Singapore Unemployment at 10-year low

[zuoom]

We may have low unemployment figures. But the question to ask might be, what kind ot employment are we having?

[Vorsprung durch Technik]

many worked for or under the foreign talents. sadly the world is driving by money, a tool that entice people to do evil things.

[Cobra]

We may have low unemployment figures. But the question to ask might be, what kind ot employment are we having?

Population level in Jun 2010 was 5,080,000.
Employment level in 3Q 2010 was 3,075,500.
Unemployment rate(SA) in Sep 2010 was 2.1%  (relative to 3,3 in Sep'09)

Total employment is estimated to have grown by 24,100 in the third quarter of 2010. The increase was about the same as in the previous quarter (24,900) but lower than in the first quarter of 2010 (36,500). This brought total employment growth in the first 9 months of 2010 to 85,500, compared to a flat growth of 100 in the corresponding period in 2009 due to the global economic downturn.

But these are statistics you know what I mean?

[Vorsprung durch Technik]

ya... never trust the economists with theirs stats.

[zuoom]

Sweeping law changes proposed to tackle illegal employment agents
By Imelda Saad | Posted: 22 November 2010 1903 hrs

Photos   1 of 1         

Foreign workers in Singapore


SINGAPORE: Authorities are clamping down on illegal employment agencies in a bid to stem growing problems associated with workers left in a lurch such as unpaid salaries and unscrupulous employers.

Sweeping changes to the Employment Agencies Act were tabled in Parliament on Monday, the first time in 26 years that the Act is being amended.

Employment agencies act as middlemen linking up job seekers with employers. They deal with both local and foreign workers.

But industry players say the problem is often with agencies dealing with foreign workers.

Although there are more than 2,500 licensed employment agencies now, unlicensed ones are still sought after.

The reason - money.

Industry players say a licensed agency can potentially pocket thousands of dollars worth of kickbacks from an unlicensed one by supplying them labour.

"Someone who recommends a job to a worker and goes maybe to a coffeeshop owner and says 'look, I have this worker'. Sometimes, somehow the kickbacks get shared among a few people at the expense of the poor foreign worker," said Shirley Ng, president of the Association of Employment Agencies.

A foreign worker could pay up to S$8,000 to an agent to work in Singapore, only to be left jobless when he arrives here.

Ms Ng said: "In the worst case scenario, an unlicensed employment agency may offer a job, or shall we say on the pretext of offering a job to workers when there's actually no such job available. After taking the kickbacks, they disappear and these workers are left stranded and becomes a social problem to Singapore."

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said current laws contain loopholes for abuse.

To address this, penalties will be enhanced and accountability raised for key stakeholders.

For example, unlicensed employment agencies could face a fine of up to S$80,000 and two years' jail instead of a flat fine of S$5,000.

Repeat offenders could face a fine of up to S$160,000 and four years in jail.

To curb the demand for the services of illegal agents, those who knowingly engage or are in cahoots with unlicensed ones also face the law.

For example, licensed agents who make employment-related applications on behalf of unlicensed ones without conducting due diligence, could be fined up to S$80,000 and jailed up to two years.

Those who engage an unlicensed employment agency could be fined S$5,000 for every worker recruited through an unlicensed employment agency.

To raise the accountability for all stakeholders, all agents including rank and file staff will need to be registered and certified.

Currently only licensees of employment agencies need to be certified.

There are also plans for a higher security deposit, currently pegged at up to $20,000. MOM said it will only reveal the new quantum at a later date.

The bar for employment agency licensees and personnel will be raised. Those with a criminal record, for example, will be debarred.

The range of scenarios in which licences may be revoked will also be expanded to include employment agencies which have ceased operations for a continuous period of six months.

MOM will also introduce a new Office of Commissioner of Employment Agencies, which will be assisted by deputy and assistant commissioners, to assume the responsibility for the overall administration of the Employment Agencies Act.

To give time for employment agencies to adjust, the changes will be phased in.

The new law is expected to kick in by April next year but staff of employment agencies have up to three years, till April 2014, to get certified.

Key appointment holders like managers and directors have to do so earlier, by 2012.

Welcoming the proposed changes, Ms Ng said they will also help to level the playing field for bonafide employment agencies.

"Can you imagine, we are governed by so many restrictions and these unlicensed people are doing business any way they like. So I think it's not fair because we are always subjected to the stress and fear of breaking the rules," said Ms Ng.

MOM could not give a figure on the number of unlicensed employment agencies in Singapore.

But considering the rising number of complaints, the problem may be rampant.

The number of complaints against agencies rose from 529 in 2006 to 1,280 in 2009.

Industry players say the problem may have spiked because of the large inflow of foreign workers during the economic boom years.

- CNA/ir

via : http://singsupplies.com/showthread.php?t=80670

[zuoom]

employee market... for now.

SINGAPORE, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's seasonally adjusted overall unemployment rate fell slightly to 2.1 percent in the third quarter this year from the previous quarter's 2.2 percent, official data showed on Wednesday.

But this is a significant improvement from a year ago, when unemployment peaked at 3.3 percent during the economic downturn, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Manpower.

The Singapore economy continued to create jobs in the third quarter of 2010, though the pace has eased from the robust gains earlier in the year.

Employment rose by 20,500 in the third quarter of 2010, after growing by 24,900 in the preceding and 36,500 in the first quarter.

This brought total gains in the first nine months to 82,000, in contrast to an almost flat growth of 100 over the same period last year when the economy was in recession.

Job vacancies rose by 36 percent over the year to 50,200 in September 2010, the highest recorded since the comparable series started in March 2006.

After adjusting for seasonality, job vacancies dipped slightly by 1.7 percent from the previous quarter, after rising for five straight quarters.

With the decline in unemployment, the ratio of job vacancies to unemployed persons edged up to a seasonally adjusted 1.06 this September from 1.04 this June.

via : http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/business/2010-12/15/c_13649832.htm

[zuoom]

Optimism at career fair
by S Ramesh
05:55 AM Jan 28, 2011
SINGAPORE - More job options and possibly higher starting salaries. That's the upbeat mood among those who attended the annual National University of Singapore (NUS) Career Fair yesterday.

There was a buzz as undergraduates made their way through the fair, with a record 145 employers from diverse sectors taking part, offering some 4,200 positions.

One of the fair's biggest participants is the public service, with nearly every ministry and statutory board having a booth to explain employment opportunities to graduates.

The NUS graduate employment survey is expected in April, but there is already an upbeat sense on starting salaries.

Professor Tan Eng Chye, NUS Deputy President (Academic), said: "For graduates, you are talking about a salary range from $2,500 to $3,500, depending on the professions. But sentiments are very positive."

Graduate Alex Liu, said: "All of us are pretty optimistic."

A Japan Pavilion is also part of the fair for the first time. Ten Japanese chemical companies with operations here are showcasing the sector, offering 80 jobs.

To give its undergraduates a leg up, NUS is working with the Singapore Human Resource Institute (SHRI) to provide them employment and internship opportunities.

SHRI executive director David Ang said: "We can be more focused when guiding the graduates on the kinds of jobs they want. At the same time, we also inform the career centre about the needs of employers."

Some 7,000 students are expected to benefit from the fair over the next two days.

SOURCE: http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC110128-0000211/Optimism-at-career-fair

via : http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/showthread.php?t=3085187

[zuoom]

Unemployment up to 2.1% in second quarter

SINGAPORE'S unemployment crept up to 2.1 per cent in the second quarter of this year, from a three-year low of 1.9 per cent in the previous quarter.

The Manpower Ministry, in releasing preliminary estimates, said the rise came as a result of slower job creation.

The 22,800 jobs created between April and June represented a 19 per cent fall from the previous quarter and is a second consecutive quarter-on-quarter decline in employment growth.

The services sector alone accounted for the drop, with new jobs in that sector falling from 26,500 to 18,800. Job creation picked up speed in the other two sectors - manufacturing and construction.

The Ministry estimates that 81,300 Singapore residents were unemployed as of June this year, up from 54,300 in March.

The figure reflects "the increase in job seekers as tertiary graduates entered the labour market and students sought employment during the mid-year school vacation", it said.

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_696106.html


Singapore 'likely to be hit' if US defaults
By Aaron Low, Economics Correspondent
SINGAPORE is likely to be among the worst-hit countries in Asia should the United States default on its massive debts leading to a financial crisis, warned Credit Suisse yesterday.

This is because US banks account for almost 15 per cent of total domestic bank lending here, said the bank in a report.

In such a default cum credit crunch scenario, American banks would almost certainly withdraw their funds from the region, including Singapore, said Credit Suisse head of India and South-east Asia economics Robert Prior-Wandesforde.

'Should the US default and a credit crunch happen, it would make the fall of Lehman look like a picnic,' he added, referring to the collapse of Lehman Brothers investment bank in September 2008, an event that triggered the financial crisis.

US lawmakers have been locked in heated, partisan talks over raising a statutory limit on the US borrowings ceiling ahead of an Aug2 deadline.

If the US fails to raise this debt ceiling, it could default on its obligations - sending shock waves across global financial markets, said analysts.

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_696089.html

via : http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/showthread.php?t=3339503

[zuoom]

From http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_724963.html


The survey of 450 executives showed that 42 per cent expect to increase their headcount, compared to 56 three months ago, one of the sharpest drops in sentiment since the survey began back in 2003. -- ST PHOTO: ENRIQUE SORIANO

Hit by the uncertain global environment, businesses here have cut their hiring expectations for the next few months, as they take a wait and see approach on getting new staff, a survey by Hudson said on Wednesday.

The survey of 450 executives showed that 42 per cent expect to increase their headcount, compared to 56 three months ago, one of the sharpest drops in sentiment since the survey began back in 2003.

Financial services was the worst hit as the strong volatility in the markets dampened confidence in the sector. One in three financial firms said they will hire, while 13 per cent of them said they will decrease staff on their payroll.

The drop in hiring expectations is surprising since most businesses continue to be positive about their performance for the next six months. About 77 per cent of firms believe performance will be good or excellent, said Hudson.

via : http://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/showthread.php?t=3446933

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now, what does that tell you? (locally)

[zuoom]

More workers are expected to be retrenched this year compared with the figure last year, as signs of an economic slowdown become more evident, labour chief Lim Swee Say said on Sunday.

As demand slows, some companies are already putting their workers on a shorter work week, such as having them work only four days a week, he noted.

But he stressed that the situation is nowhere close to the economic downturn of 2008.

The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), together with the Workforce Development Agency, is working with affected employers to send workers for training on the extra day off before they consider layoffs.

via : http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Singapore/Story/STIStory_736291.html

[zuoom]

what kind of employment here?

The table below provides the year-end stock of Employment Pass (P1, P2, Q1 and Personalised Employment Pass) and S Pass holders from 2006 to 2010. These figures include Employment Pass Eligibility Certificate[1] (EPEC) holders who have converted their EPEC to an Employment Pass (EP) or S Pass.

EP and S Pass
06: 110,000
07: 143,000
08: 188,000
09: 197,000
10: 240,000

EP
06: 81,000
07: 99,000
08: 114,000
09: 115,000
10: 142,000

S Pass
06: 29,000
07: 44,000
08: 74,000
09: 82,000
10: 98,000

via : http://yawshinleong.blogspot.com/2011/11/number-of-employment-passes.html

some comments on FB.

Lim Yong Siang S Pass undermined the minimum qualifications and quality expected of FW and also the employment opportunities of all SINGAPOREANS. Try competing with a FW that by taking a $600-2000/mth salary is comparableto their better high income jobs back home. Lower level worker can enter Singapore thru shorter term work permits. How can NTUC's call to hire Singaporean first ring true if they dont protest against such huge increase in permits.

Jau Goh Actually should ask for further break down on which sector these passes are going to? I know that construction industry is short of workers and MOM is indeed making it harder to get foreign workers. How many Singaporeans are willing to be construction workers?

Weiwen Loh This doesn't look right.. If only so few S pass n EP issued, why are there 2 million over foreigners in Singapore? Further this doesn't take into account those liars who come n on "holiday" n end up working n extending their stay.

via : http://www.facebook.com/theonlinecitizen