More jobs, fewer takers

MORE jobs were available in the third quarter compared to a year ago, according to figures released yesterday by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), but the number of jobseekers has not caught up.

There were 44,600 job vacancies in September on a seasonally adjusted basis, the third quarter Labour Market report showed, up 34.7 per cent from last September's 33,100.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 2.1 per cent in September from 3.3 per cent a year ago.

The ratio of vacancies to unemployed people, on a seasonally adjusted basis, rose to 1.06 from 1.04 in June. It was 0.9 in March. A figure higher than one means there are more jobs available than there are jobseekers.

MOM said in the report that "with strong manpower demand, job openings outnumbered jobseekers for the second successive quarter".

The report also showed that employment rose by 20,500 in the third quarter, a 46 per cent increase from 14,000 a year ago.

Human-resource experts my paper spoke to agreed that the figures point to a market that favours employees.

Ms Lynne Ng, regional director of Adecco in South-east Asia, said: "It is a jobseekers' market right now, with candidates thinking carefully about their next move and wanting to ensure that they are well remunerated based on their skills and experience."

She added that, with job growth expected to continue into next year, "it's likely that we will see salaries rising over the next 12 months".

Mr David Ang, executive director of the Singapore Human Resources Institute, said the jump in job openings could be due to an improving economy and restrictions on hiring foreigners.

He added that jobs in any sector requiring low skills, such as assembly-line work in the manufacturing sector, are less likely to be filled as jobseekers seek higher-paying jobs.

Mr Marco de Miranda, general manager of Stereolounge bar, said that jobseekers have become more picky.

"Many people are moving into the banking sector and fewer into the services sector. There are job openings, but people are choosy about who they work for," he said, adding that many clubs and restaurants face a similar problem.

This trend was seen late last year, when Singapore was emerging from the recession and has continued into this year, said Mr de Miranda.

The buoyant job market has also had other spillover effects. According to survey results by online job portal JobsCentral released on Tuesday, fewer people are seeking to further their education, with 71.4 per cent saying so, a drop from last year's 79.3 per cent. Mr Lim Der Shing, chief executive of JobsCentral, said: "Working professionals no longer feel an immediate need to upgrade themselves."

While employment rose by 20,500 in the third quarter, the pace was slower than those of the first and second quarters, at 36,500 and 24,900 respectively.

Ms Ng said this could be partly due to the completion of many major construction projects in the first half of the year, so fewer construction workers are required.

kennyc@sph.com.sg

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