerns.”

NTUC general secretary Ng Chee Meng told the media during a visit to accountancy firm SIN Assurance PAC that feedback from the field shows growing anxiety among PMEs over skills relevance and job security.

Ahead of the 2026 Budget due to be tabled by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Thursday, Mr Ng said AI disruption was becoming a “real concern” for workers in all sectors, including PMEs.

“Our PMEs are ready to adapt, but they need timely training and concrete support during both hiring and termination so they don’t have to navigate these challenges alone,” he said.

Against this backdrop, the NTUC will call for “stronger employment safeguards and improved transition support for workers, particularly PMES” in the next budget as AI continues to reshape the workplace.

Proposals put forward by the labor movement include pushing for “mandatory notice of layoffs and more job support from companies to help laid-off workers find more jobs.”

It will also promote the strengthening of existing government systems such as the job seeker support system.

Mr Ng said: “We want to bring AI to the economy and take it to a new level as it gives new possibilities to Singapore’s economy. We also want to employ all workers, including white-collar professionals.

“We will advocate for their upskilling and, in some cases, support during redundancy.”

Further support

Complementing these measures, Mr Ng highlighted NTUC’s Corporate Training Committee (CTC) as a platform to support both business transformation and employee upskilling.

Through the CTC and CTC Grant initiatives, NTUC works with employers to develop enterprise-level transformation plans to help workers ‘future-ready’.

The committee specifically supports companies deploying technology and AI to improve PME productivity.

As of December 2025, more than 800 CTC grant projects have been approved to improve business and employee productivity.

Approximately one in six of these projects involved finance, accounting, and procurement roles. These are expected to benefit nearly 1,700 workers, many of them PMEs.

More projects are expected to follow as demand in these areas increases.

On Monday, SIN Assurance PAC, one of the five accounting firms to benefit from the CTC Grant, shared how it leveraged NTUC support to implement AI-related technology and streamline its audit process.

Among other things, we introduced an online quality control tool that centralizes key audit and accounting requirements and activities.

NTUC said the company has also introduced robotic process automation in its quality control processes and introduced AI-enabled chatbots to improve efficiency and accuracy.

Eer Jia Han, manager of SIN Assurance PAC, said the company can now focus on higher-value work.

“We will be able to apply our professional judgment to higher risk and more complex areas, enhancing the quality of our audits and the reliability of our assurance conclusions.”

She added that tasks that previously took about an hour, such as processing 50 emails, can now be completed in about four minutes with the help of AI, and automating repetitive manual processes can save a lot of time.

Dax Teo, managing partner of SIN Assurance PAC, said the company aims to further scale by incorporating technology and AI rather than replacing employees.

He said the company currently has 11 employees, 10 of whom are using AI in their work. “We don’t see AI and automation as a threat to jobs, but as enablers for higher-value work,” he added.

For more information on BT’s 2026 Budget, please visit: bt.sg/budget 26