Those in financial services have the lowest six-month re-entry rate over the last 14 quarters
[SINGAPORE] Retrenched resident professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) from financial services have frequently faced poorer re-employment outcomes, while overall, PMETs who return to work earning less see a median pay cut of around 25 per cent.
Over the last 14 quarters, financial services recorded the lowest six-month re-entry rate for retrenched resident PMETs most often, followed by wholesale trade, Acting Minister for Manpower Jasmin Lau said in Parliament on Tuesday (Oct 6).
About seven in 10 retrenched resident PMETs re-entered employment within 12 months, rising to around eight in 10 within two years. Older retrenched PMETs had lower re-entry rates at both milestones.
Among those who found work again, about six in 10 earned more than before their retrenchment, at both the 12 and 24-month marks. Among those earning less, the median wage reduction was around 25 per cent of their pre-retrenchment wages.
Those in their 40s and 50s accounted for more than half of retrenched residents. Degree holders were the largest educational group, with their share rising from 51 per cent in 2021 to 66.4 per cent in 2025.
By contrast, those with secondary education and below had a higher six-month re-entry rate than the overall rate, and took less time on average to return to employment.
“These figures show that the experience of retrenchment is not the same for every worker. Some are able to move into new jobs relatively quickly, while others may face greater difficulties because of their age, skills, occupation or the sector they were previously working in,” Lau said.
“Some are able to find new jobs with the same or higher wages but others may experience pay reduction.”
Lau was responding to parliamentary questions on retrenchments, after nine Members of Parliament – including four labour MPs – filed questions on issues ranging from re-employment outcomes and retrenchment benefits to support for older workers.
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Labour market data released on Sep 21 showed that retrenchments rose to 4,620 in Q2 2026, the highest level since Q4 2020, from 3,830 in Q1. The six-month re-entry rate for retrenched residents also fell to 54.9 per cent from 60.7 per cent.
The decline in re-entry was most pronounced among clerical, sales and service workers, tertiary-educated residents and those below 30, with larger decreases also seen among those previously employed in manufacturing, information and communications, financial services and professional services, said Lau.
She added that business restructuring remains the primary driver of retrenchments, while the proportion attributable to a cyclical downturn remained low at 4.9 per cent.
Asked by Workers’ Party MP He Ting Ru whether retrenchments were being driven by artificial intelligence adoption, Lau said: “This is not clear at present, as it is difficult to isolate the specific impact of AI adoption from broader business transformation and reorganisation.”
Ministry of Manpower (MOM) surveys indicated that only a “small minority” of firms adopting AI had reduced headcount, while more were creating new roles or redesigning jobs.
Career support
About six in 10 jobseekers who received career-matching services found employment within six months, while nine in 10 Career Conversion Programme (CCP) participants remained employed 24 months after embarking on the programme, Lau said.
For mature CCP participants, close to nine in 10 remained employed 12 months after programme completion.
However, Lau said completing a reskilling programme did not by itself insulate older workers from future retrenchment, particularly in rapidly transforming sectors.
She said MOM, the National Trades Union Congress and Singapore National Employers Federation are studying broader measures under the Tripartite Workgroup on Senior Employment, with recommendations due later this year.
Stronger action on retrenchment benefits?
Around 88 per cent of employers that submitted mandatory retrenchment notifications in 2025 paid retrenchment benefits.
Of the remaining 12 per cent, about one in five cited financial difficulties. Others cited reasons including not being obliged to pay, or having provided other forms of support.
Among retrenched workers who did not receive benefits, close to 80 per cent were from companies with fewer than 200 employees.
While retrenchment benefits are not a statutory requirement, Lau said MOM and its tripartite partners are considering whether stronger obligations on employers are warranted as part of the ongoing Employment Act review.
She said an update on the review would be given “in due course”.
The Employment Act review was announced in March 2025, with the aim of ensuring that Singapore continues to protect workers while preserving flexibility for businesses. The Act was last amended in 2019.
Responding to labour MP Yeo Wan Ling on whether more could be done when employers could afford retrenchment benefits but refused to pay them, Lau said one option being considered is taking “administrative action” against employers in egregious cases, though she did not elaborate on what such action could entail.
But tripartite partners also had to balance stronger worker protections against reasonable business costs, Lau said.
“We do not want to inadvertently place more jobs at risk by imposing a rigid obligation on employers regardless of their situation.”
