Vacancies hit new high in tight labour market

Q1 data shows most of these were non-PMET positions in construction, manufacturing

- Tay Hong Yi

Singapore's labour market continues to tighten, with job vacancies hitting a new high in the first quarter of this year and not enough workers to fill them.

Many businesses are trying to fill positions previously left vacant and to meet rising demand.

The number of vacancies rose to 128,100 in March, up from 117,100 in December, according to a labour market report released yesterday.

The ratio of job vacancies to unemployed people grew to 2.42 which means more than two positions are available for every unemployed person. This ratio is the highest it has been since 1998.

However, the 9 per cent rate of increase in vacancies is lower than the 17 per cent jump seen in the previous quarter.

The bulk of the vacancies were in construction and manufacturing, mainly for non-professional, managerial, executive and technical (non-PMET) roles typically held by migrant workers. There were also vacancies for PMET roles in the financial services, information and communications, public administration and education, and professional services sectors.