Mr Lim Boon Heng, Secretary-General, NTUC

Mr John De Payva, President, NTUC

Dr Ng Eng Hen, Acting Minister for Manpower

His Excellency Mr Ryu Kwang-sok

Ambassador of the Republic of Korea

Distinguished guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

Let me, first of all, extend a very warm welcome to you to the Official Opening of One Marina Boulevard.

At the NTUC May Day Dinner on 30 April 1990, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong who was then the First Deputy Prime Minister announced that the Government will build a new home for the NTUC. He said that, and I quote, " NTUC should be in the heart of the new city which they will help to build and there they will be able to rub shoulders as equals with management, proud that they as much as their employers, have contributed to the stability and prosperity of Singapore."

Today, 14 years later, we see this promise fulfilled. This morning as we celebrate May Day, we are witnessing the opening of not just another new building. The building we are in now is a symbol of the close ties that have been forged between the Government and the trade unions of Singapore. It is a culmination of the public recognition by the Government of the contributions of the labour movement to the economic and social development of our country over the years.

The NTUC was formed on 6 September 1961. With no office of its own, the NTUC officials and union leaders operated from homes and held meetings at public places such as the library and museum near Fort Canning. In 1964, NTUC set up its first office at 208 Queen Street. In the meantime, piling works for the Trade Union House at Shenton Way commenced in August 1962. Officially opened on 15 October 1965, the Trade Union House at Shenton Way was the headquarters of the NTUC for 35 years until August 2000 when NTUC bought over and shifted its office to the building formerly owned by POSBank at Bras Basah Road. NTUC finally moved into its present home at the NTUC Centre in One Marina Boulevard in February this year.

Our contractors, Samsung Corporation and Tiong Seng Contractors, have completed One Marina Boulevard in a relatively short period of time. Ground breaking was in February 2002, topping out in July 2003, Temporary Occupation Permit was obtained in December 2003 and NTUC moved into the building in February this year.

The labour movement has come a long way since its tumultuous beginnings in the 50’s, the boom period in the 70’s and 80’s, the Asian financial crisis in the late 90’s and the September 11 incident, SARS and economic uncertainties of the 21st century. Through all these crises and tumultuous changes, the NTUC has remained steadfast and resilient. It has been a pro-active agent of change, meeting each challenge head-on, in order to protect the interests and welfare of our workers.

The NTUC and its affiliated unions are a pragmatic and far-sighted labour movement. They believe that the best form of security for workers is jobs and long-term employability. They are willing to bite the bullet and adopt painful but necessary measures including retrenchment, cost cutting and wage restructuring.

Union leaders have also urged workers to prepare themselves for changes in the economic and employment landscape by upgrading their skills or acquiring new ones to stay employable.

The NTUC’s role in protecting the interest of workers extends far beyond the traditional role of collective bargaining and dispute settlements. Through its co-operatives such as the NTUC FairPrice, NTUC Income, NTUC Healthcare and NTUC Childcare, it has helped workers to keep the cost of living down. Between 1998 and 2002, NTUC and its cooperatives cushioned the impact of the two recessions with a relief package worth $78 million. This year, NTUC and its cooperatives will absorb about $18 million in GST.

The NTUC also helps workers improve their quality of life by making recreational and sporting facilities affordable to workers through the NTUC Club.

As a result of the constant pursuit to stay relevant to the changing needs of workers, the NTUC and its unions have been able to buck the trend of declining union membership world wide. Union membership now stands at 425,000 and is expected to reach 500,000 by the end of this year.

The cost of developing the NTUC office space, which takes up 8 floors of the building, is funded by the Government through a grant of about $75 million. This is Government’s gift to the labour movement. The rest of the development cost of $207 million is funded by SLF.

As a condition of direct alienation of land to SLF, NTUC together with other public and institutional users must occupy at least 50% of the space in One Marina Boulevard. I am pleased to inform that this condition has been met with the tenancy of the Singapore Workforce Development Agency. The other 50% is occupied by private companies, some of which are well known internationally. We would like to take this opportunity to welcome our tenants to One Marina Boulevard. We hope that they would find this a pleasant and enjoyable place to work in.

SLF is proud to be the developer of One Marina Boulevard. It is our honour to build this new home for NTUC. The SLF will continue to support the labour movement to improve the welfare of union members and workers.

On behalf of SLF, I would like to thank our Guest of Honour, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, for officiating the official opening of One Marina Boulevard; union leaders for their support; tenants; consultants; contractors and all our guests for being here this morning to witness this historical event.

Happy May Day.