How is the job market in Singapore expected to perform this year?
On 15 March 2018, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) released its report on Labour Market Developments in 2017.
It took stock of the overall performance of the job market last year and highlighted how some key sectors are likely to pan out in 2018.
As we all know, much depends on how the Singapore economy itself will perform in 2018 as job growth is closely linked to economic growth.
The good news? The Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) has projected that the Singapore economy will grow by 1.5 to 3.5 per cent, so jobs for Singaporeans are likely to see growth too.
For last year, the bright spots included the services sector while the weak spots were in industries like construction and marine shipyard which saw weak jobs growth. According to MTI, this trend is likely to continue for the rest of this year.
The Labour Movement is not resting on its laurels, and unions from these weak performing sectors are watching the trends closely and nudging workers to change mindsets, upskill and take on new jobs.
Outlook and Action
Manufacturing: On the whole, the employment outlook for manufacturing will be modest, although the marine shipyard sector is likely to pose a drag, said MOM. The ministry attributes it to the local shipyards facing weak demand.
The union which takes care of workers in the marine shipyard sector is the Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Employees’ Union (SMEEU).
Its president Tommy Goh said while companies in the industry are optimistically cautious, they still intend to press on with the adoption of the Industry Transformation Map (ITM) for the Marine and Offshore Engineering Sector. Launched in February 2018, the plan included creating 1,500 new jobs by 2025.
“Some companies are moving towards addictive manufacturing and digitalisation of their operations. These new areas will need new skills sets and manpower. The union is working with various partners including the Economic Development Board, the trade associations and NTUC’s e2i (Employment and Employability Institute) to conduct awareness workshops and explore ways to help companies to accelerate the adoption of the ITM,” said Mr Goh.
The union will also continue to work on a few areas of concern, namely in employment and re-employment.
“SMEEU’s main concerns for employment are multinational corporations moving their operations out of Singapore to other countries and companies not offering re-employment to employees reaching the age of 62 years old due to the lack of projects,” said Mr Goh.
Construction: This is another sector that is likely to perform poorly in 2018 as there is not much construction activity happening in the private sector. This will impact hiring.
So, what will the Building Construction and Timber Industries Employees’ Union (BATU) be doing about this?
BATU said it will be focusing on preparing workers with the new skillsets required for the construction industry as spelt out in the construction ITM.
These are in the areas of green buildings and Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DfMA).
The union will work with the BCA Academy and institutes of higher learning to help workers plug themselves into these new areas and also hold focus group discussions with stakeholders to take the ITM forward.
