Job seekers in Singapore can expect favourable level of opportunities in the October-December period as employers report steady hiring prospects in Q4 2015. These findings are according to recently conducted Manpower Outlook Survey on 665 employers, who forecasts 16% increase in staffing levels, while 3% anticipate a decrease and 69% expect no change.
Linda Teo, country manager of ManpowerGroup Singapore says: “The year-on-year Outlook decline, from +16% to +12%, indicates that while employers expect the hiring pace to remain positive, uncertainties such as weak global demand for exports and China’s sluggish economy, have dampened real hiring intentions in our trade-dependent economy.”
The industries covered for the survey are: Finance, Insurance and Real Estate; Manufacturing; Mining & Construction; Public Administration & Education; Services; Transportation & Utilities; and Wholesale & Retail Trades.
Employers in all of the above listed sectors can anticipate an increase in staffing levels during the October-December period. The strongest labour markets are expected in finance and real estate, public administration and education sector with net employment outlook pegged at +18%.
Respectable job gains as forecasted by employers in the transportation and utilities sector report outlooks of +16%, while mining and construction sector is at +12%. However, wholesale and retail trade sector report the weakest outlook at +4%.
Teo further added: The end of this year is traditionally a busy period for retailers who have to cope with more demand from shoppers. So, more hiring of contingent workers in particular can be expected.”
See: Salaries of IT Professionals in Singapore to Increase at Average 10% to 15%
Asia Pacific Hiring Outlook
More than 15,200 employers were interviewed from the Asia Pacific region, and employers in India, Taiwan and Japan indicated strongest hiring plans. Employers in India reported bullish hiring intentions for the coming quarter with a net employment outlook of +41% – the strongest in APAC region.
The weakest hiring climate is forecasted in China. Chinese employers anticipate modest growth in staffing levels during the coming quarter at +5%. Modest payroll gains are forecast for the October-December time frame with employers reporting a Net Employment Outlook of +8%.
Labour market activity is also slowing in China where employers forecast the weakest hiring environment in more than six years. Meanwhile, the forecast remains negative in Italy, and turns negative again in Greece, France and Finland. Conversely, employer optimism continues to dwindle in Brazil; the fourth-quarter forecast is the weakest among the 42 countries and territories participating in the survey.
Payrolls are expected to increase in all eight Asia Pacific countries and territories. In the Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) region, workforce gains are expected by employers in 19 of 24 countries.
Among these countries in EMEA, payroll growth forecast expected gains are mostly modest with employer optimism apparently tempered—at least in part—by issues associated with the most recent Greek debt crisis. The region’s most active hiring pace is forecast in Romania, while Italian employers again report the region’s weakest year-end hiring plans.
Also read: How much are Singaporean Fresh Grads Getting in Terms of Starting Salary This Year?
