More jobs available than workers

JOBS are now chasing workers, in a market that has rebounded robustly to pre-recession levels.

In the first three months of this year, there were 139 job openings for every 100 job seekers - a figure not seen since December 2007, just before the economy went south.

This is up from 104 job openings for every 100 job seekers seen from October to December last year, the Manpower Ministry noted in its latest quarterly labour market report, released yesterday.

The report said there were 49,300 job vacancies in March, a substantial 32 per cent increase over the year.

While National Trades Union Congress deputy secretary-general Ong Ye Kung said the report was healthy and one 'which many countries will envy', he cautioned that it did not mean there were no problems in the labour market.

Significant challenges remain, he said, pointing to developments in Europe and the United States as areas to watch.

'If growth in the US stalls and Europe goes into a currency crisis, the impact on Singapore will be severe. Unemployment will go up, not down. That will be very painful to many Singaporeans,' he told The Straits Times.

Agreeing, Bank of America Merrill Lynch economist Chua Hak Bin said that while the figures show that demand for labour is strong, especially for services, there 'have been some signs of economic growth deceleration'.

'Looking ahead, we are headed towards a soft patch in the next few quarters as our momentum will begin to slow due to the global influences of China's tightening of credit conditions and Japan's export disruptions because of the earthquake.'

Yesterday's ministry data showed that against the backdrop of healthy economic growth and a tight labour market, the unemployment rate here fell to its lowest level in three years.

The overall rate fell to 1.9 per cent as at March, down from 2.2 per cent at the end of December last year.

Commenting on the data, Citigroup economist Kit Wei Zheng cited two broad trends for the surge in job vacancies.

One is the creation of new positions in the service sector. The other is that vacancies can no longer be readily filled by foreigners, possibly due to stricter regulation of the inflow.

The Government has moved to tighten the tap, in part to force companies to hire Singaporeans, and also to get them to look at other ways to improve productivity in the workplace.

The service sector led the way with the most job openings. It accounted for 36,100 or 73 per cent of total vacancies as at the end of March.

The greatest demand for new hires was from the community, social and personal services industries. These industries include health and social services.

Reasons for the high demand could be the ageing population and a need to fill positions such as therapists, counsellors and welfare workers, said Mr David Leong, managing director of regional human resource firm People Worldwide Consulting.

'This could be a result of the Government focusing more on providing social support to the aged and distressed families, which has led to these industries hiring more aggressively,' he added.

Other sectors such as manufacturing and construction contributed 18 and 7.5 per cent of the job vacancies respectively.

Looking ahead, the squeeze is unlikely to be alleviated.

Mr Leong expects the construction sector to experience strong demand over the next 12 to 18 months, due to recent announcements by the Housing Board of a ramp-up in flat-building.

The ministry's report yesterday also noted that fewer workers were laid off and that employment creation was fairly strong in the first quarter of the year.

Total employment rose by 28,300 - although this was down from the seasonal high of 33,900 in the last quarter of last year, when companies took on more hires to meet demand over the festive season.

Most of the gains in the first quarter were from the service sector, which saw 26,500 new hirings.

Despite strong job creation in the first quarter, segments of the population remain out of work.

Nearly three in 10 unemployed residents in March were degree-holders. They made up 28 per cent of 54,300 unemployed residents. Diploma and professional qualification holders made up a further 18 per cent.

Mr Ong said the majority of those unemployed can, with training, secure a job over time. But older workers and very low-skilled workers are vulnerable.

'While we work with many employers who welcome older workers, there are many who need to take a hard look at their human resource policy and not reject older workers outright,' he said. 'Please look at the candidate based on his experience and skills.'