Talent struggle at its toughest in 10 years

Recruitment in Singapore is at its toughest since 2008, with over half of employers struggling to fill roles

Talent struggle at its toughest in 10 years

Recruitment in Singapore is at its toughest since 2008, with over half of employers struggling to fill several roles, according to ManpowerGroup.

The study found that one in three employers believe that the top reason why it has been difficult to fill the roles is because of candidates’ lack of necessary experience. Other reasons include unreasonably high expectation for wages (27%) and a lack of applicants for the role (22%).

About 13% of employers think that jobseekers lack the hard and soft skills required to get hired.

The jobs that have been hardest to fill in Singapore are sales representatives, engineers and drivers. Additionally, the study found that roles that will grow in demand are mid-skilled ones that may not necessarily need a university degree but require post-secondary training.

“The increasing prevalence of e-commerce in Singapore has driven up demand for drivers and customer service professionals to address companies’ rapidly growing logistics and last-mile delivery needs,” said Linda Teo, Singapore country manager at ManpowerGroup.

In a separate study by Korn Ferry, it was found that the talent crunch could lead to skyrocketing salaries by 2030. Singapore employers can expect to pay an extra $29,065 per year for each highly skilled worker.

The study suggests that if left unchecked, the salary surge could add more than $1 trillion to annual payrolls in the region by 2030, jeopardizing companies’ profitability and threatening business models.

 

 

 

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