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As new job positions in Singapore open up with the reopening of borders with Malaysia, more in Malaysia are coming to Singapore to work, including both employees who are quitting their jobs and fresh university graduates seeking job opportunities, Oriental Daily reported.

Why working in Singapore is more appealing

Job seekers in Malaysia, including those who returned home after the onset of the pandemic, are reportedly drawn to companies in Singapore as they are offering relatively higher salaries, as well as better benefit packages.

Many of them were also drawn by the advantageous exchange rate.

As a result of this trend of Malaysians traveling across the border to take up jobs in Singapore, the job market in Malaysia is facing a shortage of manpower supply, according to Oriental Daily. 

In addition, the rise of living costs and inflation has contributed to the push for working professionals to work in Singapore instead.

Singapore business owners actively looking for Malaysian workers to fill manpower shortage

Jess Chia, a consultant at Johor Bahru-based recruitment agency Jobbuilder, told Oriental Daily that since January this year, they have received an average of 30 applications a month from Singapore companies which were looking to advertise open positions on their platform.

According to Chia, Singapore is currently facing a dearth of workers. Besides calling for former employees who've returned to Malaysia to come back, companies are also continuously seeking fresh talent.

In particular, Chia pointed out that Singapore's manufacturing and food and beverages (F&B) industries are in short supply of workers and are therefore actively recruiting.

They are seeking workers to take up factory positions as well, including machine operators and engineering assistants whose monthly salaries are below S$2,500 (RM7,754), she said.

While there is no significant rise in salaries as compared to before -- only "a 10 to 15 per cent increase" -- there are some Singapore companies which are boosting their benefit packages for employees, she added.

An accountant working in Johor Bahru also told Oriental Daily that Kuala Lumpur faces the same situation as well, with several working professionals there who are willing to switch jobs and move to Singapore.

"A huge draw for them is the compensation," he said, adding that some accountants will make the move for a monthly pay of S$3,000 to S$4,000 (RM9,305 to RM12,407).

Quitting their jobs first to come to Singapore

Yang, an HR manager at a factory in the city of Pasir Gudang in the Johor Bahru district, also told Oriental Daily that there were even employees who resigned and moved to Singapore without finding a job beforehand, as they planned to start looking for jobs after they come to Singapore.

She added that as travellers to Singapore don't have to be tested for Covid-19 or quarantined, those residing in Malaysia could return home every single day after work, much like the pre-pandemic situation, which is a huge draw for many Malaysians.

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Top image via Nigel Chua and Getty Images