Singapore Jobseekers Still Prefer Remote Work, but Employers Are Hesitant

SINGAPORE: Jobseekers in Singapore continue to express a strong interest in remote work opportunities. However, employers appear to be offering fewer positions that allow for this flexibility.

Data from Indeed, a global employment website, reveals that only 6.6 percent of job postings included terms like “work from home” or “remote work” in May 2023, a significant drop from the levels seen in late 2021. Despite this trend, one out of every 28 job searches still features references to remote work, making it one of the most sought-after keywords among Singaporean jobseekers.

“Jobseekers continue to value the flexibility offered by remote work,” said Callam Pickering, the APAC Senior Economist at Indeed. “It will be interesting to see whether this apparent disconnect between employers and jobseekers hampers the ability of some employers to attract suitable candidates going forward,” he added, as reported by The Economic Times last week.

In May, job postings on Indeed for Singapore showed a 1.2 percent decrease compared to the previous month. This marks the seventh consecutive month of decline, with postings down 16.5 percent from one year ago, reaching their lowest level since September 2021. However, the current figures still represent a 1.7 times increase compared to pre-pandemic levels.

“Singapore’s labour market remains incredibly tight, with strong demand for workers and low unemployment. Nevertheless, the declining volume of job postings over the past seven months suggests a more challenging economic environment. This includes a global slowdown, which will likely lead to further reductions in job postings for the rest of the year,” Pickering noted.

With the Singapore economy contracting in the first quarter of the year, this decrease in job postings serves as a clear indicator of the slowdown affecting the labour market. Currently, the unemployment rate stands at 1.8 percent, and it is expected to rise throughout the year.