Singapore's job market is losing steam in early 2025, with employment growth slowing and unemployment ticking up slightly.
KEY POINTS
IN SIMPLE TERMS
Fewer new jobs are being created in Singapore than before, and a bit more people are out of work. The government is worried about the slowdown and has launched new support programmes to help workers learn new skills and companies adjust.
WHY IT MATTERS
WHERE DO YOU STAND?
Should the government prioritise immediate job-creation stimulus over longer-term worker retraining programmes?
👍 👎 Vote ↓Singapore’s labour market faces challenges as employment growth slows and unemployment rates rise slightly in the first quarter of 2025.
According to MOM’s Labour Market Advance Release), Singapore’s labour market showed signs of slowing demand in the first quarter of 2025.
The report, released on 28 April 2025, highlights key labour market trends for the beginning of the year.
While the labour market continued to expand, the pace of growth has slowed compared to previous quarters.
This labour demand slow down was more evident in some outward-oriented sectors.
According to MOM, “Although the labour market continued to expand in 1Q 2025, the pace of employment growth has slowed compared to previous quarters and unemployment rates have edged up slightly from December 2024.”
Total employment in Singapore grew by 2,300 in the first quarter of 2025.
This growth was below the seasonal increase of 7,700 in the fourth quarter of 2024.
It was also lower than the change of 3,200 in the first quarter of 2024.
Resident employment continued to increase in Health & Social Services and Financial Services.
However, it contracted in some outward-oriented sectors such as Professional Services, Manufacturing, and Information & Communications.
Unemployment rates in Singapore rose slightly in the first quarter of 2025 compared to December 2024.
The resident unemployment rate increased from 2.8% to 2.9% between January and March.
The citizen unemployment rate held steady at 3.1% in March compared to February.
However, it was higher than the 2.9% recorded in December 2024.
Despite these increases, unemployment rates remained within the non-recessionary (stable) range.
On a positive note, the number of retrenchments declined in the first quarter of 2025.
Retrenchments fell to 3,300, down from 3,680 in the fourth quarter of 2024.
The incidence of retrenchment remained low at 1.3 retrenched per 1,000 employees.
This was a slight decline from 1.5 in the previous quarter.
Business reorganisation or restructuring remained the top reason for retrenchments in the first quarter of 2025.
The slowing down in labour market trends mirrors the decline in Singapore’s economic outlook.
As quoted in MOM’s press release, “The moderation of employment growth in 1Q 2025, particularly in some outward-oriented sectors, alongside a slight uptick in unemployment, mirrors the deterioration in Singapore’s economic outlook.”
Business sentiments have turned more cautious compared to previous months.
In March 2025, fewer employers expect to hire or raise wages in the next three months.
To address these challenges, the Government introduced measures in Budget 2025 to support employers and workers.
These measures include the introduction of the SkillsFuture Workforce Development Grant (WDG).
The WDG will bring together workforce transformation schemes administered by Workforce Singapore (WSG) and SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG).
The Government is rolling out several SkillsFuture initiatives to help workers adapt to changing labour market conditions.
These include Career Conversion Programmes and the Mid-Career Pathways Programme.
Employers can also benefit from the Support for Job Redesign under the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG-JR).
The SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit will be redesigned in 2026, with a fresh S$10,000 of credits available for workforce transformation programmes.
These initiatives aim to empower Singaporeans to take charge of their careers in an evolving job market.
The government’s focus on skills-first hiring aligns with these SkillsFuture initiatives, encouraging employers to prioritise skills over qualifications.
In response to the changing economic landscape, the Government set up the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce on 16 April 2025.
This taskforce will examine further measures to help businesses and workers navigate immediate uncertainties.
It will also work on positioning Singapore for the new economic landscape.
Do you think Singapore’s labour market will improve in the coming months, or are we headed for more challenging times?
Should the government prioritise immediate job-creation stimulus over longer-term worker retraining programmes?
Be the first to weigh in.
