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<TR>Oct 12, 2008
WORK
</TR><!-- headline one : start --><TR>Job-seekers in finance sector finding it tough
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To better his job prospects, SMU student Ken Nishiyama, 23, attends courses by industry practitioners and enrols in internship programmes.
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->Miss Hanees Mohamad has been sending out an average of 20 resumes daily since she graduated two months ago.
She has heard from fewer than 10 companies so far.
'I'm getting frustrated. I didn't think it would be this difficult to get a job,' said Miss Haness, 24, a management graduate of the Singapore Institute of Management.
Other recent graduates like her are having a tough time too.
Meanwhile, some students have started hunting as early as a year before they graduate, fearing an even gloomier job market next year.
Singapore Management University (SMU) student Tham Huan Ling, 22, is one of the lucky ones. She has been offered a sales and trading job with an offshore bank, even though she will graduate only in April next year.
'I wanted to get into the job market before the prospects become dire,' said Ms Tham, who specialises in international trading.
Fellow SMU undergraduate Ken Nishiyama, 23, a third-year business management student who is interested in oil and agricultural commodities trading, attends courses conducted by industry practitioners to network with them, and is quick to sign up for internship programmes.
'I'm a little worried given the state of the economy now. I foresee the job market becoming much more competitive,' he said.
He has grounds to worry.
When Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew warned in August that layoffs were likely, many did not expect the axe to come down any time soon. After all, a record 144,600 jobs were created in the first half of this year compared to 113,800 in the same period last year. Unemployment remains at 2.3per cent, as it did last year, when 234,900 jobs were created.
Human resource experts are now saying that white-collar workers in the financial sector are most vulnerable to the axe as companies brace themselves for the fallout from the credit crunch in the United States.
In a poll carried out by Remuneration Data Specialists (RDS) and the Singapore Human Resources Institute (SHRI) last month, 11per cent of 218 companies polled said they had retrenched or planned to retrench workers this year. Six months ago, only 2per cent said they would do so.
New jobs may not be easy to find. Human resource experts say many companies are likely to freeze their headcounts in the coming months.
Said Manpower Singapore country manager Philippe Capsie: 'There will likely be limited vacancies and intense competition among jobseekers, as most banks and financial institutions are likely to adopt a wait-and-see position and not hire over-aggressively over the next few months.'
More temporary jobs may be offered instead of direct employment, he said.
SHRI executive director David Ang predicts that the financial and investment sectors, parts of the construction industry, and the electronics trading and manufacturing sectors will slow down their hiring over the next six to nine months.
Mr Tan Soo Jin, director of the Amrop Hever Group, says a taxi driver recently complained to him about how his earnings had taken a beating since the US crisis began.
'The taxi drivers are already affected because people want to save money by taking public transport.
=> But who up the fares to begin with?
If this recession is really the next Great Depression, then everyone will be affected,' he said.
But there is still some cheer amid the gloom and doom.
With the integrated resorts coming up next year, there will still be jobs in the tourism, hospitality and retail industries, and the pay is expected to be attractive, said HR experts.
=>
As for wages and bonuses, experts generally believe there will be no major pay cuts but companies are likely to give minimal or no wage increments in the coming year.
Said Mr Ang: 'Wage increments should be around 4 or 5per cent but given inflation, this is not a lot. Companies will be forced to perform a balancing act between keeping their employees and keeping business costs down.'
Employee incentives and benefits may also be cut back to reduce costs.
Of the 218 companies polled by SHRI and RDS, 48per cent have curbed overseas travel while 16per cent downgraded employee travel eligibility from business to economy class.
Bonuses, too, are expected to be significantly lower compared to previous years.
Mr Joe Tiong, an equity sales trader at Phillip Securities, received a whopping 10-month bonus last year when the market was booming. He does not expect to receive any bonus this year.
'People who are veterans in the industry are saying that this is the worst recession they have seen,' he said. 'In Singapore, we just have not felt the effects yet. It is only starting to trickle into the system.'
Do you think your job will be affected by the financial meltdown? Send your views to [email protected]
Are you affected by the financial crisis? Have your say at straitstimes.com
</TR>
<TR>Oct 12, 2008
WORK
</TR><!-- headline one : start --><TR>Job-seekers in finance sector finding it tough
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --><TR vAlign=bottom><TD width=330>
</TD><TD width=10>
To better his job prospects, SMU student Ken Nishiyama, 23, attends courses by industry practitioners and enrols in internship programmes.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->Miss Hanees Mohamad has been sending out an average of 20 resumes daily since she graduated two months ago.
She has heard from fewer than 10 companies so far.
'I'm getting frustrated. I didn't think it would be this difficult to get a job,' said Miss Haness, 24, a management graduate of the Singapore Institute of Management.
Other recent graduates like her are having a tough time too.
Meanwhile, some students have started hunting as early as a year before they graduate, fearing an even gloomier job market next year.
Singapore Management University (SMU) student Tham Huan Ling, 22, is one of the lucky ones. She has been offered a sales and trading job with an offshore bank, even though she will graduate only in April next year.
'I wanted to get into the job market before the prospects become dire,' said Ms Tham, who specialises in international trading.
Fellow SMU undergraduate Ken Nishiyama, 23, a third-year business management student who is interested in oil and agricultural commodities trading, attends courses conducted by industry practitioners to network with them, and is quick to sign up for internship programmes.
'I'm a little worried given the state of the economy now. I foresee the job market becoming much more competitive,' he said.
He has grounds to worry.
When Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew warned in August that layoffs were likely, many did not expect the axe to come down any time soon. After all, a record 144,600 jobs were created in the first half of this year compared to 113,800 in the same period last year. Unemployment remains at 2.3per cent, as it did last year, when 234,900 jobs were created.
Human resource experts are now saying that white-collar workers in the financial sector are most vulnerable to the axe as companies brace themselves for the fallout from the credit crunch in the United States.
In a poll carried out by Remuneration Data Specialists (RDS) and the Singapore Human Resources Institute (SHRI) last month, 11per cent of 218 companies polled said they had retrenched or planned to retrench workers this year. Six months ago, only 2per cent said they would do so.
New jobs may not be easy to find. Human resource experts say many companies are likely to freeze their headcounts in the coming months.
Said Manpower Singapore country manager Philippe Capsie: 'There will likely be limited vacancies and intense competition among jobseekers, as most banks and financial institutions are likely to adopt a wait-and-see position and not hire over-aggressively over the next few months.'
More temporary jobs may be offered instead of direct employment, he said.
SHRI executive director David Ang predicts that the financial and investment sectors, parts of the construction industry, and the electronics trading and manufacturing sectors will slow down their hiring over the next six to nine months.
Mr Tan Soo Jin, director of the Amrop Hever Group, says a taxi driver recently complained to him about how his earnings had taken a beating since the US crisis began.
'The taxi drivers are already affected because people want to save money by taking public transport.
=> But who up the fares to begin with?
If this recession is really the next Great Depression, then everyone will be affected,' he said.
But there is still some cheer amid the gloom and doom.
With the integrated resorts coming up next year, there will still be jobs in the tourism, hospitality and retail industries, and the pay is expected to be attractive, said HR experts.
=>
As for wages and bonuses, experts generally believe there will be no major pay cuts but companies are likely to give minimal or no wage increments in the coming year.
Said Mr Ang: 'Wage increments should be around 4 or 5per cent but given inflation, this is not a lot. Companies will be forced to perform a balancing act between keeping their employees and keeping business costs down.'
Employee incentives and benefits may also be cut back to reduce costs.
Of the 218 companies polled by SHRI and RDS, 48per cent have curbed overseas travel while 16per cent downgraded employee travel eligibility from business to economy class.
Bonuses, too, are expected to be significantly lower compared to previous years.
Mr Joe Tiong, an equity sales trader at Phillip Securities, received a whopping 10-month bonus last year when the market was booming. He does not expect to receive any bonus this year.
'People who are veterans in the industry are saying that this is the worst recession they have seen,' he said. 'In Singapore, we just have not felt the effects yet. It is only starting to trickle into the system.'
Do you think your job will be affected by the financial meltdown? Send your views to [email protected]
Are you affected by the financial crisis? Have your say at straitstimes.com
