Singapore — A new survey, released on June 19, Wednesday, shows that two out of every five employees in Singapore, a solid 39 percent, plan on looking for another job this year.

For a big portion of these employees, a “limited career path” is the main reason why they want a new job.

These results showing the desire for new employment comes as a bit of a surprise, given the less than bullish prospects both for the jobs market and the economy, according to Randstad Singapore, a top recruitment agency in the country.

Randstad noted in its study,

”Even though the market sentiments on the economy and labour market are cautious this year, people are still actively looking for new jobs, particularly those who feel that they are facing a roadblock in their career.”

The newly-released study is Randstad’s Employer Brand Research 2019 report. It was conducted between December 7, 2018, and January 4, 2019, and involved 200,000 respondents across 32 markets, with 2,502 respondents from Singapore.

From the Singaporeans, 77 percent are permanent staff, 7 percent are self-employed or freelancers, and 5 percent are temporary staff. Students, homemakers, job seekers and those unemployed also participated in the survey.

It shows that 43 percent of millennials are looking to make the shift in jobs, the highest demographic category to do so. Next to millennials in willingness to look for new employment are employees from Generation X, those born in the 1960s through the 1980s. Forty-one percent of Gen Xers say they are planning on switching jobs.

As for work environment, results from the Randstad study showed that for younger employees, pleasant work environments, as well as good training, is very important. Among millennials, 33 percent say they would apply for jobs with firms that give strong training programmes for career and skills development, whereas 42 percent of Generation Z workers (born in the 1990s to 2000s) are on the lookout for “interesting jobs that they can feel excited about”.

For older workers, flexibility and strong management are attractive aspects of good employment, with 38 percent of experienced professionals from the ages of 35 through 54 preferring flexible work arrangements. In contrast, 69 percent of millennials have stated they don’t mind working at the office.

According to Jaya Dass, the managing director of Randstad Singapore and Malaysia, “Younger people do not mind working in the office as it places them in an environment where they can be most productive since they will have easy access to resources as well as people to exchange ideas with.”

For workers of all ages, the most important criteria for good employment remains attractive salary and benefits, with 65 percent ranking it as their number one choice. This is followed by a good work-life balance (61 percent), then job security (42 percent), and then career progression (39 percent).

The areas where there are the biggest gaps between employee expectations of ideal employers and the expectations of what firms actually offer are work-life balance and the use of the latest technologies.

Interestingly, 31 percent of Singaporean employees consider resigning in situations wherein they are are not recognised or rewarded or when they feel they are not able to hit the right balance between personal life and work./ TISG

Read also: Singaporeans more anxious about needing to learn new skill sets rather than losing employment due to workplace automation