SINGAPORE – More than 20,500 jobs, traineeships, attachments and other opportunities are still on offer in the information and communications sector.
This is after nearly 16,200 job seekers were placed in positions within the sector by the end of May, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) and Workforce Singapore (WSG) in a jobs situation report on Friday (Aug 13).
Last year, MOM and WSG worked with 240 partners – from industry groups to recruitment firms – to match job seekers and employers. This is 20 per cent more than in 2019.
Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said such partners’ respective resources and networks play a crucial role in helping job seekers during these challenging times.
“Many of these initiatives are ground-up efforts, and are the fruits of labour of various individuals and organisations,” added Dr Tan, who was speaking to reporters after meeting virtually with LinkedIn Asia Pacific staff.
Among the collaborations that have boosted job-matching efforts was the government’s tapping on technology firms to leverage artificial intelligence and other functions to improve career match services such as on WSG’s MyCareersFuture jobs portal.
On the community front, WSG’s volunteer career advisers initiative connects individuals with years of experience and vast networks with job seekers looking for career help. The programme started last year for sectors such as healthcare and retail, and will be rolled out to more sectors progressively.
The four race-based self-help groups – the Chinese Development Assistance Council, Yayasan Mendaki, the Singapore Indian Development Association and the Eurasian Association – also have programmes to equip workers with relevant skills.
Meanwhile, the unions, trade associations and chambers serve as bridges between the Government and employers. Many also work with government agencies to run jobs and skills development initiatives as well as business transformation pushes.
For instance, the Singapore Hotel Association has worked closely with WSG and the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union during the pandemic to roll out the Job Redesign Reskilling Programme for the battered hotel industry.
Recruitment portals and agencies, too, offer workers access to a wider range of job options, and curate career-related content such as how to expand one’s networks.
Minister for Communications and Information Josephine Teo, who was also at the media briefing, said Singapore has a rich ecosystem comprising top global firms, industry associations and training institutions that it can tap to address employment gaps.
“It gives us a unique opportunity to build on the existing partnerships to expand our reach to cover more areas, more companies and eventually, to benefit more people,” she added. “By doing so, we can close the gaps faster.”