JOBS requiring professional and specialised training continued to command higher salaries in 2007, reflecting the premium on skills and responsibilities.

Wages also rose with age, especially for jobs at the higher end. But this link was less so for the lower skilled and blue-collared workers whose wages rose slightly with age and peaked early in their 30s.

These are some of the key findings of the 'Report on Wages in Singapore, 2007' published by the Ministry of Manpower's Research and Statistics Department.

The 210-page report, out on Monday, provides information on salaries of over 300 occupations as well as wage changes and bonuses paid in various industries. It also includes information on the extent to which employers have restructured their wage systems.

The report shows that managers received the highest median gross monthly wages at $6,101 in June 2007, followed by professionals at $4,030.

The third highest paid were associate professionals and technicians at $2,789, while clerical and sales and service workers were paid close to $2,000.

Among blue-collar occupations, production workers were paid more - at $2,110 - than plant and machine operators ($1,780). The lowest paid were the cleaners, labourers and related workers who took home a median gross pay of $968.

The report also revealed that:

• Amid the strong economic performance and tight labour market, total wages rose by a seven-year high of 5.9 per cent during the year, up from 4.5 per cent in 2006.

  This was a result of a basic wage gain of 4.3 per cent and an increase in bonus payout (also known as annual variable component) from 2.18 months in 2006 to 2.36 months in 2007.

• Labour productivity contracted by 0.9 per cent, after the previous two years of slowing growth.

  After adjusting for higher inflation, real total wages rose by 3.8 per cent and real basic wages by 2.2 per cent. Consequently, real wages outpaced productivity growth in 2007 for the third consecutive year.

  Over a longer period of five years or more, the growth in productivity had kept pace with gains in wages, said the report.

• As at December, 84 per cent of of the workforce in the private sector was under some form of flexible wage system, up slightly from a year ago but significantly higher than 76 per cent in June 2004.

  During the year, more private establishments (18 per cent) that employed low wage workers adopted the National Wages Council's recommendation to give more to these workers, compared with 16 per cent a year ago.

The report can be downloaded from the Ministry of Manpower's website.