Lay-offs in Singapore dropped to 2,600 in 3Q13

Redundancy eased after jumping last quarter.

According to MOM, unemployment remained low, reflecting strong manpower demand. Preliminary estimates showed that the seasonally adjusted overall unemployment rate was 1.8% in September 2013, down from 2.1% in June 2013. 

Similarly, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased over the quarter from 2.9% to 2.6% for residents and 3.1% to 2.8% for Singapore citizens.

Employment growth was driven mainly by services and construction, which added more workers than in the same period last year.

Total employment rose by 28,100 in the third quarter of 2013, lower than the gains of 33,700 in the previous quarter, but higher than 26,200 in the third quarter last year. This brought total employment to 3,448,300 in September 2013, which was 4.1% higher than a year ago.

Redundancy declined, after increasing in the previous quarter. Some 2,600 workers were laid off in the third quarter of 2013, down from 3,080 in the preceding quarter and 2,850 in the third quarter of 2012.