Share of EP holders from India nearly doubled since 2005 due to global tech talent trends
THE share of Employment Pass (EP) holders from India has roughly doubled from about one-seventh in 2005, to one-quarter in 2020. But that reflects the global market for tech talent, and is not due to more favourable treatment under the India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said in Parliament on Tuesday.
For foreign policy reasons, the government does not publish detailed statistics on the foreign workforce, especially by nationality, he said in a ministerial statement responding to various Members of Parliament.
But he said he would share some numbers "to address the misconceptions and allow for a meaningful engagement on the issue at hand".
The top nationalities that comprise about two-thirds of Singapore's EP population have been consistent since 2005, he said. These are China, India, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and the UK.
Since 2005, the share of EP holders from India has risen, but the share of those from China has remained relatively stable. But this is not the result of more favourable treatment for Indian EP holders due to the CECA, he said.
All work pass holders in Singapore must meet the same criteria to enter, and there is no differentiation based on nationality, he said. Rather, these numbers reflect trends in the global demand and supply of tech talent.
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Singapore's demand for technology talent has grown as the economy goes digital, and there are not enough local workers for available jobs. In the infocomm sector alone, for instance, there are 6,000 unfilled jobs now.
The rise in migrant tech workers from India is a global phenomenon, he added, noting that India is now the country that accounts for the most international migrants. It is the second largest source of immigrants to the US and the third largest to the UK, two countries which are also developing technological capabilities.
"Given our relative shortage of manpower, even if the workers don't come from India, they will come from somewhere else," Dr Tan said, adding that such workers are helping to grow the economy and create jobs for Singaporeans.
Since 2005, EP numbers have risen by 112,000, with the finance and infocomm sectors accounting for 40 per cent of this rise. But over the same period, the number of local professionals, managers, and executives (PMEs) grew by 380,000.
Infocomm saw an increase of 25,000 EPs, but there were also 35,000 jobs created for local PMEs. In finance, there were 20,000 more EPs, but also 85,000 more jobs for local PMEs.
It is unsurprising that the increasing concentration of a single nationality "has caused some social frictions, and anxiety to Singaporeans", said Dr Tan.
In the 2000s, Singapore experienced a similar situation when the share of workers from China increased significantly, before tapering off. "Both then and now, the larger numbers did not go unnoticed, and they created frictions within our communities."
"We understand these concerns, which is why we review and update our work pass policies regularly," he said. "We always seek to balance the needs of our economy with the needs of our society."
The government does also monitor the concentration of nationalities at the firm level, he added.
When shortlisting firms for the Fair Consideration Framework watchlist, MOM looks at whether the firm has a high concentration of foreigners from a single country, as well as a high share of foreign PMETs (professionals, managers, executives and technicians) relative to their industry peers.
Dr Tan noted that being flagged in the watchlist is not automatic evidence that the firm has committed a wrong, but rather a sign that unfair hiring might be occurring. The Tripartite Alliance for Fair and Progressive Employment Practices engages watchlisted firms to review and improve, where needed, their hiring and HR practices.
The majority of firms cooperate and exit the watchlist, while the small minority that do not may have their work pass privileges curtailed or suspended.
"This is an effective process, albeit resource-intensive," said Dr Tan, noting that there are now about 400 firms on the watchlist. The government is looking at complementing and strengthening the watchlist "with a more scalable approach".
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