The current recession looks set to turn Singapore into a nation of teachers and civil servants. One out of five jobs available is in education and public administration, according to the latest survey. Fewer workers are needed in the construction and manufacturing industries.
Out of the 36,000 jobs available in Singapore at the end of September, 7,700 were in education and public administration, according to the Ministry of Manpower’s third quarter survey. While 1,300 were clerical positions, the rest were for professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs).
Singapore as a whole had more jobs available for PMETs (17,100) than for lower paid clerical, sales and service workers (9,000) and the lowest income group of production operators, cleaners and labourers (9,900).
But the bad news is there were fewer job openings in the main drivers of the economy: 6,400 in manufacturing, 2,700 in construction, 3,300 in wholesale and retail trade, another 2,700 in hotels and restaurants.
Also drying up are more lucrative or high-tech jobs – there were just 1,200 positions to fill in financial services, 1,000 in IT and other information services, and only 100 in telecommunications. There were 400 jobs in broadcasting and publishing. Real estate and leasing services had 1,100 openings and another 2,000 were in the transport and storage industries.
The growing healthcare and social services sector had 1,300 jobs to fill, including 700 for PMETs.
There were 3.3 percent jobless Singaporeans, up from 3.1 percent in the second quarter, but no increase in overall unemployment at 2.2 percent.
Singapore citizens and permanent residents make up 3.64 million of Singapore’s 4.84 million population – the rest are foreigners.
Sixty percent of the population or 2.93 million have jobs.
Average monthly earnings
Average monthly earnings in the third quarter were 3,307 Singapore dollars ($2,245), down by 0.9 percent, according to the Manpower Ministry's survey. All figures here are in Singapore dollars with the rise or fall in jobs indicated in brackets.
- Manufacturing 3,311 (-0.9)
- Construction 2,421 (-0.9)
- Services as a whole 3,378 (-1.0)
- Wholesale and retail trade 2,884 (-0.9)
- Transport and storage 3,671 (-2.3)
- Hotels and restaurants 1,282 (-1.5)
- Information and communications 4,534 (-0.6)
- Financial services 5,600 (-2.1)
- Real estate and leasing services 2,790 (-2.0)
- Professional services 4,299 (-1.4)
- Administrative and support services 2,046 (-5.8)
- Community, social and personal services 3,304 (-1.4)
There were 81 job openings for every 100 job seekers in September 2008, down from 89 in June 2008 and the peak of 134 in December 2007, says the report.
The report adds:
Eleven percent of services firms still expect employment to increase in the fourth quarter to cope with the year-end festival activities (but this is not as optimistic as in the previous quarter of net 17%). The most sanguine are hotels and catering (34%) and real estate (23%) companies, even more upbeat than in the previous quarter. Net more firms in transport & storage (14%) and wholesale & retail trade (10%) also anticipate additional hiring. In contrast, after being positive in their employment outlook since Q4 02, there is a net share of financial services firms (7%) which expect a cutback in their workforce in the remaining quarter this year.
Hiring sentiment for the fourth quarter was unfavourable as a net 3% among manufacturing firms predict headcount trimming in tandem with their gloomy business prospects prediction ahead, thus ending their quarterly positive employment outlook since the second quarter of 2005. The exception is transport engineering cluster (which includes the marine and offshore engineering, aerospace and land transport segments) that anticipates demand for workers to increase (with a net weighted balance of 4%, down from 13% a quarter ago).
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