US-based company announced retrenchments affecting S'pore staff on CNY day 2 & start of Ramadan

[Update as of Mar. 10: This article has been updated to include a statement by Sabre Asia Pacific, it has also been edited for clarity.]

A U.S.-headquartered company announced retrenchments in Singapore on Feb. 18, the second day of the Chinese New Year and the start of Ramadan, in what an employee called an "insensitive" move.

An employee of Sabre Asia Pacific, T (not his real name), spoke to Mothership on Feb. 23 on the condition of anonymity.

Sabre is a major travel technology company that provides software that powers booking, distribution, and management systems for airlines, hotels, corporate clients and travel agencies.

T said that the company informed staff that 90 per cent of affected employees in Singapore would be informed by Feb. 20.

"This is very insensitive to announce such news during the festive season (CNY and Ramadan)."

In response to Mothership's queries, a Ministry of Manpower (MOM) spokesperson said that it was aware of the retrenchment exercise, and it had informed the Singapore Manual & Mercantile Workers’ Union (SMMWU) in advance.

"Where retrenchments are inevitable, we encourage companies to do so sensitively – this includes considering the timing and impact of the announcement, and avoiding festive periods if possible."

Worried

While T was not affected in the initial cuts, the company added that 10 per cent of affected staff will be let go through 2026.

"We are all worried about our jobs for the rest of 2026."

According to T, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sabre Corporation announced the layoffs in a video message on the staff portal, possibly "to prevent information leakage", noted T.

He said there were over 100 staff in the Singapore office, occupying the entire fifth floor of PLQ2 in Paya Lebar, a space that was 26,000 square feet.

'A time bomb'

T said that 2025's Profit and Loss (P&L) statement, which is the company's annual financial report, was "not up to expectations", he claimed.

He said that the last layoff was in 2023, and staff in Singapore were also impacted in that cycle.

The remaining 10 per cent of affected employees were not given a specific timeline as to when they would be laid off, and T. remarked that it felt like "it is a time bomb".

"In the past, impacted staff were only offered 0.5 months for every year of service, which is less than the market practice of one month."

Separately, MOM's spokesperson said that the severance package for affected workers is "in line with the Tripartite Advisory on Managing Excess Manpower and Responsible Retrenchment".

He alleged that the "insensitive" news was compounded by the management's choice "to announce promotions for senior executive positions at the same time".

Sabre Asia to use AI to enhance internal productivity

In response to Mothership's queries, Sabre Asia Pacific said that it is evaluating its resources to support "strategy and momentum" and plans to keep expenses "relatively flat" over the next few years.

"While we don't comment on specific personnel matters, any decisions we make are guided by our commitment to strengthening our business for the future and delivering ongoing value to our partners."

The company added that it will have more engineers in the coming year as it is looking to add engineering resources throughout 2026.

Task force working with Sabre to support employees

MOM's spokesperson said that a task force is working with Sabre to "provide job matching support and career coaching for these employees".

"The Taskforce for Responsible Retrenchment and Employment Facilitation, which consists of the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), Workforce Singapore (WSG), the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), and NTUC’s Employment and Employability Institute (e2i), is working closely with Sabre to support affected employees."

Companies that require support can visit MOM’s website to submit an early alert on retrenchment exercises.

MOM's spokesperson said this would allow WSG and NTUC e2i to support affected employees at the earliest opportunity by providing information on government assistance schemes, retrenchment guidelines and employment facilitation.

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