SNEF President Robert Yap steps down following governance lapse discovery

SINGAPORE: The Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) announced on Tuesday (11 June) that Robert Yap, who has served as their President for the past decade, has resigned.

This decision follows the discovery of a “governance procedural lapse” during a routine internal review, as disclosed by the organization.

In response, SNEF promptly engaged an external consultant to conduct a comprehensive review of its internal processes.

While this independent review is ongoing, SNEF has emphasized that it is not currently aware of any financial implications stemming from the identified lapse.

“The council takes seriously the federation’s responsibility in upholding governance ideals expected by all our stakeholders and will be directly overseeing this independent review.”

Although the statement did not provide specific reasons for Dr Yap’s resignation, it did confirm his departure from the council as well.

Dr Yap, who also served as a council member, is the executive chairman of the supply chain and logistics company YCH Group.

He initially joined the SNEF council in June 2013 and later assumed the role of president in September of the following year.

Additionally, Dr Yap holds prominent positions such as the president of the ASEAN Confederation of Employers and serves as the Singapore chair of both the ASEAN Business Advisory Council and the Malaysia-Singapore Business Council.

“I thank the SNEF council, SNEF members and tripartite stakeholders for their years of support. I have worked hard to advance the interests of my members and tripartism in Singapore, ” said Dr Yap.

“It is never easy but I have done what I can. It is also time to hand over the reins of leadership.”

Acknowledging the decision of the council to engage an external consultant for an independent review, Dr Yap commented, “It is always good to review governance procedures so that organisations can continue to improve and learn from any organisational weaknesses.”

SNEF represents the interests of businesses in Singapore, boasting a membership of over 3,300 companies with a combined workforce exceeding 800,000.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) confirmed that it was notified by SNEF regarding Dr Yap’s resignation and stated that the union is currently conducting an internal process review.

While MOM indicated that there have been no signs of financial implications resulting from this incident thus far, it has requested SNEF to provide updates on the review’s outcomes and promptly share essential documentation upon completion.

MOM stated that it will determine its subsequent actions following the review process.

Asserting the continuity of the tripartite process, MOM emphasized that it will maintain its collaboration with SNEF as a tripartite partner to advance Singapore’s economic and social objectives.