SINGAPORE - The retail sector may have taken a beating during the Covid-19 pandemic, but there are still some 2,500 jobs on offer as stores reopen and more businesses turn to e-commerce.
Nearly two in five of these jobs are for professionals, managers, executives and technicians, said Manpower Minister Josephine Teo in her weekly jobs situation report on Monday (Oct 12).
These are roles such as sales, marketing and business development managers, with monthly salaries of between $2,750 and $6,500, with a median of $3,750.
Meanwhile, retail and wholesale trade managers typically earn between $2,000 and $3,750 each month, with a median of $2,700.
The job roles also include commercial and marketing sales executives, which typically receive between $2,400 and $4,450 monthly, with a median of $3,200.
The remaining jobs on offer are non-PMET jobs, such as shop and store salespersons, which typically receive monthly salaries between $1,400 and $1,900, with a median of $1,600.
These non-PMET roles are necessary to meet immediate manpower needs for front-of-house operations, as retail stores resumed operations after the end of the circuit breaker, said Mrs Teo.
At the same time, retailers are also increasingly looking to hire PMETs who have digital skills to help their businesses grow on e-commerce platforms, she added.
Apart from jobs, there are also about 610 company-hosted traineeships and attachments as well as about 430 training opportunities available in the sector.
Between April and September, 770 individuals have been placed into jobs, enhanced roles, traineeships and attachments as well as training opportunities in the retail sector, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
Of these, about 700 either found jobs or were able to retain their job in new or enhanced roles within the sector.
REDESIGNING JOBS IN RETAIL
The impact of Covid-19 pandemic forced many retailers to move their operations online on e-commerce platforms, and using technologies like live-streaming and virtual reality to engage with customers, said MOM.
In August, nearly 11 per cent of total retail sales value were online sales, said the ministry. This was higher in certain sub-sectors such as computer and telecommunications equipment, where nearly 50 per cent of sales were online.
To help retailers redesign jobs in the sector and create higher-value roles, as well as their efforts in transforming their business, Workforce Singapore's (WSG) Job Redesign Reskilling Programme was enhanced in February.
As of end-August, more than 550 workers from 37 retailers have been, or are being, trained and redeployed into new or higher-value job roles through the programme.
About 40 per cent of them will receive a higher wage after completing the training, while for the remaining 60 per cent, employers have committed to reviewing their wages after the Covid-19 situation has stabilised, said MOM.
EMPLOYING SENIORS IN RETAIL
The MOM also gave an update on Monday on its efforts to encourage companies to hire older workers in retail and other sectors.
In July, applications opened for employers to seek funding support of up to $375,000 through the Senior Worker Early Adopter Grant (SW EAG) and Part-time Re-employment Grant (PTRG), which were introduced as part of the $1.3 billion Senior Worker Support Package.
In the first three months of applications, nearly 650 companies applied for the SW EAG while about 440 companies applied for the PTRG, said MOM.
Almost all were small- to medium-sized enterprises, including those in the retail sector, and about 37,000 employees will benefit from the grants.
The retail sector is one of the top sectors employing senior workers, with nearly one in three employees aged 55 or older.
