SINGAPORE: Hiring slowed in the second quarter of 2020 but did not come to a standstill, according to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) Manpower Research and Statistics Department.
Despite weaker hiring sentiments, “a good number” of retrenched workers re-entered employment – about seven in 10 retrenched workers re-entered employment within a month, said MOM in its latest jobs situation report on Monday (Sep 7).
The majority of those who were retrenched and found new jobs did not experience “sizeable pay cuts”, defined by MOM as an income decline of at least 5 per cent.
HIRING SLOWED BUT DID NOT STAND STILL
The observations were based on a study of 2,160 residents who were retrenched in the first quarter of 2020, using the same methodology as a study on retrenched workers in Q1 of 2018.
The 2020 study showed that 39 per cent had re-entered employment by June 2020, compared to the 47 per cent who did the same by June 2018.
“This suggests that job prospects for retrenched workers held up, despite their job search taking place in a much weaker employment market and within the ‘circuit breaker’ period during which many activities were disrupted,” said MOM.
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Professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) and those in their 30s and 40s were more likely to have found jobs, said the study.
About half of the retrenched workers surveyed have transferrable skills that allowed them to switch to a different industry while 60 per cent of those who found a job did not take a “sizeable pay cut”.
A chart showing the occupation and industry change among residents who were retrenched in the first quarter of 2020 and found employment. (Image: Ministry of Manpower)
These findings suggested that hiring slowed in the second quarter of 2020 but did not come to a standstill, said MOM.
“Despite the weakness in the employment market, majority who found jobs did so relatively quickly with modest impact to salary,” said MOM.
To help companies retain workers during this period, the Government launched the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS), which was introduced at the first budget in February. More than S$16 billion of JSS payouts have been disbursed, benefitting more than 2 million local workers in more than 150,000 firms, said the manpower ministry.
“With the JSS extended till Mar 2021, most businesses will receive wage support for 17 months to help them retain as many workers as possible,” said MOM.
Another S$1 billion was also set aside to support businesses to hire locals under the Jobs Growth Incentive (JGI) scheme, which provides salary support to help firms that continue to do well to bring forward their hiring plans and grow their local workforce from September 2020 to February 2021.
With the extension of the JSS, MOM said this was a “major boost” for job creation for locals.
“However, we recognise that despite companies’ best efforts and the coverage from JSS and JGI, some employers may still need to make adjustments to their businesses to stay viable, including conducting retrenchments,” said the manpower ministry.
“The Government will take active steps to ensure that workers who faced displacements would be able to find alternative employment and get back on their feet quickly.”
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SUPPORTING WORKERS, BUSINESSES IN THE TOURISM SECTOR
With global travel restrictions in place due to COVID-19, MOM said the tourism sector had to “pivot quickly” to capture new business opportunities while preparing for an eventual recovery.
Many employers have tried to retain workers by redesigning jobs and training existing employees to take on new roles.
In February 2020, Workforce Singapore (WSG) rolled out two new reskilling programmes under the tourism sector as part of the COVID-19 support measures for businesses and workers.
These include the Job Redesign Reskilling programme for the hotel industry and the Digital Marketing Reskilling programme for Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE), Attractions and Tour and Travel sectors.
“These served to minimise potential retrenchment and ensure that the hard-hit tourism sector would have the skilled manpower they need to meet business demand when it returns,” said MOM.
As of end-August, more than 1,400 workers from about 100 hotels and tourism companies were, or are being, retrained and redeployed to new or “higher-value” roles.
Employers in the tourism sector can also tap on the Enhanced Training Support Package to reskill and upskill their workforce. A total of 28,000 training places have been filled.
OPPORTUNITIES IN THE TOURISM SECTOR
Although hiring demand dropped in the past six months, some businesses in the tourism sector were able to move into new markets and products, as well as uncover new growth areas.
For example, with work from home being the default, some hotels started offering packages for individuals to work from a hotel with easy access to amenities.
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There were also opportunities for tour operators to adjust their domestic tours to include topics that attract Singaporeans, said MOM.
With virtual events becoming more common, the MICE sector also started seeing a rise in alternative solutions such as exploring hybrid events and using technology to host meetings and conferences.
The shift into these new areas meant refreshed job opportunities, and also created opportunities for workers and job seekers who were able to embark on new careers within the sector, said MOM.
“Job seekers who are keen to enter the tourism sector or existing workers in tourism sector looking to reskill for new opportunities can tap on the SGUnited Jobs and Skills programmes,” added the ministry.
Since April, more than 2,400 job, traineeship, company attachment and training opportunities have been made available, offered by more than 220 companies in the tourism sector.
About 41 per cent of opportunities in jobs, traineeships and company attachments are in PMET roles.
Chart showing the SGUnited job, traineeship, company attachment and training opportunities in the tourism sector. (Image: Ministry of Manpower)
Between April to July 2020, more than 900 individuals found jobs or took on new roles in tourism through the SGUnited Jobs and Skills programme.
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About 87 per cent were mid-career individuals who took part in career conversion programmes for new hires or to reskill existing workers for new jobs. About 51 per cent of these individuals were aged 40 and above.
Fresh and recent graduates, as well as mid-career job seekers who lack relevant experience or skills, but have a keen interest to enter the tourism sector can tap on traineeships or company attachments under the SGUnited Traineeships and SGUnited Mid-Career Pathway programmes.
They can also take tourism courses under the SGUnited Skills programme to undergo training to take on certain roles. Courses in areas such as digital marketing, social media marketing and business analytics are also available, which will better prepare job seekers to take on new roles in the tourism sector, said the ministry.
“MOM and WSG will continue to support job seekers and workers, and match them to meaningful opportunities,” it said.
To help job seekers navigate opportunities under the SGUnited Jobs and Skills Package, WSG conducted 50 outreach and engagement activities across Singapore in August.
This allowed 12,000 job seekers to meet hiring companies and obtain career guidance to improve their job search.
The next SGUnited Jobs and Skills Info Kiosks will be held at the Lot One Shoppers’ Mall and Causeway Point from Sep 11 to Sep 13, 10.30am to 8.30pm. The SGUnited Jobs and Skills Series will be held at Oasis Terrace @ Punngol on Sep 25 and Sep 26, 10am to 7pm.
