By Darcel Al Anthony

Copyright channelnewsasia

The group also proposed commuter-friendly initiatives such as “caring corners” at bus interchanges and “baby on board” badges for pregnant commuters, as well as enhanced staff welfare programmes.

LTA said that current SBS Transit employees who are part of the Tampines bus package will be protected by the Public Transport Tripartite Committee’s guidelines on good employment practices in the public bus industry.

The employees must also be offered a job by Go-Ahead Singapore with employment terms that are no worse off than the current ones.

“(Go-Ahead Singapore) has also committed to ensuring that the remuneration for the current workforce remains competitive,” said LTA.

“Affected employees can also choose to join (Go-Ahead Singapore) or be redeployed by their current employer where feasible.”

National Transport Workers’ Union (NTWU) executive secretary Yeo Wan Ling said on Friday that the change in operator will affect about 700 employees.

“With the package’s stronger reliance on electric buses, workers can also look forward to new training and skills opportunities,” she said in a Facebook post.

Go-Ahead Singapore currently operates 31 bus services from Loyang depot, in addition to four City Direct Services – express buses that connect residential areas to the Central Business District (CBD) during weekday peak hours.It has been a unionised company with NTWU since entering Singapore nine years ago.