The real income of full-time lower-wage workers at the 20th percentile rose by 4.6 per cent in June 2021 and surpassed that of the pre-COVID level by some 0.6 per cent per annum, according to flash figures released by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
Real income exceeded that of pre-COVID after taking into consideration Workfare Income Supplement (WIS)-related payouts from the Government.
MOM published the findings in its annual Labour Force Advance Release on 1 December 2021.
The ministry said that the real income growth of lower-wage workers has remained strong over the last five years, which has enabled them to narrow the income gap with the median income earners.
Attributing to efforts such as the NTUC mooted Progressive Wage Model (PWM), MOM said the real income growth of full-time employed residents at the 20th percentile was higher than the median income, coming in at 2.8 per cent and 2.2 per cent respectively.
However, it is worth noting that although the nominal income of full-time employed residents grew by some 3.2 per cent in June 2021 compared to the same time last year, real median income growth was around 1.1 per cent, after accounting for inflation.
Employment rate for residents aged 15 and above rebounded from 64.5 per cent in June 2020, to 67.2 per cent in June 2021.
MOM said that this reflected the economy’s recovery as well as the impact of measures such as the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package, the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) and the Jobs Growth Incentive (JGI) on the labour market.
The employment rate of youths aged between 15 to 24 rose some 37.2 per cent in June 2021, compared to 30.9 per cent in June 2020. MOM attributed this to more students taking on part-time or temporary work.
The employment rate of residents aged between 25 to 64 rose by 1.5 per cent to 81.8 per cent in June 2021, compared to the same time last year.
As for seniors aged 65 and above, the employment rate rose to 31.7 per cent in June 2021, compared to 28.5 per cent in June 2020.
MOM said this reflected the sustained efforts to raise the employability of seniors, such as the Senior Worker Early Adopter Grant.
The non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for resident non-PMETs improved from 6.4 per cent in June 2020 to 5.1 per cent in June 2021.
The unemployment rate for resident PMETs also improved during that same period, falling from 3.5 per cent to 3.4 per cent.
The unemployment rates have yet to return to pre-COVID levels.
Resident long-term unemployment rates remained at 0.8 per cent for PMETs and 0.9 per cent for non-PMETs after increasing last year, suggesting that some workers who were displaced earlier are still facing challenges in their job search.
Meanwhile, the resident time-related under-employment rate improved from 4.1 per cent in June 2020 to 3.5 per cent in June 2021. The rates remain above pre-COVID levels.
