Employment Outlook and Salary Guide (Singapore)

Kelly Services’ latest Singapore Employment Outlook and Salary Guide 2009/10 shows that while salaries in resilient industries such as healthcare have remained stable, there is an easing of an average of 10 to 20% in salaries for some sectors such as engineering, sales and marketing and logistics and warehousing.

Singapore – Kelly Services’ latest Singapore Employment Outlook and Salary Guide 2009/10 shows that while salaries in resilient industries such as healthcare have remained stable, there is an easing of an average of 10 to 20% in salaries for some sectors such as engineering, sales and marketing and logistics and warehousing.

For example, engineering managers in the manufacturing industry saw an 18% drop in their monthly salaries from S$11,000 in 2008 to S$9,000 this year as the current economic recession led to reduced demand for such personnel.

The minimum monthly salaries for warehouse supervisors also declined 11% from S$1,800 to S$1,600 year-on-year as the logistics sector was hit by falling export orders. The retail industry also faced downward salary adjustments – with promoters, retail assistants and sales coordinators receiving 6-7% lower base salaries from S$1,500 and $1,700 last year to S$1,400 and $1,600 this year respectively.

The salary trends among organizations in Singapore are contained in a handbook which will be released by Kelly Services at the launch of the HR Summit (May 6 to 7). An online edition of the guide will be also released in June 2009 on Kelly Services’ website at www.kellyservices.com.sg.

Kelly Services, which celebrates its 30th Anniversary in Singapore this year, said with the continued demand for talent in the resilient healthcare, biotechnology, energy and outsourcing industries, salaries in these sectors have remained resilient in the economic downturn.

Compared to 2008, the healthcare industry is expected to continue its recruitment drive this year as the need for skills-specific talent remains relatively high, as more research hubs are being set up and medical tourism remains popular in Singapore.

While the IT & telecommunications industry has slowed down its hiring efforts somewhat this year, there are still demand for skills-specific talent in new media web technologies, Internet and Mobile content development in that sector. This is partly fueled by several nationwide projects such as Intelligent Nation 2015 (iN2015), and other initiatives that aim to propel Singapore’s status as an IT hub. Job-specific skills such as new media web technologies, internet and mobile content development also face higher demand due to the rapidly evolving technological development across the industry.

The banking and finance industry which has witnessed significant lay-offs late last year and this year because of the global financial crisis, has seen the most significant change in its hiring strategy. Financial institutions have adopted a more cautious recruitment approach owing to the weaker Singapore economy and the global financial turmoil.

“The salary ranges in this handbook are indicative of actual transactions between employers and employees and offers a compilation of salaries and job titles across a wide range of industries. They are aimed at assisting practitioners in decisions on remuneration packages,” said Mr. Dhirendra Shantilal, Senior Vice-President (Asia Pacific) of Kelly Services.

He added, “Salary trends and expectations have certainly changed over the last 30 years since Kelly Services started our business offering human resources solutions. From lifetime employment, we have now moved to performance-based packages from the top to the middle management and the executive level. With the current global economic crisis, we have noticed an increasing acceptance of the importance of talent management as well as motivating and retaining not only the right staff but passionate talent in the organization to ensure long-term and sustainable success.”

The global economic downturn and Singapore’s most severe economic recession have certainly resulted in a big increase in available talent now for all industries.

But Mr. Shantilal added, “While there are many opportunities for strong and experienced talent as well as new graduates, we expect a year of cautious hiring. Singapore’s tepid employment climate and outlook means that remuneration will remain competitive and more organizations will choose performance-based incentives over bonuses to reward employees.”

Meanwhile, the current economic recession has also brought to the fore a possible conflict of interest between the HR and Finance departments of companies.

To address this issue, Kelly Services, as one of the speakers at the HR Summit on May 6, will share its views on the topic called “Surviving the Crisis: How HR and Finance Can Forge a Vital Partnership For the Upturn”.

Mr. Jonas Ang, Kelly Services’ Senior HR Director (Asia Pacific), said, “The global business climate for 2009 has become more challenging than it was in 2008. With the downturn, this will mean a squeeze on HR budgets and an increased emphasis on the attraction and retention of the best and brightest talent.”
“However in many cases, a disconnect between HR and Finance can happen when Finance feels HR does not speak the "language of business" while HR feels that Finance may be too stringent on budgets to keep and attract the best people who are critical for the sustainability of the organization. Hence, we will discuss how HR and Finance can forge a vital partnership as each brings a unique and equally valuable view of the organization, so that they not only survive this stage of the economic cycle, but to be ready as economies start recovering.”