ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey
Get insights on Singapore's employers' hiring plans across nine sectors, reasons for staffing increases, and more.
A message from Ms. Linda Teo, ManpowerGroup Singapore Country Manager
“Singapore’s hiring outlook reflects a stabilizing labor market, supported by stronger-than-expected economic growth in 2024. While the overall Outlook has improved, a deeper analysis reveals a shift in employer sentiment. Fewer companies are planning to increase or decrease hiring, with nearly half (49%) now opting to maintain current workforce levels. This trend suggests a dual narrative where staffing levels are either normalizing after post-pandemic adjustments or employers are adopting a cautious 'wait-and-see' approach amid global trade tensions and economic uncertainties. It’s also important to note that this survey was conducted from 2-31 January 2025, prior to the release of Singapore Budget 2025, which may further shape hiring plans in the coming months. Technological advancements, such as AI, are a key factor in reshaping Singapore’s workforce landscape. On one hand, the demand for specialized skills related to tech advancements drives job creation, prompting sectors such as Transport, Logistics, and Automotive to innovate and create new roles. On the other hand, automation is also streamlining some functions. The dual impact where some jobs are lost while new ones are created, underscores the need for businesses to prioritize upskilling and strategic planning to thrive in an AI-driven economy.”
Key Findings
- Singapore’s Employers Hold Steady on Hiring Amid Normalization and Uncertainty: Singapore’s Net Employment Outlook (NEO) for Q2 2025 is +27%, strengthening by 2 points from Q1 2025 and 3 points year-over-year.
- Singapore’s Healthcare and Life Sciences sector ranks second globally: The sector records an NEO of +49%, increasing by 9 points since the last quarter and 13 points since the second quarter of 2024. This places Singapore second globally for the sector, beating the global average by 21 points.
- Company Expansion drives Q2 staffing increases in Singapore: 41% of employers in Singapore report company expansion as the top reason for staffing increases, followed by needing the latest skills to stay competitive (33%), and tech advancements needing more expertise (33%).
- Technological advancements power job creation in Transport, Logistics, and Automotive sector: Employers in the Transport, Logistics, and Automotive sector (56%) were the most likely to expand their workforce in response to demands of tech advancements, followed by those in Communication Services (36%), Consumer Goods & Services (35%), and Financials & Real Estate (35%).
- Economic Challenges influence workforce reductions in Singapore: 39% of employers in Singapore report economic challenges as the main factor impacting staffing reductions, followed by restructuring or downsizing (36%), and automation having reduced some roles (31%).
Downloads
ManpowerGroup interviewed 525 employers in Singapore on their hiring intentions for Q2 2025. Download our press release, infographic, and report to learn more about the survey results and take a deeper dive into global trends and key findings.
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Past ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Reports
About the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey
What is the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey?
The ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey measures employers’ intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the upcoming quarter. It is the most extensive forward-looking survey of its kind, unparalleled in its size, scope and longevity. The Survey has been running since 1962 and is one of the most trusted indicators of labor market trends in the world.
What questions do you ask in the survey?
All the data in the survey is based on the answer to one question: How do you anticipate total employment at your location to change in the coming three months as compared to the current quarter?
In addition to the main employment question, the survey asks up to six additional questions which change quarterly. These questions reflect changing economic or workforce dynamics and trends. Topic areas range from talent shortage to workforce training and development to employee sentiments and well-being.
What is meant by Net Employment Outlook (NEO)?
The Net Employment Outlook is derived by taking the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in hiring activity and subtracting from this the percentage of employers that expect to see a decrease in employment at their location in the next quarter. A positive Net Employment Outlook figure means that, on balance, there are more employers who expect to add to their headcount in the following three months than those who intend to reduce staff.
Does the survey provide data on planned employment changes?
The ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey only measures if employers expect to hire or not and does not provide information about specific job changes. The Survey is a forecast, not a commitment, based on informed opinions from employers and hiring managers on what will likely happen in their organization in the following quarter.
How large is the sample worldwide?
The Q2 2025 ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey is based on interviews with 39,449 public and private employers in 41 countries.
What is the survey methodology?
The methodology used to collect the data for the Employment Outlook is digitized across the 41 markets, beginning with the Q1 2022 report.
Respondents in previous quarters were contacted via telephone. Data is now collected online with double opt-in member panels and they are incentivized to complete the survey.
The survey participants are not derived from ManpowerGroup’s customer base. To protect the integrity of the data, survey respondents remain completely anonymous and confidential.
In line with standard findings of online surveys, more people are now taking a position – selecting that their workforce will either increase or decrease vs. no change. Because the Net Employment Outlook is based only on the people saying increase or decrease, the result of this higher level of engagement means the methodology shift may contribute to a higher Outlook.
For the Q2 2025 report, the survey responses were collected 2 Jan - 31 Jan 2025.
How are companies selected for the survey?
Employers are selected based on the types of companies and organizations they represent. We want to ensure that our panel is representative of each participating country’s national labor market, so each country’s panel is built in proportion to that country’s overall distribution of industry sectors and organization sizes.
Who do you interview in each company?
The person we select to interview will be someone with a good overview of staffing levels and hiring intentions within their organization. Normally this will be the head of HR or an HR manager. However, in smaller organizations, that person may be a general manager or even the CEO.
Who conducts the research?
Reputation Leaders is our lead research partner who analyzes data for all 41 countries and territories to ensure consistency.
Can you explain the Margin of Error calculation?
By their very nature, surveys are imperfect measures. All surveys have a margin of error, which is largely determined by the number of interviews completed. For the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey, the minimum panel size in each country and territory is 620 to ensure a margin of error no greater than +/-3.9%. This prevents undue distortion of the data because of one respondent changing their response from one quarter to the next. No single panel member represents more than 2% of the total sample in an industry sector or region.
Why do you seasonally adjust the data?
Seasonal adjustment is a statistical process that allows the Survey data to be presented without the impact of hiring fluctuations that normally occur through the course of the year, usually as a result of various external factors, such changes in weather, traditional production cycles and public holidays. Seasonal adjustment has the effect of flattening peaks and smoothing troughs in the data to better illustrate underlying employment trends and provide a more accurate representation of the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey results.
How do you know if hiring intentions reported come to fruition?
ManpowerGroup does not track retrospective hiring trends as part of the Employment Outlook Survey, only forward-looking expectations. However, we are able to see that the Survey results do align with employment trends reported by governments and other organizations quite closely and provide one of the most robust and trusted indicators of forward-looking labor market trends in the world.
What is the best way to analyze the results?
There are several ways to review the results which are reported for 41 countries across 4 regions and specific industries within each. The current results, including the Net Employment Outlook, provide a snapshot of employers’ expectations for the coming three months.
Comparing this result to the previous quarter provides a short-term perspective of hiring expectations in a particular country or sector, while comparing to the previous year gives a longer-term view on employer intentions.
