Local employment boosted by curbs

SINGAPORE - The latest employment data shows government efforts to moderate foreign-worker inflows have yielded some rewards.

The number of Singaporeans and permanent residents employed rose by 59,200 last year, substantially higher than the 37,900 increase in 2011.

This finding was released by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) yesterday.

Ms Christina Ng, associate director for financial services and legal at human-resource consultancy Robert Walters, explains that the rise in local employment could be due to an "emphasis by the Singapore Government to use local talent" and that "the cost of expatriate and overseas labour is also rising", making local talents more "value for money".

In a blog post yesterday, Acting Minister for Manpower Tan Chuan-Jin said that the rise in employment among residents could be attributed in part to tightening of foreign-worker controls and the Special Employment Credit (SEC), which encourages hiring of older workers.

Other factors are the re-employment legislation which kicked in last year, and tripartite efforts to encourage flexi-work arrangements, said Mr Tan.

The SEC, enhanced last year, provides payouts to employers based on the wages of every employee over the age of 55 that they hire, while the Retirement and Re-employment Act requires employers to offer re-employment to eligible employees who turn 62, up to the age of 65.

Sixty-four per cent of residents aged between 55 and 64 were employed last year, up from 61.2 per cent in 2011.

MOM also said that amid the tightening of foreign-manpower controls, growth in foreign employment eased to 70,400 last year, from 84,800 in 2011.

Mr Tan also wrote that MOM's policies to moderate foreign-worker inflows "have yielded some results, but we will need to continue to slow the growth".

However, he added that over-moderation could "lead to a vicious downward cycle which will eventually affect locals", and gave the assurance that "the tightening will continue to be targeted and calibrated".

Mr Tan also said that for the first time since the recovery from the economic downturn in 2003, the number of Employment Pass (EP) holders, who hold higher-skilled jobs, has fallen.

The number of EP holders in December last year was 173,800, down from 175,400 a year earlier.

Mr Tan said this is likely due in part to the tighter EP framework from January last year.

He also noted that the demand for foreign workers in the construction sector is still high, "as we ramp up major public infrastructural works".

Last year, total employment increased by 129,600, above the 122,600 seen in 2011.

However, excluding construction workers and foreign domestic workers, the increase in total employment was 87,200 last year, fewer than the 95,600 in 2011.

MOM also said that Singapore's total labour force grew by 3.9 per cent to 3.36 million between June 2011 and June last year.

This figure was supported by the continued increase in labour- force participation among older residents and women.

Females in the prime working ages between 25 and 54 rose to a record 74 per cent last year, from 73 per cent previously.

One reason for these trends, said Ms Ng, is that "rising labour costs and a tight labour market" have discouraged employers from looking for a specific skill set and, instead, encouraged them to be more open to alternative candidates.