More than 80% of job-seekers don’t feel discriminated: Survey

This article is more than 12 months old

Feb 04, 2020 06:00 am

More than eight in 10 job-seekers in Singapore do not feel their gender, race, religion, nationality, marital status or number of children stopped them from finding work.

Most employees also feel fairly treated by companies in terms of employment terms and benefits, training, career development and performance evaluation.

These findings from a 2018 Ministry of Manpower (MOM) survey were disclosed in Parliament yesterday by Minister of State Zaqy Mohamad in his reply to Non-Constituency MP Leon Perera.

Mr Zaqy also said complaints on workplace discrimination had dropped from 580 in 2015 to 200 in 2018, making up less than 1 per cent of all complaints received.

He added that employment rates of Singapore residents aged 55 to 64 increased from 57 per cent in 2009, to 68 per cent last year.

WOMEN

The employment rate of women residents aged 25 to 64 climbed from 64 per cent to 73 per cent.

Among the job seekers from vulnerable groups who received dedicated job coaching in 2023, 81 per cent of them gained employment.

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Mr Zaqy said the survey was nationally representative and covered about 3,100 individuals and 3,400 establishments.

But recent studies show a slight rise in perception of discrimination in Singapore.

A 2018 survey of about 4,000 Singapore residents shows almost 60 per cent of Malays and about 56 per cent of Indians perceive discriminatory treatment at work.

The figures are a slight rise from 58.7 per cent of Malays and 52.6 per cent of Indians in a similar survey done in 2013.

Both surveys were done jointly by the Institute of Policy Studies and racial harmony group OnePeople.sg

In the latest study, perception of discrimination when applying for a job is four times higher for the minorities than for the Chinese, and more than three times higher when seeking a promotion. - TEE ZHUO