Singapore Workers Spurn Jobs That Don’t Offer Hybrid Work Option

More than 40% of people said they wouldn’t accept a job offer if they’re unable to work from home or don’t have flexible work hours, according to the latest Workmonitor survey by human resources agency Randstad Singapore based on 1,000 local respondents. 

Meanwhile, recruitment agency Michael Page Singapore said around 3% of the 1,400 people surveyed in December and January resigned because their company wasn’t flexible enough. 

The employee pushback comes amid a tight labor market, with the city-state’s unemployment rate at 2.1%. Hiring is forecast to remain strong in the coming months, as companies backfill positions and meet rising demand, the Ministry of Manpower said.

Singapore isn’t alone in seeing employees demanding more flexible conditions and higher wages. In the US, the Great Resignation has brought massive upheaval in the labor market, with quit rates at highs possibly not seen since the 1970s. 

Companies trying to return to the pre-Covid-19 model of employees working entirely from the office are finding that candidates are rejecting their job offers, said Sachet Sethi, tech & transformation manager at Robert Walters Singapore. 

Employees have re-evaluated how they want their careers to fit into their lives over the past two year, said Jaya Dass, managing director at Randstad Singapore and Malaysia.

“Even though flexible working arrangements are important to employees in Singapore, not all companies are seen to be offering it as an option after the pandemic,” Dass said. “Employers that want to retain their employees should consider offering more flexible work models to meet the changing talent expectations that are brought about and exacerbated by the pandemic.”

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