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SINGAPORE: The government will introduce a Jobs Credit which will encourage businesses to preserve jobs as much as possible in the downturn, said Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam in his Budget Speech to Parliament on Thursday.

He said: "The Jobs Credit will provide every employer with a cash grant to reduce their costs of employing Singaporean workers during the crisis.

"The Jobs Credit that an employer receives will comprise 12 per cent of the first S$2,500 of the wages of each employer who is on the CPF payroll. It will be given in four quarterly payments, with each payment being based on the workers who are with the employer at the time.

"This will therefore provide incentive for employers to retain their local workers... Employers will receive the first payment at the end of March this year... The Jobs Credit of 12 per cent of wages will be equivalent to a 9 percentage point CPF cut."

Source: CNA