Data provided by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to Pioneer SMC MP Patrick Tay showed that the total number of Professional, Managerial, Executive & Technical (PMET) jobs in Singapore had grown from 1.25 million in 2010 to 1.7 million in 2019, adding that for every 1 foreign PMET hired, about 3 more Singaporeans took up PMET roles.
MOM was responding to Tay’s request for the annual breakdown of residents and non-residents data working in PMET roles for the past decade.
Tay, who is also an assistant secretary-general of NTUC, had requested the data in a Facebook post in September 2020.
23.7 percent of PMET roles in 2019 went to foreigners, up from 17.7 per cent in 2011
Of the 1.7 million workers in PMET roles in 2019, 61.7 per cent were Singapore citizens, 14.6 per cent were Singapore PRs and 23.7 per cent were foreigners.
In comparison to a decade ago, 64.2 per cent of PMET roles went to Singapore citizens, 18.1 per cent to Singapore PRs, and 17.7 per cent to foreigners.
While the number of foreigners taking up PMET roles increased, Singaporeans PMET decreased from 64.2 per cent in 2011 to 61.7 per cent in 2019.
More Singaporeans taking up PMET roles in 2019 compared to a decade ago
According to MOM’s data, the overall figures for Singaporeans in PMET roles in 2019 decreased by 2.5 per cent.
However, if we look at the data on a granular level between 2011 to 2019, there was an increase of 250,000 Singaporeans in PMET roles, from 802K in June 2010 to 1050K in June 2019.
The data also showed that in the past 5 years (2014-2019), foreigners in PMET roles grow at 10K workers per year, compared to Singaporean PMETs at 32K per year.
The growth in Singaporean PMETs suggests that for every 1 foreign PMET added to the economy, about 3 more Singaporeans took up PMET jobs.
