Progressive Wage Model for the food services sector
Who is covered and establishment categories
Coverage requires citizen or PR status, a full-time or part-time contract in food services at an SFA Food Retail or Food Processing central-kitchen licensed premise, and an employer hiring foreign workers. SSIC is not decisive. Category A includes self-collection quick-service outlets, food courts, kiosks, eating houses and supermarket ready-to-eat stations. Category B includes full-service establishments with wait staff or banquet servers outside A, caterers and central kitchens. Work-pass applications and renewals depend on compliance.
Roles and examples
Classification follows duties. Senior cooks direct stations, apply recipes and techniques, support menu development and may oversee kitchen teams. Cooks prepare ingredients and dishes, supervise assistants and maintain equipment; full-service cooks also follow senior-cook directions and manage food rotation, temperatures, storage and handling, while quick-service cooks prepare made-to-order or held-warm batches. Examples include station chefs, commis and line cooks, pastry chefs and bakers.
Other covered roles
Role
Duties and examples
Kitchen assistant, both categories
Basic preparation, portioning and packaging, inventory checks and cleaning preparation areas, equipment, tables and crockery. Full-service staff may assist cooking/plating; quick-service staff may prepare ready food, serve at counters, cashier and pack takeaways. Examples: kitchen crew and bakery assistant.
Food-service counter attendant, A
Prepares or serves simple items in food shops, takes orders and payment, uses commercial equipment and manages online orders. Examples: fast-food or bubble-tea crew, salad and roast-grill counter staff.
Food/drink stall assistant, A
Serves simple items at stalls, takes orders and payments. Examples: food-court or coffeeshop stall staff.
Manager, B
Responsible for profitability and all customer-facing and back-of-house operations, including kitchen and stock. Examples: restaurant or outlet manager.
Waiter supervisor, B
Coordinates and trains service staff, intervenes in customer interactions, ensures compliance, schedules shifts and manages service-staff payroll and manpower budgets.
Waiter, B
Prepares tables, greets and seats customers, handles enquiries/reservations, communicates orders, serves food and collects payment. Includes banquet servers.
All wage schedules
Gross wage includes basic pay, travel, food and housing allowances, and productivity incentives. It excludes bonuses including AWS, stock options, special work-expense reimbursements, benefits in kind and employer CPF contributions. Monthly figures exclude overtime and cover 35–44 hours weekly; part-time rates use 44 hours. Senior cooks and managers have market-determined wages. The updated schedule starts 1 July 2026, with a TCF review planned for 2028.
A: monthly gross minimum
Role
Mar 2025–Jun 2026
Jul 2026–Jun 2027
Jul 2027–Jun 2028
Jul 2028–Jun 2029
Quick-service cook
S$2330
S$2470
S$2610
S$2750
Kitchen assistant / counter attendant
S$2155
S$2295
S$2435
S$2575
Stall assistant
S$2080
S$2220
S$2360
S$2500
A: hourly gross minimum
Role
Mar 2025–Jun 2026
Jul 2026–Jun 2027
Jul 2027–Jun 2028
Jul 2028–Jun 2029
Quick-service cook
S$12.22
S$12.95
S$13.69
S$14.42
Kitchen assistant / counter attendant
S$11.3
S$12.04
S$12.77
S$13.51
Stall assistant
S$10.91
S$11.64
S$12.38
S$13.11
B kitchen: monthly gross minimum
Role
Mar 2025–Jun 2026
Jul 2026–Jun 2027
Jul 2027–Jun 2028
Jul 2028–Jun 2029
Full-service cook
S$2380
S$2520
S$2660
S$2800
Kitchen assistant
S$2180
S$2320
S$2460
S$2600
B kitchen: hourly gross minimum
Role
Mar 2025–Jun 2026
Jul 2026–Jun 2027
Jul 2027–Jun 2028
Jul 2028–Jun 2029
Full-service cook
S$12.48
S$13.22
S$13.95
S$14.69
Kitchen assistant
S$11.43
S$12.17
S$12.9
S$13.64
B service: monthly gross minimum
Role
Mar 2025–Jun 2026
Jul 2026–Jun 2027
Jul 2027–Jun 2028
Jul 2028–Jun 2029
Waiter supervisor
S$2730
S$2875
S$3020
S$3165
Waiter
S$2180
S$2320
S$2460
S$2600
B service: hourly gross minimum
Role
Mar 2025–Jun 2026
Jul 2026–Jun 2027
Jul 2027–Jun 2028
Jul 2028–Jun 2029
Waiter supervisor
S$14.32
S$15.08
S$15.84
S$16.6
Waiter
S$11.43
S$12.17
S$12.9
S$13.64
Overtime and training
Full-time staff working over 44 hours and covered by Employment Act Part 4 must receive both overtime at least 1.5 times basic rate and the PWM gross minimum including overtime. Linked schedules distinguish before and from 1 July 2026. Senior cooks and managers are encouraged, but not required, to take approved WSQ training; other roles need 2 approved WSQ modules or a relevant IHL qualification from an MOE-registered institution. In-house ATO employers may use WSQ modules with TSC prefix FSS. New hires have 6 months from employment to comply. Annex C sets out approved modules and qualifications. Check individual wage records through PW Portal.
All overtime-hour tables and allowance example
Each table covers 0–72 monthly overtime hours. July 2026 stall-assistant example: with S$2,100 basic wage and no overtime, S$120 variable pay meets S$2,220. At 10 hours, illustrated OT of S$16.52 hourly produces S$165.20 and total S$2,265.20; the S$2,383 threshold needs S$117.80 additional variable pay. The report notes that basic wage of at least 93.5% of the baseline can naturally meet corresponding thresholds when combined with required overtime pay, avoiding monthly variable top-ups. Both Part 4 and PWM requirements still apply.