MOM’s advance figures show total employment grew by 27,700 in the third quarter of 2026, while retrenchments rose from 4,620 to 4,800 and the overall unemployment rate held at 2.0% in September.
Get That Job, a sister site, has a fuller breakdown of the Q3 figures, including hiring and retrenchment expectations.
Source: MOM — Labour Market Advance Release 3Q 2026 (30 Oct 2026)
Employment Pass and S Pass qualifying salaries are going up again. MOM has confirmed new minimums that take effect for new applications from January 2027, and for renewals from January 2028. Employment Pass (EP) S Pass MOM has also signalled S Pass minimums are projected to reach S$4,000–S$4,500 by 2030, so this isn’t a one-off…
In a written parliamentary reply on 3 Nov, MOM said Employment Claims Tribunal lodgement fees are kept low at $30 for claims of up to $10,000 and $60 for larger claims. It said the tribunal or registrar already has the power to order a party to pay the other side’s costs and disbursements, including lodgement fees, where appropriate, and has done so in various cases.
Acting Minister for Manpower Jasmin Lau told Parliament that about 88% of employers that filed Mandatory Retrenchment Notifications in 2025 paid retrenchment benefits, and close to 80% of retrenched workers who did not receive them came from firms with fewer than 200 employees. Tripartite partners are studying retrenchment benefit payments and earlier job-matching support as part of the ongoing Employment Act review, and MOM will work on clearer guidance on disguised retrenchments.
Peter Seah is stepping down as Chairman of the National Wages Council after more than a decade in the role. Hsieh Fu Hua, currently NWC Deputy Chairman, will succeed him with effect from 19 August 2026. Seah requested to relinquish the position for personal reasons, and the Ministry of Manpower approved the request. He chaired…
MOM says the key appointment holder of Maids R Us was jailed for nine weeks on 15 Oct under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act. His agency licence was revoked in June and he is barred from the industry.
From September 2026, MOM has added eight new roles to the Non-Traditional Source (NTS) Occupation List — the list of jobs employers can fill with Work Permit holders from a wider range of source countries. What’s changing The eight added occupations span food services, social services, and air transportation — sectors that have flagged persistent…
