Singapore's tech skills for 2003

NEWS
"The job market outlook for Singapore is going to be slow and stagnant for the first six months of 2003," said Suresh Thiru, vice president (operations) for online recruitment firm JobStreet.com. According to the company's statistics, job seekers' confidence levels sank to an all-time low at the end of the third quarter. While certain sectors continue to decline, there are pockets of hope. This has prompted the Singapore government to set up job matching schemes and programmes to encourage workers to seek opportunities in different industries. And Singaporeans are a versatile lot. "If you've ever marvelled at the communication skills of your Singapore taxi driver of late, it's probably because he was originally a small entrepreneur or a recently laid-off middle manager of a large multinational or Singapore company," wrote Asia Market Research (AMR) in a recent study. According to the Singapore Manpower Research and Statistics Department, rising unemployment in the third quarter dispelled initials signs of improvement in the labour market in the previous quarter. The department said a total of 4,187 workers were laid off in the third quarter, marginally higher than the 4,091 in the second quarter, bringing the total number of workers retrenched in the first three quarters to 13,135. "Despite the flagging momentum of economic recovery, re-employment prospects continue to improve," it said in a recent report, adding: "67 percent of locals retrenched in the second quarter found jobs by September, up slightly from 64 percent experienced by the previous cohort in June 2002." On average, there were 31 job openings for every 100 job seekers in September 2002, down from 37 in June 2002, the department added. Meanwhile, Jobstreet's Thiru expects businesses to plan for growth for the second half of 2003. "The situation requires some caution...as such, most human resource planning, assessments and reviews for headcount are now being carried out on a quarterly basis rather than an annual basis (as) previously," he added. Software engineers will continue to be widely sought after in 2003, according to market data by Jobstreet. "The highest demand will be for software engineers with two to five years development experience," Thiru said. Project managers with over three years of IT project management, implementation and quality control experience will also stand a good chance in the job market, he added. The top three skills IT professionals should arm themselves with are Java, MS SQL Server and J2EE. Others include MS Exchange, SAP and C++ programming. Overall, there's still a lot of demand for skilled IT professionals, Thiru said, but warned: "There's a major shift towards contractual employment at all levels, even at senior management (which is not traditionally so)."

For all job and work-related news, or to search for a job and get information on training, go to ZDNet Jobs. If you have something to say about work and employment issues say it here at the Jobs Forum. Let the editors know what you think in the Mailroom.

Post your comment

In order to post a comment you need to be registered and logged in.

You can also log in with Facebook. Log in or create your ZDNet UK account below

  • Login

Will not be displayed with your comment

By signing up for this service, you indicate that you agree to our Terms and Conditions and have read and understood our Privacy Policy. Questions about membership? Find the answers in the Community FAQ

Get ZDNet UK's daily newsletter

Enter your email address to sign up

ZDNet UK Live

45283

I think WinRT is fantastic. I just wish it was an option for people that didn't want to go through Microsoft's App Store with its attendant...

17 minutes ago by 45283 on Why Windows 8 needs architectural hygiene for WOA
Burn-IT

Nine people? £30m? Who's back pocket is that lot going in? And IF they say it is for new buildings, what about all the ones the government has...

1 hour ago by Burn-IT on Police set to launch three £30m e-crime hubs
ewallace

Just to be clear, nobody knows what is in the text of ACTA, here is a photograph of the text of ACTA http://twitpic.com/8h9iju as submitted to the...

2 hours ago by ewallace on ACTA: Facts, misconceptions and questions
fgvrg56

Unfortunately main issue is that ASUS is refusing to accept that they make some mistake on this version of asus Transformer prime. 1 - GPS sensor...

3 hours ago by fgvrg56 on Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime Wi-Fi & GPS problems?
Ben Woods

@Marcus A fair question. Just talked with Archos which said it was working on an announcement for next week....

4 hours ago by Ben Woods on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule
Marcus Karlsson

Any update on this, considering the claimed "first week of February"?

5 hours ago by Marcus Karlsson via Facebook on Archos confirms G9 Ice Cream Sandwich update schedule
apexwm

Bill Goodrich : Just as al_langevin pointed out, with Windows Server 2008 there is no Services for Macintosh anymore. It's gone, not available....

13 hours ago by apexwm on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility
txtrainguy

Replying to an old topic that I'm currently facing with my CEO (who is on a Mac). Our servers are primarily Windows Servers, office is about...

20 hours ago by txtrainguy on Windows Server 2008 drops the ball for Mac compatibility
k0tcs3

Sure, that makes perfect sense. Pay wrong-doers money and thank them for breaching your security and pointing out your flaws, that would surely...

20 hours ago by k0tcs3 on US indicts Romanian over NASA climate change hack
Random_Error

I think he's referring specifically to Android apps, as Apple do regulate their App Store, but Google seem to let any old crap onto the Android store!

20 hours ago by Random_Error on RIM: BlackBerry will keep 'garbage' apps out of store
Paul Fezziwig

Keep the crap apps out?! How will they compete with Android and Apple's claim to fame of having so many life changing apps? I wonder if the media...

1 day ago by Paul Fezziwig via Facebook on RIM: BlackBerry will keep 'garbage' apps out of store
Aigars Mahinovs

It has been shown time after time that if there is an author store that sells the songs at even 1$ per song and gives you a high-quality digital...

1 day ago by Aigars Mahinovs via Facebook on Copyright isn't working, says European Commission
awbMaven

""As a result of Butyka's alleged conduct, researchers were unable to use the computers for more than two months while NASA removed the malicious...

1 day ago by awbMaven on US indicts Romanian over NASA climate change hack
subhorup

It simultaneously worries me and uplifts me that a self-proclaimed group of internet activists name themselves after Indian mythical figures....

2 days ago by subhorup on Anonymous activists release PCAnywhere source code
naviathan

It's actually far easier to work anonymously on the internet than you think. With tools like Tor bouncing your traffic around the world before...

2 days ago by naviathan on Anonymous activists release PCAnywhere source code
Agnostic_OS

1000272134 and bluedalmatian with you both there but then I'm still in 10.04 land (and happy with it)

2 days ago by Agnostic_OS on Ten factors that make Ubuntu 11.10 a hit
apexwm

Interesting article and definitely see your points on the products mentioned. One of the top products for our Help Desk (approximately 20% of all...

2 days ago by apexwm on Ten flawed products that derail productivity
Paul Hutchinson

Absolutely - this should obviously not be handled my isp - but handled by their hosting operator. What's been suggested here is that my isp police...

2 days ago by Paul Hutchinson via Facebook on MPs urge ISPs to take down terrorist material
Techs UK

Looks like a great phone. I don't notice any deficiencies in WP7. used IOS before, that's pretty good. I don't spend much time in Apps, all i need...

2 days ago by Techs UK on Nokia pins US 're-entry' hopes on Lumia 900
Larry Bloggy

Now with the help of these apps you are always synced with MS outlook while on the move. Just download apps like xobni or outlookreflex and get...

2 days ago by Larry Bloggy via Facebook on Outlook Social Connector beta 2 and the LinkedIn connector

Latest in Application Development