SPH pushes all equal line

Singapore - Singapore Press Holdings' (SPH) classified job ads division recently launched an ad campaign to raise awareness of equal employment practices.

The ads target employers placing job ads in SPH's online job portal ST701 and in the Classified Advertisements Telephone Service (CATS) Recruit section of its newspapers, and is running across The Straits Times, Business Times and Lianhe Zaobao till end-June.

The ads feature three well-known movie characters with a twist to convey the message that the protagonists need not to fit the mould of being a "tall, young and handsome male".  SPH aims to highlight to employers that the best talent for jobs can come in any age, gender and size, with job ads to focus on relevant requirements instead of discriminatory conditions.

This means that employers putting up job advertisements cannot include criteria such as age, race, religion, gender, language and marital status, unless the criterion is an important job requirement. Elsie Chua, senior VP of Classified Advertisements said employers would also be encouraged to use appropriate words in ads.

"For example, you cannot use the word "young" in your ad, but you can say that the candidate will need to do physical work," Chua said.