SINGAPORE: Efforts to reduce Singapore's dependency on foreign labour are on the right track, Acting Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin said.
Writing in a post on the Manpower Blog on Sunday, he said the growth in foreign manpower in the first half of this year slowed to 34,100 - a seven per cent drop from the same period last year.
This excludes foreign domestic workers.
The number of Work Permit holders rose almost 21,000 - mostly construction workers.
Mr
Tan said HDB alone will need about 30,000 construction workers to meet
the year's building programme, and the cumulative requirement of
construction workers could rise to 50,000 within the next few years.
The
number of employment pass (EP) holders dropped marginally by 700, the
first half-yearly reduction since 2009 when recession hit Singapore.
S Passes grew strongly, with more than 14,200 S Pass holders added to the workforce.
Mr
Tan said this is likely due to tightened EP requirements from January,
so companies are using S Passes to bring in more junior level workers at
the professional-managerial-executive (PME) level.
Not counting
construction workers, Mr Tan said the slowdown in the growth of foreign
manpower was more obvious - as much as 40 per cent.
Foreign manpower excluding those in construction grew by 18,600 in the first half of 2012, down from 31,200 for 2011.
In
the blog post, Mr Tan said Singapore cannot grow its foreign force
without limits, but tightening must be done at a pace that businesses
can adjust to.
He said Singapore's rate of job creation
outstripped GDP growth in the last three quarters (2011 Q4-2012 Q2),
resulting in negative productivity growth.
And one reason for negative productivity, he said, is the availability of low-cost foreign labour.
Mr Tan said Singapore's productivity effort must continue aggressively.
"The
balance of driving forces favours re-calibration towards even more
moderate foreign workforce inflow, to encourage companies to pursue
higher productivity business models and processes away from
labour-intensive growth," Mr Tan wrote.
He said the Manpower
Ministry is monitoring the situation closely over the next few months,
and will take further measures if needed.
And he called on companies to do their part and transform to raise productivity and reduce the dependency on foreign workers.
"It
is not just about numbers, it is about finding that delicate balance
that will deliver sustainable wage growth for Singaporeans, growth
prospects for businesses, and a societal composition that we can
accept," he said in the post.
- CNA/ck
yesterday went to ranch to see some cow pangsai