As the situation was rapidly deteriorating in 2020, the government introduced unprecedented measures to bolster the Singapore economy and jobs market. This included the SGUnited Jobs & Skills Package, which had the aim to create 100,000 openings for jobseekers, as well as salary support schemes as the Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) and Jobs Growth Incentive (JGI).
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With the measures in place, there still remained the softer side of helping jobseekers overcome barriers to getting new jobs. In the Jobs Situation Report (18th Edition), the government spotlights the top 5 challenges that jobseekers faced in getting new jobs. It also reported various ways Workforce Singapore (WSG) and NTUC’s e2i helped jobseekers overcome barriers to getting a new job and accessing opportunities.
5 minute read
While employers may wish for their employees to stay with them for a long time and to grow their business along with them, the reality is that employees come and go.
In the same way employers do not have to continue working with employees who fall short of their expectations, employees can leave when they find another position they value more.
In fact, the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) clearly states that “all employees, including those on fixed term contract, can resign at any time, as long as they serve the require notice”. In short, employers cannot reject an employee’s resignation.
4 minute read
The Ministry of Finance (MOF) has announced that Budget 2021 will be delivered on 16 February 2021 at 3pm.
Many Singaporeans and Singapore businesses will be eagerly anticipating the announcement. However, Budget 2021 will unlikely deliver such wide sweeping measures and incur such a deficit to bolster the Singapore economy compared to Budget 2020. Remember that in 2020, there were 4 separate budget announcements and 2 Ministerial Statements to supplement it as the coronavirus situation deteriorated.
Budget 2021 will likely provide more targeted help for businesses. Many of the initiatives to help businesses that was announced in Budget 2020 has ended or will be ending at some point in 2021. And, Budget 2021 will provide clarity to what kind of help businesses (and individuals) will get going forward.
4 minute read
Overall, there has been broad improvements in the labour market for the period of the report. However, the labour market is still not back at pre-COVID conditions. Uncertainties in the economic environment will continue to weigh on the recovery of the labour market, said MOM.
Here are the main takeaways from the estimations in the preliminary report.
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#1 Employment Of Residents (Singaporeans And PRs) Rebounded To Pre-COVID Levels
According to MOM’s estimates, the number of employed Singaporeans and PRs had returned to pre-COVID levels by the end of 2020. In the last quarter of the year, resident employment grew by 28,900, after increasing by 43,200 in the previous quarter. This was due to a pick-up in business activities after the circuit breaker in April and May.
3 minute read
Are you worried about 2021 right
now? The answer could very much depend on who you are asking, and likely, where
you stay.
In Singapore, things are looking rosy when compared to 2020. While we are still seeing COVID-19 imported cases each day, community cases in our country are currently low. We are also one of the countries that have already started our nationwide vaccination program. At the cost of more than $1 billion, the government aims to have the entire population vaccinated by 3Q2021 (or at least those who choose to be vaccinated). People are starting to go out often, some possibly, begrudgingly, if they are asked to come to the office by their bosses – despite the recent reminder that work-from-home (WFH) should remain as the default arrangement in Phase 3.