Singapore minister urges 'manpower-lean growth'
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Unemployment rose to 2.1 per cent and more workers lost their jobs in the second quarter of the year in Singapore, even as employment growth stayed strong, according to a Manpower Ministry (MOM) report released on Wednesday.
Economists said the labour market remains tight – perhaps even too tight, with Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin stressing the need for job growth to slow.
In a Facebook post, he wrote: “We need to moderate employment growth to a more sustainable pace, and encourage companies to move towards manpower-lean growth.”
Employment grew by 32,500 in the second quarter – more than in the quarter before (28,900) and the same period last year (31,700).
This brought total employment to 3.4 million in June, 4 per cent up from a year ago.
