Unemployment up as more residents lost jobs, fewer job vacancies in 2016: MOM

MORE residents are unemployed and stay unemployed longer as more are made redundant with fewer job vacancies in 2016.

Total employment grew at a slower rate, reflecting cyclical weakness in parts of the economy, a structural slowdown in local labour force growth, and tightened foreign worker policy, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Wednesday.

The annual average resident unemployment rose to 3 per cent in 2016, up from about 2.8 per cent for four years, based on its Labour Market Report 2016.

The annual average resident long-term unemployment rate rose marginally to 0.8 per cent from 0.6 in 2015.

Notably, long-term unemployment rate for degree holders rose to one per cent, the highest since 2004.

A bright spot was local employment, which grew to 11,200, up from 700 in 2015, but still significantly lower than three years ago. Growth was 96,000 in 2014, 82,900 in 2013 and 58,700 in 2012.

Those who lost their jobs continue to remain unemployed, as the annual average rate of re-entry among residents made redundant fell for the second consecutive year to 48 per cent in 2016, the lowest since 2010 (53 per cent).

Compared with September 2016, seasonally adjusted number of job vacancies continued to decline to a four-year low of 47,600 in December 2016.

With the increase in unemployment, the seasonally adjusted ratio of job vacancies to unemployed persons fell from 91 openings per 100 job seekers in September 2016 to 77 in December 2016, the lowest since September 2009 (54).