Job Report 2021: Demand for Tech Talent Rising Across Sectors In Singapore
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In-Demand Jobs In Singapore
In-Demand Jobs In Singapore

The pandemic has significantly impacted the Singapore job landscape, as companies scrambled to adjust to the various government mandates aimed at mitigating the spread of the virus. While there were numerous job losses, there were also new job opportunities that arose from the crisis.

As evident in JobStreet’s 2021 Job Report, in-demand jobs in Singapore now include roles in industries that played a massive role during the pandemic. At a recent career event, Minister for Culture, Community, and Youth Edwin Tong said that more opportunities are available in the healthcare and tech sectors. There is also a greater demand for social workers who can help Singaporeans through this global crisis.

Job seekers looking to find new opportunities or switch careers may find the roles they want in these industries. Fortunately, Singapore’s job landscape is gradually recovering towards pre-pandemic levels, based on Jobstreet’s data from the latest report.

Tech skills needed for in-demand jobs in Singapore

Thanks to high vaccination rates – 84% of the population are fully vaccinated as of October 2021—and COVID-19 support funds for businesses, Singapore is now seeing a strong job vacancy and declining unemployment rate.

Banking & finance and education saw significant increases in job ads during Q1-Q3 2021, rising by 147% and 112.6% respectively. Biotech and pharma saw continued growth throughout the pandemic, with job ads rising by 102.8% in Q1-Q3 2021.

Industries such as automobile, food and beverages (F&B) and manufacturing are poised for strong growth as the economy continues to recover. However, industries related to travel – aerospace, tourism and hospitality — are poised for modest growth due to ongoing pandemic restrictions.

The impact of COVID may vary from industry to industry. But what all these sectors have in common is a high demand for tech-related talent. The pandemic has accelerated digitalisation initiatives, resulting in demand surges for individuals specialising in technology.

  • Banking & Finance – Job ads for specialisation computer/IT (software) in this industry have increased by 5 times compared to the previous year. According to a survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Institute of Banking, there are 6,000 newly created positions in this sector, with half of them in technology and consumer banking.

  • Biotech & Pharma – These industries saw a 102.8% increase in job ads in Q1-Q3 2021 compared to the previous year. Reports show that Singapore’s biotech sector is at an inflexion point, with biomedical sciences becoming significant to the development of the manufacturing sector.

  • Education – The pandemic has created opportunities for the e-learning market. As a result, job supply numbers for this industry in the computer/IT and engineering specialisation grew by over 100% since last year.

  • Manufacturing – The sector saw a strong hiring recovery, with job ads rising by 41.5% in Q1-Q3. This may be partly due to the demand surge for digital goods and services that help individuals stay connected remotely during the pandemic.

  • Computer/IT – Employers are competing to hire local computer/IT talent due to border restrictions limiting incoming foreign labour. Despite the 30.5% job ad increase, local Singaporeans only make up one-third of an estimated 25,000 tech workers.