All employers are required to maintain detailed employment records of employees covered under the EA.  For current employees, the records for the latest 2 years have to be kept and for ex-employees, the records for the last two years of employment have to be kept for 1 year after the employee leaves employment. The employment records must be in soft or hard copy, and includes the employee records and salary records.

The employee records must contain the following employee details:

Failure to maintain detailed employment records in accordance with the EA will attract administrative penalties of a fine[12] of S$100 to S$200 for the first occurrence, and S$200 to S$400 for subsequent occurrences depending on the breach, and/or issue such directions to rectify the civil contravention. A failure to comply with such directions from MOM will constitute a criminal offence, which attracts more severe penalties of fines up to S$5,000 and/or imprisonment of up to 6 months, and a further fine not exceeding S$500 for every day during which the offence continues.

Please note that this section of the Employment Law Guide is a summary provided for general information purposes, aimed at aiding understanding of Singapore’s employment law as at the date of writing. It is not exhaustive or comprehensive and reading this memorandum is not a substitute for reading the text of the various statutes to fully understand the extent of the obligations owed. This guide should also not be relied upon as legal advice.