Young NTUC
Young NTUC (Chinese: 职总青年团) is the official youth wing of National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) formed to attract young working adults to join the labour movement through organized activities. It is a part of the organisation's efforts to project a vibrant, modern and youthful image of the labour movement and at the same time remain relevant and representative of Singapore's workforce.
Since its launch on the 30th April 2005 by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Young NTUC has become the largest youth movement in Singapore comprising of 155,000 members of age 18 to 35 years old .
The office is currently located at NTUC Centre, One Marina Boulevard.
Objectives of Young NTUC
According to their website, "To ensure continuity and dynamism, the labour movement must have a strong cohort of young members. Young NTUC was formed to attract younger members to our activities. "
Key Personnel of Young NTUC
Mrs Josephine Teo, MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, is the Advisor of Young NTUC since February 2007. The current Chairperson of Young NTUC is Mr Benjamin Tang, who is also the General-Secretary of the Port Officers' Union (POU).
Key Activities of Young NTUC
Solidarity Walk and Concert
Organised by Young NTUC, the walk and concert on the 23rd May 2009 marked the culmination of the Labour Movement's fundraising efforts for the year. The 7000-strong contingent comprised Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife, Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong, Singapore National Employers Federation President Stephen Lee, Minister for National Development Mah Bow Tan, NTUC Sec-Gen Lim Swee Say, NTUC President John De Payva, government officials, NTUC central committee members, union members and their families.
The concert was held at Marina Bay Golf Course's driving range, featuring Young NTUC's in-house talents. It was also announced that S$23 million was raised for the U Care Fund.
Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day
Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day was held concurrently with the National Day Parade for both 2007 and 2008. Both venue were at The Padang.
The participants of Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day are able to view the following program items "live":
- Flypast of the National Flag
- Fighter jets aerobatic display by the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) Black Knights
- Fireworks display
The fun packs that the participants of Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day receive were similar to that of the National Day Parade, with the exception of the additional props for the day and night flag forming. The participants were able to view the National Day Parade via live telecast over the projection screen.
Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day 2007
Young NTUC celebrated National Day 2007 by garnering 9000 participants to form the largest human Singapore flag using red and white umbrellas. This feat was recorded into the Singapore Book of Records.
Young NTUC Celebrates! National Day 2008
Breaking the year 2007's record, this time with 12,288 participants, the human flag was formed twice in total. Inflatable red and white paddles was used for the formation of the day flag, and LED lights strobes were used to form the night flag. This feat was recorded into the Singapore Book of Records.
YCiS
YCiS stands for Youths for a Competitive and Inclusive Society, which is the flagship initiative of Young NTUC. It is a platform for the young workforce and the decision makers to meet, interact and exchange their views regarding the current issues of Singapore.
YCiS Forum Series uses the theme of “A Competitive Economy, An Inclusive Society” to structure its forum discussions. Participants are brought onto learning journeys to national and public institutions, which served to reinforce the ideas and issues discussed during the dialogue session.
Invited guests includes Members of the Parliament and various key decision makers of companies/organisations, who are there to share their views and experiences with the participants through the dialogue sessions.
Coffeeshop Talk
The Young NTUC Coffeeshop Talk is a dialogue session with ministerial guests pertaining to current issues. One key difference is that this takes place in an informal coffeeshop setting, rather than in a formal convention format.
There had been 3 runs of Coffeeshop Talk so far:
- "The Budget - Why it Matters to U" with Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Minister of State for Finance.
- "Creating an Innovative Workforce - Why it Matters to U" with RADM(NS) Lui Tuck Yew, Senior Minister of State for Education.
- "Budget 2009 - Why it Matters to U" with Mr S Iswaran, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry.
Free Hugs
The Young NTUC Free Hugs Campaigns were held along Orchard Road, where free hugs, collectibles and balloons were given away. There are a total of 3 runs of the free hugs campaign so far.
- 1st Free Hugs Campaign (along with Singapore Kindness Movement) was held at April 2008.
- 2nd Free Hugs Campaign was held at December 2008.
- 3rd Free Hugs Campaign was held on Valentine's Day 2009.
Uth! Campus
Uth! Campus is the "signature Young NTUC School by youths for youths", which is a part of Young NTUC’s efforts in the outreach and engagement of their members. It is also an opportunity for the members to bond and network with each other across the spectrum of interest groups hosted by the Young NTUC. Through the team-building and knowledge-sharing activities, members are expected to gain a clearer understanding of the roles and values of the Labour Movement and the NTUC itself. The participants are awarded with a Certificate of Achievement upon successful completion of the programme.
The 5 Values of Uth! Campus
- • Change mindset
- • Communication
- • Commitment
- • Capacity building
- • Collaboration
There are two formats of the Uth! Campus conducted so far. The first and second intakes were 2 days 1 night residential courses held at the Sarimbun Scout Campsite. The third intake, however, was 1 day course held within the city area, coined as the "City Campus with a difference - Urban Hunt in the City!"
Overview of the Uth! Campus intakes so far:
- • Intake 1/07 -- 2 days 1 night residential course held at Sarimbun Scout Campsite
- • Intake 2/08 -- 2 days 1 night residential course held at Sarimbun Scout Campsite
- • Intake 3/08 -- 1 day City Campus Urban Hunt
- • Intake 4/09 -- 2 days 1 night residential course held at FOCUS Adventure Sembawang
- • Intake 5/09 -- 1 day City Campus followed by a dialogue session with Mr Gan Kim Yong, Minister of Manpower.
Volunteerism
KidzQuest
KidzQuest is a series of Young NTUC Volunteerism programme supporting activities. It was officially launched on the 14th of March 2009 during the Mega KidzQuest held at the Singapore Zoological Gardens where the new logo of KidzQuest was unveiled by the guest-of-honour was Mrs Josephine Teo. The event was attended by over 500 participants comprising of Young NTUC volunteers and the children from My First Skool centres that Young NTUC collaborated with.
KidzQuest's aim is to promote quality learning for children of ages 4 to 6. Volunteers of the programme bring children out on learning journeys, allowing the young ones to learn beyond the classroom walls. The children are from selected My First Skool pre-schools that Young NTUC collaborate with.
There are mainly two categories of activities, namely "Out-of-Class" and "In-the-Class". "Out-of-Class" activities include trips to the Central Fire Station, Singapore Science Centre, Singapore Discovery Centre, Heritage Museums, Kids Kampong and other places that provides fun learning experiences. "In-the-Class" activities include educational toy making, motor-coordination activities, art and craft conducted indoors.
Green Movement
The Green Movement is Young NTUC's effort to engage the youth volunteers in projects to help in protecting the environment. The movie "An Inconvenient Truth" and "The 11th Hour" was screened to raise their awareness regarding the impending environmental issues.
Team Young NTUC
With 155,000 members in Young NTUC, the interests of the vast number of members are wide and varied. Team Young NTUC aimed to gather like-minded individuals forming communities and excelling in their various fields.
There are currently 11 affinity groups under Team Young NTUCbanner:
ADic
For the people who love adventures.
DragonBoat
Team Young NTUC's year old dragon boat team that trains every Saturday.
20/20
For aspiring photographers to hone their skills under the guidance of many dedicated instructors.
YCiS Net
The alumni of the Youths for a Competitive and Inclusive Society (YCiS) Forum series.
Bowling
Bowling courses are conducted for members who wish to pick up the sport.
p.L.a.Y!
The performance arts group of Young NTUC, which is under the tutelage of Jeremiah Choy, Babes Conde and Gani Karim, who are some of the well known names in the industry.
e Black 8
Team Young NTUC's very own American Pool players. The team manager, Henry Tay, is the current Co-Vice Chairperson of Young NTUC as well.
Wine Appreciation
For the budding connoisseurs and sommeliers.
Shopping Guru
The main activities of the Shopping Guru affinity group are hosting flea markets, conducting make-up lessons and informing members of good shopping deals.
Toastmasters
The Team Young NTUC Toastmasters Club Program expose participants to a wide range of communication and leadership experiences. The courses conducted aim to enable the participants to communicate with confidence, overcome the fear of speaking before an audience and express ideas clearly and succinctly.
Aeromodel
The Aeromodelling Club conducts courses for members who are interested in aeromodels.