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Marriage Leave in Singapore – Things You Need to Know

Getting married is a milestone in life that we dream about most of our lives. Both men and women look forward to their wedding day as a special event, and look forward to putting in their marriage leave requests, and spending that day and the days afterwards celebrating and bonding with their new spouse.

Marriage leave is important for these occasions, so that working men and women have the opportunity to enjoy their wedding, and the honeymoon afterward, without having to worry about whether they will have a job when they come back.

Many companies have begun offering marriage leave as a perk for their employees, knowing that leave for important events is vital to the happiness of their employees. A wedding day is (hopefully) a once in a life time event, and struggling to find time to do it in can cause unneeded stress to employees.

 

Marriage Leave is Not a Statutory Entitlement Under the Singapore’s Employment Act

Any marriage leave the bride and groom receive are at the discretion of the employer. Happily, most employers understand the importance of getting time off for that special day, and offer marriage leave as part of their policy. Most companies offer paid leave if it is for just a few days, but may offer part-paid or unpaid if the bride or groom plans for longer periods of time.

The standard amount of paid days off given by companies is usually 3 days. This may vary from company to company, because it isn’t regulated by law. Every company is different, and some may give more, less, or none at all.

When paid leave is offered, there may be exceptions to the policy. Paid leave may not be offered to the employees if it isn’t their first wedding, as an example. Most companies also request proof of marriage, such as a wedding certificate, in order to establish that a wedding did take place and the employee wasn’t simply searching for a way to get leave for other reasons.

Most of the restrictions are fairly reasonable, but if an employee is concerned about what the policy is, it may be wise to request information about marriage leave policies as early as possible.

 

It is Beneficial to Both Employee and Employer

When deciding on whether to include marriage leave as part of the policy, it may be hard to decide whether or not it is a worthwhile addition. There are already many types of leave required by law, such as maternity leave and sick leave. Adding on one more type of leave may seem like a waste of resources and money, especially if the marriage leave is paid.

Marriage leave has a lot to offer, however. An employee forced to miss or shorten their own wedding due to work is not going to provide optimum performance. Even if they do their best to be professional, it’s perfectly understandable if they don’t have a winning attitude or a hard work ethic under such a disappointing circumstance.

On the other hand, a happy employee will present their best face to the customer, and work their hardest for the generous company willing to give them leave for their joyous occasion. Customers can’t help but notice a glowing attitude and happy employees, and are likely to come back.

 

It is Part of Business Policy

Good employees are a valuable asset that are hard to come by. A top employee knows their worth, and knows they also don’t have to look hard to seek new employment. Perks such as marriage leave can help a company keep their best employees, while at the same time attracting new talent to add to their mix.

Marriage leave is an important part of business policy. A policy put in place for your company will help give management a firm set of guidelines to help them decide how to answer requests for time off, whether the leave will be paid, part paid, or unpaid, and how long they can have off will help avoid confusion.

Marriage leave is understandably a big consideration for single employees, and can make a big difference in whether or not they want to work for a particular company. By having a public policy in place, it could help encourage top tier workers to want to work for the company.