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Singapore has one of the highest employment rates worldwide

MarrickG

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Loyal
SINGAPORE - The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) today announced that Singapore has one of the highest employment rates internationally.

According to a report released by the Manpower Research and Statistics Department and the Singapore Department of Statistics, nearly eight in ten (77 per cent) Singaporeans aged 25 to 64 were employed in 2010.

The unemployment rate among citizens declined to pre-recessionary levels of 3.1 per cent in June 2011, down from a high of 4.5 per cent in 2009.

This surpasses economies such as Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Although employment rate reached new highs for women in the prime-working age of 25 to 54 and older citizens aged between 55 and 64, employment rate older citizens still fell behind Japan, South Korea and the United States and for women of that age sector remained lower than in many economies.

According to the figures, more Singaporeans are better qualified and holding higher skilled jobs today.

Attributing this to the "continued emphasis and investment in education, MOM said "Nearly one in four (23 per cent) citizens employed in 2010 were degree holders, up from 14 per cent in 2001.

Including those with diploma and professional qualifications, the share was 41 per cent compared with 28 per cent in 2001. Close to one in two (49 per cent) citizens employed in 2010 were in professionals, managerial, executive & technical (PMET) jobs, up from 42 per cent in 2001.

The incomes of Singaporean citizens are up over the decade, but not across all income groups.

The 20th percentile or the bottom fifth of Singapore citizens have seen their incomes stagnate after taking inflation into account.

While citizens' nominal incomes rose by 17 per cent from $1,200 in 2001 to $1,400 in 2010, real incomes rose only 0.3 per cent over the decade.

However, real median incomes - those of Singaporeans in the middle - have risen 10.9 per cent over the decade.
 

mojito

Alfrescian
Loyal
Many US blogs have discussed the unemployment rate to death. Perhaps if I may add my 0.02 on this report:

Unemployment rate = number of employed workers (numerator) / total labour force (denominator)

"nearly eight in ten (77 per cent) Singaporeans aged 25 to 64 were employed in 2010"
1) If it is similar to how the employment statistics is compiled in other countries, this is the labour participation or the denominator in the calculation. A larger denominator would make the numerator (the number of people unemployed) less significant and lower the percentage. By including PR into the definition of 'Singaporeans' would mathematically do just that. And since (I recall) PRs not working in SG for a certain period will be asked to leave, the numerator of the stats likely comprise largely of citizens.

2) Full time mothers, housewives, students, business owners are excluded from both the numerator and the denominators. Therefore in the unfortunate circumstance that one is a) terminated for pregnancy, b) becomes a tai-tai, c) forced to get distant learning programs full time, d) forced to become taxi drivers or start a small business, these people do not exist in the statistic. To illustrate, when unemployment rate changes from 2/10 (20%) to 1/9 (11%), unemployment rate falls. FWAH magic hor?

3) However, if a chief engineer got laid off and decides to be a security guard, you will be included in the stats and Ah Loong will tell you "Thank you for helping PAP/SG show good results" even though he may be underemployed.

4) Expanding upon point 2, since the maths is so power, in some countries the rules of compiling the statistics will identify another group, called discouraged workers and exclude them from the stats too. According to wiki,

"In the United States a discouraged worker is defined as a person not in the labor force who wants and is available for a job and who has looked for work sometime in the past 12 months (or since the end of his or her last job if one was held within the past 12 months), but who is not currently looking because of real or perceived poor employment prospects."

How do the statisticians know people are "not currently looking"? Bet that SG has something similar as well.

5) Finally the department of stats did not call up everyone to ask. The stats is likely compiled through a process called sampling, either by calling a smaller proportion of the population or from randomly extracting data from an electronic database (like CPF contribution perhaps). While there are ways to make sure make this process unbiased, a consistently fluctuating stat could either indicate insufficient sample size or a tumultuous labour market.

Since statisticians don't want to make themselves or the craft look stupid... it is in their best interest to anchor it to previous period and leave the stats largely unchanged over time. How that is being done... Well, let's just say there is a premium for creativity in statistics as bro johnny333 noted.
 
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zeddy

Alfrescian (Inf)
Asset
According to a report released by the Manpower Research and Statistics Department and the Singapore Department of Statistics, nearly eight in ten (77 per cent) Singaporeans aged 25 to 64 were employed in 2010

Are PRs too included in the survey? F*ck these statistics.. Hard to believe the outcome of these surveys especially if it came from the Govt..
 

Agoraphobic

Alfrescian
Loyal
My first day of (real) work many many years ago, my boss said to me, "Before you believe the statistics, ask yourself whether you believe the statistician."

Cheers!
 

Papsmearer

Alfrescian (InfP) - Comp
Generous Asset
Many US blogs have discussed the unemployment rate to death. Perhaps if I may add my 0.02 on this report:

Unemployment rate = number of employed workers (numerator) / total labour force (denominator)

"nearly eight in ten (77 per cent) Singaporeans aged 25 to 64 were employed in 2010"
1) If it is similar to how the employment statistics is compiled in other countries, this is the labour participation or the denominator in the calculation. A larger denominator would make the numerator (the number of people unemployed) less significant and lower the percentage. By including PR into the definition of 'Singaporeans' would mathematically do just that. And since (I recall) PRs not working in SG for a certain period will be asked to leave, the numerator of the stats likely comprise largely of citizens.

2) Full time mothers, housewives, students, business owners are excluded from both the numerator and the denominators. Therefore in the unfortunate circumstance that one is a) terminated for pregnancy, b) becomes a tai-tai, c) forced to get distant learning programs full time, d) forced to become taxi drivers or start a small business, these people do not exist in the statistic. To illustrate, when unemployment rate changes from 2/10 (20%) to 1/9 (11%), unemployment rate falls. FWAH magic hor?

3) However, if a chief engineer got laid off and decides to be a security guard, you will be included in the stats and Ah Loong will tell you "Thank you for helping PAP/SG show good results" even though he may be underemployed.

4) Expanding upon point 2, since the maths is so power, in some countries the rules of compiling the statistics will identify another group, called discouraged workers and exclude them from the stats too. According to wiki,

"In the United States a discouraged worker is defined as a person not in the labor force who wants and is available for a job and who has looked for work sometime in the past 12 months (or since the end of his or her last job if one was held within the past 12 months), but who is not currently looking because of real or perceived poor employment prospects."

How do the statisticians know people are "not currently looking"? Bet that SG has something similar as well.

5) Finally the department of stats did not call up everyone to ask. The stats is likely compiled through a process called sampling, either by calling a smaller proportion of the population or from randomly extracting data from an electronic database (like CPF contribution perhaps). While there are ways to make sure make this process unbiased, a consistently fluctuating stat could either indicate insufficient sample size or a tumultuous labour market.

Since statisticians don't want to make themselves or the craft look stupid... it is in their best interest to anchor it to previous period and leave the stats largely unchanged over time. How that is being done... Well, let's just say there is a premium for creativity in statistics as bro johnny333 noted.

These are indeed some valid points u raise. MOM has never revealed how it arrived at these stats, and what inputs they use. In other countries, unemployment numbers are easy to derive. In the US for example, jobless claims are used. i.e. if you are unemployed for a certain number of period, u can file for unemployment benefits, and since u need to be a legitimate holder of a social security card, the benefit is only given to real citizens or PRs. In Singapore, they don't give out unemployment benefits. So really, how do they calculate this? I guess they can do that thru a looking at your CPF account. i.e. if all of a sudden u top contributing, than it can be deemed that u are unemployed.

But what happens if you left your job to start your own business, or u took a post overseas? Technically u are employed, but u have stopped contributing to CPF. Also, there are least 200-300,000 working age native born singaporeans living overseas. Either on studies, immigrated there, or woking long term for companies overseas. How does MOM take these into account. Since these are not employed in singapore anymore, should they not be counted among the unemployed?

Also MOM does not differentiate between PRs and Citizens. How many of the employed are actually really native born. A lot less, I would add. Really, PRs already have a job when they come here, or they cannot get work visa. Their numbers should not be included in the employment figures at all. It must reflect the plight of the real sinkies.
 
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jiakhongleow

Alfrescian
Loyal
With one old fart still around, nothing cannot be true. When he was an opposition party before what he said was true. He defended democracy and freedom of speech and information. When he rules it is tok balek/ reversed.

After he die, it will reverse back to opposition and the truth will prevail.
 
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