MNCs freeze hiring, but S’pore job market not badly hit: HR outlook

SINGAPORE: Many multinational corporations (MNCs) located in Singapore have already frozen the hiring of staff, due to the prolonged economic challenges in the Eurozone and sluggish growth in the United States.

But Singapore’s job scene is not likely to be badly hit, according to the employment outlook for the first quarter of 2013 painted by Singapore—based human resource consultancy firm, PrimeStaff Management Services.

It said Singapore’s unemployment rate is expected to "remain status quo", although there could be a very slight increase in unemployment.

It believes several sectors will hire aggressively, due partly to the manpower crunch from the tightening of employment policies for foreign workers. They include hospitality, food & beverage, retail, construction and healthcare.

Demand for manpower in niche areas, such as education research, IT and engineering, is set to increase.

Companies in the manufacturing sector are likely to lay off workers, due to sluggish global growth. Those in the banking sector are likely to do likewise, due to stiff competition and the need to restructure the workforce to meet changing market demands.

—CNA/ac