About 41,100 job seekers employed in Q1

Non-resident employment was higher than resident employment.

Employment in Singapore, excluding migrant domestic workers, went up by 41,100 in the first quarter of 2022, which is slightly lower than the previous quarter's 47,900, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) revealed.

After the border restrictions were lifted, the increase in non-resident employment was “significantly greater” than resident employment as employers replenished their non-resident workforce. This was on the back of an increase for work permit holders in the construction sector. 

MOM reported that resident employment growth was steady amongst the information and communications and financial services industry. The former was driven by strong demand for IT and digitalisation whilst the latter was driven by activities dealing with financial services and payments processing.

Resident employment, however, decreased in food & beverages services, retail trade, and accommodation. These sectors typically experience employment declines due to seasonal hiring for the “year-end festive period in the fourth quarter.”

In March 2022, resident and citizen unemployment rates remained unchanged from February 2022 at 3% and 3.2%, respectively. The overall employment rate inched up from 2.1% to 2.2%, which is comparable to pre-pandemic rates.

Data also showed that retrenchments went down to a record low of 1,300 or 0.6 retrenched per 1,000 employees amidst a tight labour market.

With the relaxation of border measures from April, MOM sees non-resident employment to continue to recover but it warned that downside risks to economic growth such as Russia-Ukraine war may affect labour demand.