3% of employers are anticipating a decrease of employees in Q2 2011

However, the net employment outlook of 30% is still the most optimistic outlook reported since Q3 2008.

According to the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released by Manpower Singapore, the labour market appears set to continue at a strong pace in the second quarter of this year.

Employers in all industry sectors expect an increase in staffing levels during the second quarter of this year.

Finance, Insurance & Real Estate sector shows the most robust forecast with a Net Employment Outlook of +36%. Strong hiring prospects are also forecasted for the Mining & Construction sector with an Outlook of +33%.

A healthy Outlook is also reported for the Services sector with an Outlook of +29%. Transport & Utilities and Wholesale Trade & Retail Trade sectors have a solid hiring activity with outlooks of +25%.

“Employers remain optimistic about their ability to add employees in the second quarter. The Outlook in the Transportation & Utilities sector has steadily increased for three successive quarters,” said Peter Haglund, Country Manager of Manpower Singapore.

“It is expected that job seekers will continue to see a labour market full of promise in the following months across all sectors. In this new era of the Human Age—where access to talent and optimizing human potential will be the single most important determinant of future business success and growth—it is more important than ever for companies to deliberately align their talent strategies to their business strategies.”

Outlooks for the hiring intentions of the Public Administration & Education and the Finance, Insurance & Real Estate sectors decline by 5% q-o-q.

The Mining & Construction sector Outlook, on the other hand, increases by 6 % while employer hiring intentions in both the Services and the Wholesale Trade & Retail Trade sectors have improved by 4%.