SINGAPORE, May 1: From cradle to grave, Singapore’s National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) provides for the welfare of members under a unique set-up that has seen it grow to probably one of the world’s wealthiest labour groups. Going beyond a union’s traditional role of negotiating collective bargaining agreements, NTUC has built a chain of business cooperatives ranging from child and elderly care to insurance, condominiums, supermarkets and lifestyle clubs.

Its 32-storey skyscraper, costing 282 million Singapore dollars (176 million US), is a landmark in the central business district and the NTUC secretary general is a member of the cabinet. Set up in 1961, the NTUC eschewed the militant brand of trade unionism that characterised communist-led labour groups at that time and has since avoided virtually any confrontational policies — there has been only one strike in the nation’s 40-year history.

It became part of a “tripartite” system in which the unions, the government and employers work in partnership to get workers’ benefits and amicably settle differences.

The NTUC groups 63 affiliated unions. Its success in its money-making business cooperatives has been widely praised.. Its supermarket chain, Fairprice, is the most popular in the city-state with more than one billion dollars in annual sales.

Often criticised for taking away business from small entrepreneurs, the NTUC chain of stores has also helped tame inflation by keeping prices of essential items low.

Each time they shop, union members earn points which can be converted into cash later.

NTUC Income, which has an “AA” rating for financial strength from world credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s, is a leading domestic insurer with more than 1.2m policy holders and $13bn in assets. Its medical plan provides lifetime coverage for up to $900,000. Its life insurance premiums amounted to $1.6bn in 2004.—AFP