Singapore's labor market achieves better performance in Q3

SINGAPORE, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's labor market performed better in the third quarter of 2021 compared to the previous quarter, according to the Labour Market Report released by the Ministry of Manpower on Wednesday.

The report said that Singapore's resident employment grew faster in the third quarter, although total employment declined due to a continued fall in non-resident employment. Meanwhile, there was an easing in unemployment rates and retrenchments.

Singapore's seasonally-adjusted overall unemployment rate declined by 0.1 percentage points to 2.6 percent in September from the previous month. The resident unemployment rate and the citizen unemployment rate both fell by 0.1 percentage points, to 3.5 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively.

However, the resident long-term unemployment rate increased to 1.2 percent in September from 0.9 percent in June, remaining above the pre-COVID level. This points to the need to redouble efforts to reskill the city-state's workforce for future jobs and skills, according to the report.

The report said that as Singapore moves into the "transition phase" of reopening, with travel and dining restrictions easing gradually, the labor market is expected to continue its recovery in the coming months. Nevertheless, the recovery remains uneven across sectors. Resident employment growth in consumer and tourism-related sectors trailed behind outward-oriented sectors.