Singapore job-hiring rates are expected to remain slow going into 2016, keeping in line with the cautious sentiment many sources had in 2015.
Monster.com recently reported data concerning this slowdown in their monthly Monster Employment Index (MEI).
The study examines online job posting activities so that it can effectively record the occupations and industries that have the lowest and highest growth in an economy.
Main highlights:
- Those in the financial and banking sectors are likely to feel the slowdown most intensely.
- Following these two sectors, the hospitality sector will feel the economic burden the most.
Speaking on the recent MEI findings, Mr. Sanhay Modi, the Regional Managing Director of Monster, stated, “Overall, online recruitment has slowed down in Singapore in recent years.
Much of the slowdown is driven by external factors, such as China’s economic slowdown and the influence of the declining oil industry, and these global shifts undoubtedly have an affect on the local labour market over time.”
Continuing this train of thought, Modi added, “Productivity has also remained weak in Singapore, while the tightened labour market has continued to push up real median incomes.
All these factors play into a more cautious approach to hiring across industries, which is likely to continue across 2016.”
Last year, employment growth in both the financial and banking service industries showed quite a decline and this is expected to continue in 2016 as well.
Monster attributed these declines to the practice of banks switching their back offices to reside in cheaper locations. The government’s push for companies to cut down on foreign hiring also led to this decline.
Hospitality talent tends to be in steady demand in Singapore, but slowed down significantly during 2015.
According to Monster’s year-on-year data, there was a full 19% drop in hiring practices in the hospitality industry between August 2014 and 2015. This decline is the steepest the industry has experienced in Singapore since December 2013.