<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>June 15, 2009
</TR><!-- headline one : start --><TR>12,760 jobs lost in Q1 <!--10 min-->
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Most of the cuts came from the manufacturing industry, which accounted for 72 per cent of the workers laid off, up from 55 per cent in December. -- ST PHOTO: JOYCE FANG
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A TOTAL of 12,760 jobs were lost in the first quarter, government data showed on Monday, pushing Singapore's overall unemployment rate to a three-year high of 3.3 per cent.
The total employment fell by 6,200, the first quarterly contraction in nearly six years as the number of workers hired was lower than the number of workers who left their jobs. This was in line with the slowing economy, said the Ministry of Manpower in a statement on Monday.
Some 10,900 workers were retrenched, while another 1,860 had their contracts terminated prematurely, 36 per cent more than the 9,410 laid off in the last quarter of 2008.
Most of the cuts came from the manufacturing industry, which accounted for 72 per cent of the workers laid off, up from 55 per cent in December.
Cuts in the services and construction industry, however, were lower than the fourth quarter of 2008, falling from 40 per cent and 4.1 per cent to 25 per cent and 2.6 per cent respectively.
A total of 95,700 residents were unemployed in March, said MOM.
The number of people re-employed also fell, with only 51 per cent of those retrenched in Q4 2008 re-employed by March 2009, compared to 70 per cent in Dec 2008 and 67 per cent in March 2008. Job vacancies fell for the third consecutive quarter to 21,000, down 20 per cent from December 2008 and 45 per cent from a year ago.
I'll worry if....<fill in the blank>
</TR><!-- headline one : start --><TR>12,760 jobs lost in Q1 <!--10 min-->
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
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Most of the cuts came from the manufacturing industry, which accounted for 72 per cent of the workers laid off, up from 55 per cent in December. -- ST PHOTO: JOYCE FANG
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A TOTAL of 12,760 jobs were lost in the first quarter, government data showed on Monday, pushing Singapore's overall unemployment rate to a three-year high of 3.3 per cent.
The total employment fell by 6,200, the first quarterly contraction in nearly six years as the number of workers hired was lower than the number of workers who left their jobs. This was in line with the slowing economy, said the Ministry of Manpower in a statement on Monday.
Some 10,900 workers were retrenched, while another 1,860 had their contracts terminated prematurely, 36 per cent more than the 9,410 laid off in the last quarter of 2008.
Most of the cuts came from the manufacturing industry, which accounted for 72 per cent of the workers laid off, up from 55 per cent in December.
Cuts in the services and construction industry, however, were lower than the fourth quarter of 2008, falling from 40 per cent and 4.1 per cent to 25 per cent and 2.6 per cent respectively.
A total of 95,700 residents were unemployed in March, said MOM.
The number of people re-employed also fell, with only 51 per cent of those retrenched in Q4 2008 re-employed by March 2009, compared to 70 per cent in Dec 2008 and 67 per cent in March 2008. Job vacancies fell for the third consecutive quarter to 21,000, down 20 per cent from December 2008 and 45 per cent from a year ago.
I'll worry if....<fill in the blank>
