With a 31 % jump in demand for civil engineers in the past three months, the real estate sector is enjoying a hiring spree despite the recent cooling of labour demand in Singapore across other industries. 

Overall job postings for real estate roles rose 16% over the past three months according to data from the job portal Indeed. This surge in demand has come as Singapore’s property market continues to boom post-pandemic with the absence of restrictions on construction and a rise in migration as borders reopened and expatriates returned.

Singapore's labour market remains healthy overall with low unemployment and above-pre-pandemic levels of employment. However, demand continues to cool with job postings on Indeed falling by 1.8% in April compared to the previous month. This is the sixth consecutive month of decline. 

The healthcare industry has seen some of the greatest decline in job postings for all roles except nursing. Pharmacy positions have experienced a notable decrease of 39% in the past three months, while postings for physicians and surgeons declined by 28% followed by dental professionals (-26%), veterinary practitioners (-25%), and medical information personnel (-24%).

Nursing has demonstrated resilience amidst the broader healthcare trend, exhibiting a growth of 5.6% over the same three-month period.

While the industry has seen a significant decline, the overall volume of healthcare job postings continues to demonstrate strength. At the end of April, there has been a 2.1-fold increase in physician and surgeon postings and a 2.2-fold increase in nursing postings compared to pre-pandemic levels. 

“As the numbers have shown, demand for workers may have softened but worker shortages are no doubt still common. There remains a lot of jobs available across Singapore with job postings still higher than pre-pandemic levels,” said Callam Pickering, APAC senior economist at Indeed. 

“Overall, the data from the report suggests that while labour demand may be cooling, there are still areas of growth in the Singapore job market, with the demand for real estate and civil engineers continuing to rise. Demand for workers continues to outstrip supply - characterised by critical skill and talent shortages - which has helped keep unemployment low. However, a deteriorating global economy, driven by high inflation and rising interest rates, already appears to be weighing on Singapore’s economy and would be expected to impact labour market conditions in the second half of the year.”