Manpower Minister Josephine Teo advised job-seekers of any age, not just seniors, to keep an open mind and be willing to take up jobs in sectors other than the ones they majored or previously worked in.

Teo added that she was encouraged by workers who display a willingness and enthusiasm to learn, and take part in professional conversion programmes that place them in new roles.

However, she said that she recognised that senior workers had concerns about ageism, and she encouraged those who feel they were not fairly considered to reach out to the Ministry of Manpower, who will reach out to the employer.

Teo was responding to a follow-up question in Parliament from Workers' Party Member of Parliament Jamus Lim, who asked what the ministry has done to support older job seekers close to retirement age who may be facing discrimination.

Teo said: "If [Lim] knows of instances where an older person has been discriminated against, for jobs, I encourage him to refer them to the Ministry of Manpower, we will certainly investigate."

Support for students majoring in sectors hit by Covid-19

Being open to new positions is also the advice Teo had for fresh graduates majoring in vulnerable sectors.

Responding to a question from MP Desmond Choo, Teo said that MOM is closely monitoring the employment outcomes of graduating students, and the Ministry of Education's Graduate Employment Survey will be published in the first quarter of 2021, which will give some indication of hiring patterns.

Students majoring in the sectors of aviation, hospitality and aerospace, all which have been hit hard by Covid-19, can benefit from career fairs with job opportunities in "adjacent sectors", which will make use of their skills.

The government also introduced the SGUnited Traineeship Programme, with 21,000 traineeships available from 3,300 host organisations.

Teo added: "Candidates will also have better opportunities if they are open to trying out positions outside of the disciplines they are trained in, or look beyond positions that many applicants have focussed on."

Concerns of fresh graduates

In a follow-up question, Choo pointed out that students currently studying have reflected that there's a lack of internships and attachments, and they were worried about employability upon graduation, as well as competition from existing workers with experience:

"I wonder if the ministry can come up with programmes that will allow them to not only just maintain the current competency, but also to catch up with existing peers in the industry, so that we do not lose our aviation, aerospace and hospitality competency over time."

Teo answered that for aerospace graduates, despite the industry downturn, about half of students currently majoring in aerospace have internships related to their field of study.

She added that the others have useful skills that are in demand for jobs like engineering.

In aviation management, about 60 per cent have internships in similar roles related to business management, and added:

"So that gives us a sense as to how the collective efforts of the agencies involved,  together with the students' own willingness to step out of their comfort zone, they have been able to secure meaningful internships which we believe will enable them to be better positioned for the job market."

As for Choo's other question, Teo said as long as the industry has a demand for skilled workers, if the graduates working in a different role would like to return to the industry, MOM will make available career conversion programmes to help them.

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Top image from Josephine Teo's Facebook page.