Amidst changing times, Singapore’s unemployment rate has fallen to an all time low of 1.7 percent in September this year, which is also a decade low, as economical expansion was maintain.
In 2006, there are 176,000 jobs created. However by the first three quarters of 2007, 171,500 jobs were already created. This number already matches up to the total number of jobs created in 2006, meaning that there is a higher potential for year 2007 to yield better results than the previous.
Currently, the Singapore’s unemployment rate has decreased to 1.7% in September 2007 from 2.3% in June 2007. Compared to a year ago (2006), the unemployment rate has fallen by a full percentage point from 2.7% in September 2006. Hence, strong economic growth is evident in Singapore.
Translating all the above, working adults are facing lesser worries of retrenchment which was quite “rampant”, a few years ago around 1997. In addition, undergraduates can hope to look forward to an easier time as employment will be less competitive with more jobs available, also easing the tight competition among Singaporeans and foreign talent. Furthermore, this would also mean that the economy is performing closer to its optimal level.
I think that there are several reasons which are responsible for such an effect in an uplifting economy. Firstly, the Singapore government has always strongly encouraged entrepreneurship among Singaporeans so as to boost the economy and reduce unemployment rate. Measures taken include the formation of the Action Community for Entrepreneurship (ACE) to improve the situation in Singapore and make it more conducive for budding entrepreneurs to succeed.
Besides that, the workforce in Singapore is becoming increasingly skilled. This is because more unemployed Singaporeans are more willing to attend upgrading courses so as to increase their competitiveness in job employability such as diversifying their area of studies, as per the constant ongoing campaigns which can be found in many mediums of information. Amongst students, more Singaporeans are already aiming for two or more degrees instead of one. As there is a higher demand for higher skilled workforce, this would means that more Singaporeans would be employed.
To wrap things up, a highly educated society is important for the growth of the nation, and even more so for the growth of our society and living environment. Nevertheless, we should never forsake any key aspect in life, be it money, education, or family, just so that we may achieve just that little bit more merit. A happy and healthy lifestyle should still be valued above all else.
Filed under: Economics, Society | Tagged: Economics, Singapore
