Business urged to adopt less labour-intensive practices amid labour market woes

Labour productivity declined 0.8% in 2014.

The domestic labour market remained tight, with the final print of the unemployment rate
at 1.9% in 4Q14, down from 2% in 3Q14.

According to a report by OCBC, of the +129k annual employment created last year, bulk (74%) of the jobs went to locals, marking the fastest growth in a decade. However, foreign employment growth excluding maids slowed to 26k (slowest since 2009 recession).

Median income of full-time employed Singaporeans rose by 1.4% in 2014, lower than the 4.7% seen in 2013. Labour productivity declined 0.8% in 2014, as domestically-oriented but less productive sectors like F&B and construction employed a larger share of workers, says OCBC.

MOM reiterated that “with the labour market expected to tighten further as local employment growth slows, businesses should step up efforts to adopt less labour-intensive practices.