The local employment in the first half of 2018 grew by 6,500 jobs. This was more than one-and-a-half times the number in the first half of last year, which stood at 4,000 jobs.
The figures were revealed on 13 September 2018 by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) in its statement on labour market developments in the first half of 2018.
The employment growth occurred in sectors such as community, social and personal services, financial and insurance services, information and communications, and transportation and storage.
Foreign employment also grew slightly by 400 in the first half of the year compared to the decline of 21,400 jobs in the same period in 2017.
Overall, the total employment, excluding foreign domestic workers, grew by 6,900 from January to June 2018.
Standing at 5,350, there was also a decline in retrenchment numbers in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2017, which was 7,640.
Restructuring and reorganising remained the top reasons for retrenchment across industries.
Job vacancies had also risen to a three-year high of 56,700 in June 2018. This was an increase from 53,900 in March 2018.
Overall labour productivity rose by 3.9 per cent in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year.
However, the growth was lower than the 4.8 per cent achieved in the second half of 2017.
Productivity growth was supported by sectors such as manufacturing, financial and insurance, accommodation and food services, and wholesale and retail trade.
“As restructuring picks up pace amidst increased economic activity, jobs and skills mismatches will continue to be a challenge. It will, therefore, be increasingly important for workers and businesses to stay agile and responsive to economic transformation and an evolving workforce landscape,” said MOM.
In a Facebook post, NTUC Assistant Secretary-General Patrick Tay urged both employers and workers to embrace changes and disruptions with the right mindset and “to see this period not as a challenge and threat but as an opportunity to re-invent, transform so that we stay ready, relevant, resilient.”
“This is also why the Labour Movement is launching a study to identify the skills and attributes that a Worker 4.0 will require to take on the jobs of tomorrow. In the same vein, our tripartite partners will need to press on with our efforts to prepare workers and businesses for disruptions and to seize the new opportunities,” he added.
