Youth Unemployment in Singapore

Mr R Dhinakaran asked the Acting Minister for Manpower what is the current rate of youth unemployment in Singapore.

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As in most countries, youths in Singapore have a higher unemployment rate compared to the overall labour force. In 2011, the average unemployment rate of residents aged 15 to 24 was 6.7%, compared to the overall resident unemployment rate of 2.9%2. This higher unemployment rate reflects youths' greater job search activity as many are entering the job market for the first time and, even after starting work, youths tend to change jobs more frequently.

Our youth unemployment situation compares favourably with advanced economies and our peer Asian economies. For example, our youth unemployment rate is significantly lower than that in the US (17%), the UK (21%), Germany (8.5%), Hong Kong (9.3%), South Korea (9.6%) and Taiwan (13%)3.

More importantly, youths in Singapore generally do not experience long unemployment spells. In 2011, only 7.7% of resident unemployed youths had been looking for work for at least 25 weeks, which was one of the lowest among advanced economies and our peer Asian economies. This was 30% in the US, 43% in the UK, 42% in Germany, 17% in Hong Kong, 3.4% in South Korea, and 27% in Taiwan4.

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What this means is that unemployment among our youths is mostly "frictional" in nature. It reflects the normal time taken for fresh job seekers and employers to find a match, and that youths typically tend to change jobs more often.

Our fresh Polytechnic and University graduates also enjoy high employability. More than nine in 10 of our Polytechnic and University graduates who entered the labour market in 2011 found work within six months after completion of their final examinations5.

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