By Goh Chin Lian, Political Correspondent

THE Government, employers and unions are urging companies with excess manpower to consider alternatives like re-deployment and short work-weeks before resorting to retrenchment.

They will issue revised guidelines on managing excess manpower on Wednesday, which will also call on companies to discuss with their unions and the Manpower Ministry (MOM) before laying off workers.

'We urge companies to apply these guidelines and take a longer term view to managing their manpower,' said Acting Manpower Minister Gan Kim Yong on Tuesday in a written reply to an MP's question in Parliament.

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