More residents working for an income that has not changed for 10 years

By: Leong Sze Hian, ST Forum, Feb 23rd 2007

I refer to the article, 'Singapore gearing up for 6.5m population' (ST, Feb 10).

National University Sociologist Associate Professor Pauline Straughn said that Singapore needs to assure its people that growing the population will not result in more competition for jobs, housing and places in school so that tension does not arise in the community.

The Manpower Ministry (MOM) said last year's figure for jobs creation was the largest number recorded and the highest ever at 88,200 for locals. In percentage terms, the percentage of jobs created to locals appears to be the lowest ever, having declined from 90 per cent for the period 1997-2002 to 70 per cent, 56 per cent in 2004 and 2005, and now 51 per cent last year.

According to the MOM Report on Labour Force in Singapore 2006, which covers the period 1991-2006, the number of unemployed for residents (Singaporeans and PRs) was 28,000 in 1991 and 69,600 last year. Against an increasing population, a more significant statistic is the Unemployment Rate (Non-Seasonally Adjusted) for residents, which increased from 2 to 3.6 per cent, from 1991 to 2006.

While the resident labour force increased by 27 per cent for the 15-year period from 1.373 million to 1.737 million, unemployed residents increased by 149 per cent from 28,000 to 69,600. This means that the resident labour force increased by 1.6 per cent per annum, while unemployed residents increased by 6.3 per cent per annum.

'Although the median gross monthly income of full-time employed residents has grown 2.9 per cent a year in the past decade to $2,040 as of June 2006', the number of part-timers has more than doubled over the decade from 51,400 to 112,300, expanding their share of employment from 3.5 per cent to 6.3 per cent.

The median monthly income for all employed residents (full-time and part-time) stagnated at $2,000 for the years 2001 to 2004.

This means that income grew by only $40 from 2001 to 2006, or 0.4 per cent per annum. Income growth may have been negative, after adjusting for inflation for the last five years.

The median monthly income for part-timers is still the same at $500 compared to 10 years ago.

In view of the 118 per cent increase in part-timers for the last decade, more residents are working for an income of $500 that has not changed for 10 years.