Job security becoming less important for Singaporean millennials

Average tenure is around two years.

Although salary has been consistently ranked as the most important factor especially for millennials in Singapore, a Randstad study revealed that the importance of job security and financial health of the organisation has fallen more and more compared to five years ago.

According to the Randstad Employer Brand Research, the growth of millennials in the workforce may have led to a decreasing focus on attractiveness factors such as job security. From 61%, only 42% place importance now to job security. Meanwhile, only 39% focus on the financial health of the organisation, a sharp contrast from 55% previously.

"This could be due to the fact that the average tenure of millennials is typically around two years, which means they are essentially placing less importance on these factors," said the report.

The study also noted that salary has been consistently ranked the number one factor in terms of importance since the research started in 2012. Each year, between 63% and 71% of respondents have voted salary as a Top 5 most important aspect.

Meanwhile, work-life balance has risen significantly in terms of ranking, from 32% to 57% between 2012 and 2016, to taking the second spot in the Randstad Employer Brand Research Top 10 Attractiveness Factors.

"According to the Bureau of Labour Statistics, millennials are now the largest generation in the workforce. This generation of employees tend to have their own perspective of what office life should look like and our Attractiveness Factors ranking reinforces this mindset shift with the increasing focus on work-life balance," said the study.