Overview of Hiring Activity
Singapore’s online hiring activity declined by 2% month-on-month in November 2025, reflecting a cautious labour market as employers balance cost pressures with uneven demand conditions.
The broader trend remains soft: hiring is down 5% over the last 3 months, 5% over the last 6 months, and 12% year-on-year, indicating that recovery continues to be selective rather than broad-based.
Despite the overall cooling, a few sectors—especially Advertising & Media and Hospitality—continue to show resilience, supported by consumption-linked activity and ongoing brand and content investments.
Hiring Trends by Industry (YoY change)
Most industries recorded annual declines, though pockets of strength emerged in Advertising & Media and Hospitality, while several operational sectors stayed flat.
In demand
- Advertising, Market Research, PR, Media & Entertainment (+9%)
Brand-building, performance marketing, and content execution needs are supporting steady demand across creative, media, and campaign roles.
- Hospitality (+4%)
Tourism and events activity continues to sustain hiring across guest services, F&B operations, and travel support functions.
- Shipping/Marine (0%) / Oil & Gas (0%) / Production/Manufacturing, Automotive & Ancillary (0%)
Flat hiring suggests stable operations and replacement-level recruitment rather than expansion.
Facing challenges
- Others (−23%)
Broad-based moderation across smaller and mixed verticals is driving the steepest decline.
- Education (−14%)
Hiring remains subdued amid shifting enrolment dynamics and evolving delivery models.
- BFSI (−9%)
Efficiency-focused budgets and automation-led role consolidation continue to weigh on demand.
- Import/Export (−6%) and IT, Telecom/ISP & BPO/ITES (−5%)
Slower regional trade momentum and calibrated tech hiring are keeping these sectors under pressure.
- Consumer Goods/FMCG cluster (−4%)
Softer sentiment and cautious expansion are limiting workforce additions.
Hiring Trends by Functional Area (YoY change)
Occupation-level trends show sharper divergence: Healthcare roles remain resilient, while Legal, Technology, and Finance functions continue to face pressure.
In demand
- Health Care (+3%)
Continued demand for clinical and allied health support roles is sustaining workforce additions.
- Marketing & Communications (−1% YoY, but +1% in 3M and +4% in 6M)
While slightly lower YoY, short-to-medium term movement suggests improving momentum in campaign, content, and digital roles.
- Customer Service (−2% YoY; stable near-term)
A relatively contained decline indicates steady requirements across service desks and operations support roles.
Facing challenges
- Legal (−36%)
The steepest decline among functions, reflecting consolidation and leaner demand for legal/compliance support.
- Software, Hardware, Telecom (−14%)
Tech roles remain subdued despite marginal short-term stability (+2% MoM, +1% in 3M).
- Finance & Accounts (−13%)
Cost control and automation of transactional/reporting work continues to suppress hiring.
- Sales & Business Development (−10%) and HR & Admin (−5%)
Organisations remain measured on expanding frontline commercial and support functions in a cautious cycle.
About the foundit Insights Tracker
The foundit Insights Tracker (fit) Singapore (formerly the Monster Employment Index) is a monthly benchmark of online hiring activity across the nation. By analysing millions of job postings, fit provides timely, data-led intelligence on recruitment trends across industries, occupations, and skill categories, helping organisations and talent navigate an evolving labour market.
