Grads among worst hit as jobless rate increases

Grads among worst hit as jobless rate increases

By Aaron Low

Thu, Mar 19, 2009
The Straits Times

GRADUATES are hurting the most among the growing pool of jobless Singapore residents battered by the economic crisis.

The number of out-of-work degree holders more than doubled last year to 14,800 in December, from 6,200 a year earlier.

They joined an expanding group of unemployed residents - comprising Singaporeans and permanent residents - whose numbers rose from 56,100 in September to 69,900 in December last year.

As a result, the resident unemployment rate worsened further. It rose to 3.7 per cent in December, from 3.3 per cent in September, according to the 2008 labour market report released by the Manpower Ministry yesterday.

Analysts like Nanyang Technological University (NTU) economist Choy Keen Meng blame the rapid rise of unemployed graduates mainly on the financial sector.

The sector, which employs many degree holders, has been downsizing and laying off workers since the global financial fallout erupted in September last year.

The National Trades Union Congress' assistant secretary-general Ong Ye Kung added that struggling companies were also retrenching corporate staff such as their administrative workers, who appeared to be seen as non-essential to the company's survival.

'I've noticed companies are hanging on to those who add directly to the company's bottom line, such as those on the production line or engineers,' he said.

The surge in white-collar layoffs began towards the end of last year. Half of the 7,500 workers retrenched in 2008's final quarter were professionals, managers, executives and technicians: PMETs.

This has stiffened the competition that fresh graduates face. Said DBS economist Irvin Seah: 'They are fighting for the same jobs and fresh grads are at a disadvantage compared to those with experience.'

Between May and July this year, 12,000 fresh graduates are expected to enter the job market.

The plight of the young and jobless graduates has received Government attention. The Monetary Authority of Singapore will set aside $15 million to subsidise internships and attachments of fresh graduates in the financial industry over the next two years.

But Singapore Human Resource Institute executive director David Ang believes they can do with more help.

'The mid-career professionals have conversion programmes. Maybe something of this nature can be replicated for all fresh grads,' he said.

The jobless degree holders are part of a broader group of PMETs who have been hit hard by the recession. Some 5,820 PMETs were retrenched last year, forming 41.8 per cent of the 13,920 laid off.

To ease their plight, the Government launched the Professionals Skills Programme, which aims to retrain them for jobs in new growth sectors, such as health care and digital animation.

Such bleak prospects appear even more brutal when placed against last year's robust job growth: 221,600 jobs were created, just shy of the 234,900 record achieved in 2007.

Services added the most with 136,400 new jobs, followed by construction (64,000) and manufacturing (19,500).

But the gains were made largely in the first nine months. In the final quarter, the job losses jumped to 9,410 from 3,180.

DBS's Mr Seah believes 99,000 jobs will be shed by 2010.

Graduates like Mr Edwin Lim, 27, are now lowering their expectations. Mr Lim, who has a degree in commerce and finance from Australia, has been seeking a finance-related job for two weeks since his return home.

'Now I'm open to other options like marketing, or doing an internship in the finance industry,' he said, adding: 'What I want is to get the experience for a long-term job when the economy turns around.'

- wong chee tat :)