Saving jobs, finding new jobs, and increasing the capacity for continuing education and training are the priorities for Singapore's Workforce Development Agency (WDA) this year.
It is also playing a key role in implementing the S$650 million Skills Programme for Upgrading and Resilience (SPUR) during the economic downturn.
Seven hundred companies are currently taking part in the programme.
It has been three months since the SPUR programme kicked off. It is aimed at encouraging companies to send their excess manpower for skills upgrading - and the results have been encouraging, according to WDA's Chief Executive Officer Chan Heng Kee.
Up to end-February, 43,000 workers have been sent for SPUR training. Of these, 27,000 come from companies, with the rest being individuals who enrolled with the training centres directly.
Twelve thousand workers from the companies involved, have already started claiming their absentee payroll.
Since the launch of SPUR last year, WDA has made several refinements. WDA said it is important to take into account the feedback given about the programme and the funding process from both employers and workers.
Mr Chan said: "They are telling us that the economy is very fluid, they are in different sorts of work arrangements and shorter work week, and their needs can change quite rapidly. So we continue to listen to them.
"We will honour the commitment for it to be a two-year programme, so employers do not have to worry that if they come onto SPUR now and later should the economy recover, we would not honour the funding. We have already set aside funding for two years and we will guarantee the two-year funding period."
The agency is also ready to develop new training frameworks, so that more sectors can tap on SPUR.
Also taking advantage of the many initiatives like SPUR and the Professional Skills Programme are some 6,000 professionals, managers, executives and technicians (PMETs) - a group quite affected by the downturn.
WDA is putting in place more diploma courses and conversion programmes for them. Currently, there are 26 such programmes and this could be increased to 50 this year.
WDA added that Singapore's quick response with SPUR was also because of its many continuing education and training centres.
Mr Chan said: "Some of them are expanding facilities. We are looking at temporary facilities to take care of peaks in training. (For example), we are ramping up the development of trainers, the conversion of trainers, trainers with expertise. (In terms of) rescheduling, we are helping them to rearrange because companies are (implementing) shorter work weeks, so their scheduling can be quite unique."
In the pipeline are another 10 new centres with programmes to meet the needs of emerging sectors like community and social services.
Meanwhile, giving a report card of its achievements in 2008, WDA said it more than doubled the number of continuing education and training centres - from 19 in 2007 to 42 last year.
Also, 24 per cent of some 10,800 companies surveyed said they recognise the Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) scheme. WDA said the WSQ framework has only existed for the last two years and the increased adoption is a giant step by companies in Singapore.
WDA has also played a leading role in helping workers get jobs. About 13,000 were placed into jobs by the Community Development Councils career centres and another 22,000 through the various WDA-supported programmes.
- Channel News Asia
Mar 29, 2009
Laid off? It's not the end of the road
IT IS not the end of the road when workers are told that they are being laid off during tough times, human-resource experts said.
Mr Tim Hird, managing director of human-resource firm Robert Half Singapore, said that it is vital that employees remain professional, positive and proactive even if they know they will be laid off.
"A reputation for professionalism and good work ethics is your most important career asset, as it will only help to enhance your chances of getting a new job, or even being re-hired by your company when business picks up again," he said.
Agreeing, the executive director of the Singapore Human Resources Institute, Mr David Ang, added that retrenched workers should leave their companies on a good note as they could still get a good testimonial from their former employers for future job searches, or even gain recommendations to business associates who are hiring.
On the flip side, Mr Ang said firms should not use the downturn to threaten employees with job cuts and exert more work pressure on them when the company is still doing quite well.
Those comments came in the light of a finding released earlier this month by Robert Half, which identified six warning signs that indicated when a company might be looking to cut staff (see below).
But seeing one or two of the signs does not necessarily mean that a firm is retrenching, noted Robert Half.
A 28-year-old quality assurance officer in the IT industry said he was worried about losing his job late last year after job cuts were announced, due to business difficulties the company faced.
While he was not let go in his firm's retrenchment exercise which took place this year, he took heart that the workers who were retrenched are still considered valuable workers.
"Despite being retrenched, my former colleagues handled the process well and continued to focus on their work, even to their last day," said the officer.
- My Paper
Mr Tim Hird, managing director of human-resource firm Robert Half Singapore, said that it is vital that employees remain professional, positive and proactive even if they know they will be laid off.
"A reputation for professionalism and good work ethics is your most important career asset, as it will only help to enhance your chances of getting a new job, or even being re-hired by your company when business picks up again," he said.
Agreeing, the executive director of the Singapore Human Resources Institute, Mr David Ang, added that retrenched workers should leave their companies on a good note as they could still get a good testimonial from their former employers for future job searches, or even gain recommendations to business associates who are hiring.
On the flip side, Mr Ang said firms should not use the downturn to threaten employees with job cuts and exert more work pressure on them when the company is still doing quite well.
Those comments came in the light of a finding released earlier this month by Robert Half, which identified six warning signs that indicated when a company might be looking to cut staff (see below).
But seeing one or two of the signs does not necessarily mean that a firm is retrenching, noted Robert Half.
A 28-year-old quality assurance officer in the IT industry said he was worried about losing his job late last year after job cuts were announced, due to business difficulties the company faced.
While he was not let go in his firm's retrenchment exercise which took place this year, he took heart that the workers who were retrenched are still considered valuable workers.
"Despite being retrenched, my former colleagues handled the process well and continued to focus on their work, even to their last day," said the officer.
- My Paper
More jobs in healthcare
THE Ministry of Health (MOH) will take in 4,500 workers into the public healthcare sector in the next two years instead of over the next five.
This change of plan is aimed at opening up job options for Singaporeans hit by the downturn, said Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan on Sunday.
Speaking at a dialogue in Paya Lebar Kovan Community Club, he said: 'I really encourage Singaporeans - whether you are retrenched or want to change your career - to consider health care because it's a very meaningful job, but of course, you do need training.'
Since January, 1,100 people have been recruited, six in 10 of them Singaporeans, for administrative positions, nursing and allied health.
More than a quarter of the Singaporeans - 27 per cent - were above 40.
MOH said 2,600 job vacancies are available now, of which one third are in nursing, one third in medical and allied health care and the rest, for administrative and support positions like managers, IT staff and care-coordinators.
It is also funding about 250 training places for Singaporeans making a mid-career switch. So far, 93 places have been filled.
Mr Khaw said the healthcare sector has enough jobs for Singaporeans and foreigners and that it was most important to have the right attitude and the willingness to come forward.
This month, labour chief Lim Swee Say predicted that more than 10,000 workers may be laid off in the first three months of this year - about the number laid off in a year in a booming economy.
- The Straits Times
This change of plan is aimed at opening up job options for Singaporeans hit by the downturn, said Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan on Sunday.
Speaking at a dialogue in Paya Lebar Kovan Community Club, he said: 'I really encourage Singaporeans - whether you are retrenched or want to change your career - to consider health care because it's a very meaningful job, but of course, you do need training.'
Since January, 1,100 people have been recruited, six in 10 of them Singaporeans, for administrative positions, nursing and allied health.
More than a quarter of the Singaporeans - 27 per cent - were above 40.
MOH said 2,600 job vacancies are available now, of which one third are in nursing, one third in medical and allied health care and the rest, for administrative and support positions like managers, IT staff and care-coordinators.
It is also funding about 250 training places for Singaporeans making a mid-career switch. So far, 93 places have been filled.
Mr Khaw said the healthcare sector has enough jobs for Singaporeans and foreigners and that it was most important to have the right attitude and the willingness to come forward.
This month, labour chief Lim Swee Say predicted that more than 10,000 workers may be laid off in the first three months of this year - about the number laid off in a year in a booming economy.
- The Straits Times
Mar 28, 2009
Jobless? Be an SME adviser
SMALL and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) which need expert advice in these trying times - but cannot afford it - can now turn to the inaugural Business Advisers Programme (BAP).
The scheme has a second benefit: offering short-term positions to unemployed professional executives in various fields.
Launched by the Singapore Management University (SMU) on Friday, the BAP will match jobless professionals, managers, executives and technicians with SMEs. They will serve as full-time business advisers on short-term stints.
Spring Singapore will fund up to 60 projects, paying 70 per cent of the $5,000 per month project fee in each case. The SME will pay the other 30 per cent.
There will be one adviser per project. Each SME can have up to two projects. Whether the SME takes up one or two projects, the entire project duration must not exceed 12 months.
SMU's Associate Professor Annie Koh, dean of executive and professional education, said: 'SMEs which do not have the financial means to engage business advisers can now do so with government funding support, while jobs are created for retrenched or unemployed professionals, managers, executives and technicians with a wealth of expertise to contribute.'
Applicants must have at least five years' relevant working experience and should be available for short-term assignments. SMEs must agree not to displace existing staff by taking on the business advisers.
Matching will be done according to areas of expertise and firms' needs. Shortlisted applicants will attend a two-day BAP workshop in May to understand more about the SME's business culture, before the attachment begins.
- The Straits Times
The scheme has a second benefit: offering short-term positions to unemployed professional executives in various fields.
Launched by the Singapore Management University (SMU) on Friday, the BAP will match jobless professionals, managers, executives and technicians with SMEs. They will serve as full-time business advisers on short-term stints.
Spring Singapore will fund up to 60 projects, paying 70 per cent of the $5,000 per month project fee in each case. The SME will pay the other 30 per cent.
There will be one adviser per project. Each SME can have up to two projects. Whether the SME takes up one or two projects, the entire project duration must not exceed 12 months.
SMU's Associate Professor Annie Koh, dean of executive and professional education, said: 'SMEs which do not have the financial means to engage business advisers can now do so with government funding support, while jobs are created for retrenched or unemployed professionals, managers, executives and technicians with a wealth of expertise to contribute.'
Applicants must have at least five years' relevant working experience and should be available for short-term assignments. SMEs must agree not to displace existing staff by taking on the business advisers.
Matching will be done according to areas of expertise and firms' needs. Shortlisted applicants will attend a two-day BAP workshop in May to understand more about the SME's business culture, before the attachment begins.
- The Straits Times
Mar 26, 2009
Logistics man connects people to jobs
NEED a contact? A connection, a way to plug into a network that might mean a new job, a lucrative contact or a chance to dig yourself out of the recessionary mire? Then Mr Paul Lim is your man.
Mr Lim - his day job is regional business development manager for global distribution giant TNT - is the key man for many professionals seeking greener pastures in the logistics field.
And it all began as a lark when he knocked up an informal website about three years ago that has become the must-see forum for those in the huge industry.
It has spawned hugely popular spin-offs like a free career fair being held on Saturday at Republic Polytechnic. Mr Lim, 45, has assembled logistics heavy-hitters who will be discussing industry trends and answering questions on career opportunities for the hundreds of people expected to attend.
At least eight companies are recruiting staff for a wide variety of positions, and representatives from at least 40 other firms will be keeping a look out for talent.
'The supply chain and logistics industries offer lots of interesting career opportunities. Nothing in the world will move, without us guys,' says Mr Lim.
'Factories will stop because we move materials into their plants, supermarkets will close because we deliver their stocks, immigration will come to a standstill because we process passports.'
Yet for all the financial muscle the industry wields, Mr Lim does not earn a cent for his efforts. This is a guy who seems to know anyone who is anyone, prompting headhunters, companies and even competitors looking for talent to beat a path to his door. Retrenched industry workers, meanwhile, see him as a beacon of hope.
Mr Lim could have made a mint from all these connections but he does it for free, through the online platform Supply Chain Asia he built while working on a project in Thailand in 2007.
'I thought I would get all the contacts I have made in the supply chain industry to come to the website to network,' he says. 'That way, I could tap them for leads if I should need to look for a job later.'
He adds: 'We are all individuals working for companies. Tomorrow, we may be working for different companies. Why not talk to each other and be friends?'
Mr Lim, who has an MBA from Scotland's Stirling University, realised that he could not expect 'people from the industry to come to the website, I had to bring it to them'.
So he created a weekly digest, writing summaries and briefs of the news and happenings in the logistics industry and sent it to his initial list of 300 contacts.
'They found it useful, and I told them to send it to others,' says Mr Lim, who spends at least four hours every Sunday night working on the bulletin.
The list grew and the website now boasts 15,000 subscribers. Six months after the website was set up, Mr Lim - he is married to a human resource executive and has two children aged 11 and eight - decided to organise an event where Supply Chain Asia's members could network in real life.
To help underwrite the cost, he approached his contacts in companies that were recruiting to pay a nominal fee. Those looking for a job had free entry.
He also invited speakers to discuss the trend of acquisitions of smaller firms being gobbled up by bigger logistic corporations.
'One of the speakers I approached interviewed me instead. He asked me why I was doing it, and what I stood to gain from it,' says Mr Lim.
His reply? 'Nothing. I told him that I was doing it to help the industry and the community. I told him companies or speakers at the event could not sell their services, I just wanted them to share their knowledge.'
The event has since become an annual staple, a forum drawing some of the biggest, most respected names in the field.
Mr Phil Vaudin, who is in charge of supply chain strategy at Hewlett Packard in Singapore, describes Mr Lim as a man whose passion to help the industry is tireless.
'He has even started a young professionals group, where he encourages students and early career intakes into supply chain to network freely with senior professionals,' says Mr Vaudin.
Mr Lim says Supply Chain Asia's forums do not make any money.
'Any extras we raise from sponsors go into organising workshops and maintaining the website. All my accounts are audited, and I'm answerable to my council,' he says, referring to Supply Chain Asia's advisory council members. They comprise respected industry names, including Dr Robert Yap, chief executive of logistics firm YCH Group.
Several professionals told The Straits Times that it is 'a feat' to stage the forums for free. Registration fees for commercially organised ones such as the SCML Logistics World 2008, a key industry event, held last October, ranged from $1,696 for a post-conference workshop to $4,995 for a four-day pass.
Mr Lim laughs: 'These official organisers actually come to our event because they know our speakers are better.' He adds that an event organiser even offered him a six-figure sum to take over Supply Chain Asia's trademark.
'I said no. If I were in it for the money, I would have taken it commercial a long time ago.
'It is a communal effort the way it is now. And it is helping a lot of people, especially during the recession.'
Indeed, it has. Two writers in Singapore who lost their jobs with a publishing company last year are now running Supply Chain Asia's official magazine, which is distributed free to all its members.
'They came to me and said Supply Chain Asia would be a good platform for a magazine. They said they would put it together, get ads and distribute it free to all our members,' says Mr Lim, who agreed on the condition that the magazine will be distributed out of Singapore, not carry advertorials or be sold.
There are also plans for a Supply Chain Asia Training Academy to help retrenched veterans of the industry by conducting courses.
'We will be launching programmes to train industry professionals under the Workforce Skill Qualification scheme. And these guys, by virtue of their experience, are the best to do it.'
Mr Lim says that he has 10 retrenched veterans ready to run courses and the YCH Group has offered the use of its warehouse and training rooms.
'And the boss himself is ready to fund the development of the academy if it takes off,' he says.
Mr Lim introduced a career fair last year when he noticed a spike in the website's viewership because of the recession.
This Saturday's Supply Chain Careers 2009 will be run by the Young Professionals committee members at the Republic Polytechnic.
The event (details at www.supplychainasia.com/careers2009) costs $5,000 to organise. Sponsors contributed $4,000, with Mr Lim forking out $1,000 himself. The public, especially those who want to know if their skills could get them a job in the industry, are welcome to attend.
He acknowledges that the day may come when Supply Chain Asia becomes really big.
'When that day comes, I will walk off and leave it to the professionals. But I'm already happy knowing that I will always be the founder.'
- The Straits Times
Mr Lim - his day job is regional business development manager for global distribution giant TNT - is the key man for many professionals seeking greener pastures in the logistics field.
And it all began as a lark when he knocked up an informal website about three years ago that has become the must-see forum for those in the huge industry.
It has spawned hugely popular spin-offs like a free career fair being held on Saturday at Republic Polytechnic. Mr Lim, 45, has assembled logistics heavy-hitters who will be discussing industry trends and answering questions on career opportunities for the hundreds of people expected to attend.
At least eight companies are recruiting staff for a wide variety of positions, and representatives from at least 40 other firms will be keeping a look out for talent.
'The supply chain and logistics industries offer lots of interesting career opportunities. Nothing in the world will move, without us guys,' says Mr Lim.
'Factories will stop because we move materials into their plants, supermarkets will close because we deliver their stocks, immigration will come to a standstill because we process passports.'
Yet for all the financial muscle the industry wields, Mr Lim does not earn a cent for his efforts. This is a guy who seems to know anyone who is anyone, prompting headhunters, companies and even competitors looking for talent to beat a path to his door. Retrenched industry workers, meanwhile, see him as a beacon of hope.
Mr Lim could have made a mint from all these connections but he does it for free, through the online platform Supply Chain Asia he built while working on a project in Thailand in 2007.
'I thought I would get all the contacts I have made in the supply chain industry to come to the website to network,' he says. 'That way, I could tap them for leads if I should need to look for a job later.'
He adds: 'We are all individuals working for companies. Tomorrow, we may be working for different companies. Why not talk to each other and be friends?'
Mr Lim, who has an MBA from Scotland's Stirling University, realised that he could not expect 'people from the industry to come to the website, I had to bring it to them'.
So he created a weekly digest, writing summaries and briefs of the news and happenings in the logistics industry and sent it to his initial list of 300 contacts.
'They found it useful, and I told them to send it to others,' says Mr Lim, who spends at least four hours every Sunday night working on the bulletin.
The list grew and the website now boasts 15,000 subscribers. Six months after the website was set up, Mr Lim - he is married to a human resource executive and has two children aged 11 and eight - decided to organise an event where Supply Chain Asia's members could network in real life.
To help underwrite the cost, he approached his contacts in companies that were recruiting to pay a nominal fee. Those looking for a job had free entry.
He also invited speakers to discuss the trend of acquisitions of smaller firms being gobbled up by bigger logistic corporations.
'One of the speakers I approached interviewed me instead. He asked me why I was doing it, and what I stood to gain from it,' says Mr Lim.
His reply? 'Nothing. I told him that I was doing it to help the industry and the community. I told him companies or speakers at the event could not sell their services, I just wanted them to share their knowledge.'
The event has since become an annual staple, a forum drawing some of the biggest, most respected names in the field.
Mr Phil Vaudin, who is in charge of supply chain strategy at Hewlett Packard in Singapore, describes Mr Lim as a man whose passion to help the industry is tireless.
'He has even started a young professionals group, where he encourages students and early career intakes into supply chain to network freely with senior professionals,' says Mr Vaudin.
Mr Lim says Supply Chain Asia's forums do not make any money.
'Any extras we raise from sponsors go into organising workshops and maintaining the website. All my accounts are audited, and I'm answerable to my council,' he says, referring to Supply Chain Asia's advisory council members. They comprise respected industry names, including Dr Robert Yap, chief executive of logistics firm YCH Group.
Several professionals told The Straits Times that it is 'a feat' to stage the forums for free. Registration fees for commercially organised ones such as the SCML Logistics World 2008, a key industry event, held last October, ranged from $1,696 for a post-conference workshop to $4,995 for a four-day pass.
Mr Lim laughs: 'These official organisers actually come to our event because they know our speakers are better.' He adds that an event organiser even offered him a six-figure sum to take over Supply Chain Asia's trademark.
'I said no. If I were in it for the money, I would have taken it commercial a long time ago.
'It is a communal effort the way it is now. And it is helping a lot of people, especially during the recession.'
Indeed, it has. Two writers in Singapore who lost their jobs with a publishing company last year are now running Supply Chain Asia's official magazine, which is distributed free to all its members.
'They came to me and said Supply Chain Asia would be a good platform for a magazine. They said they would put it together, get ads and distribute it free to all our members,' says Mr Lim, who agreed on the condition that the magazine will be distributed out of Singapore, not carry advertorials or be sold.
There are also plans for a Supply Chain Asia Training Academy to help retrenched veterans of the industry by conducting courses.
'We will be launching programmes to train industry professionals under the Workforce Skill Qualification scheme. And these guys, by virtue of their experience, are the best to do it.'
Mr Lim says that he has 10 retrenched veterans ready to run courses and the YCH Group has offered the use of its warehouse and training rooms.
'And the boss himself is ready to fund the development of the academy if it takes off,' he says.
Mr Lim introduced a career fair last year when he noticed a spike in the website's viewership because of the recession.
This Saturday's Supply Chain Careers 2009 will be run by the Young Professionals committee members at the Republic Polytechnic.
The event (details at www.supplychainasia.com/careers2009) costs $5,000 to organise. Sponsors contributed $4,000, with Mr Lim forking out $1,000 himself. The public, especially those who want to know if their skills could get them a job in the industry, are welcome to attend.
He acknowledges that the day may come when Supply Chain Asia becomes really big.
'When that day comes, I will walk off and leave it to the professionals. But I'm already happy knowing that I will always be the founder.'
- The Straits Times
‘Over 40? Don’t send us your resume’
EVEN in good times, discrimination against older job seekers exists. So what more now that it is an employers’ market?
Some recruitment firms told Today the trend has picked up. Some employers do not want resumes from anyone above 40, said Ms Wendy Kwek, managing director of Career Express. Her firm has seen a “slight increase” in the number of such employers.
Two other employment firms, JobPlus and MDK Personnel Resources, confirmed that their clients prefer younger applicants.
“Some don’t even want to see resumes from those who are 35,” said Mr Kor Lai Hock, MDK’s managing director. The company’s clients include those in manufacturing, engineering, and food and beverage.
The practice however is “nothing new”, said JobPlus’ director Alex Thong.
On the other hand, firms such as Adecco, Manpower, JobStreet and JobsDb said they have never received such requests from their clients who include multinational and blue chip companies.
Rather, would-be employers are now more demanding in terms of applicants having the relevant skills, said Adecco’s strategic accounts director Yue Yin Mun.
With job prospects for older workers bleak, it is no surprise then that entrepreneurship seminars are doing a brisk business.
On Tuesday, there were three such events with turnouts of 120 and 100 for the two that were held by Executive Directions at International Plaza. The third was organised by Harriet International Network.
Those who were late — even if they had registered earlier — had to be turned away. It was standing room only.
“Compared to last year, I would say there’s a 20- to 30-per-cent increase in the number of people attending,” said Ms Kwek of Career Express and a managing director of Executive Directions.
For two to three hours, the participants listened to various speakers extol the benefits of being their own boss. However, many baulked at the cost of the courses which ranged from $5,000 to more than $7,000. More than half then left.
Mr James Chua, chief executive of Harriet’s, said he was not surprised.
“Most people over 40 want something more stable. Asking them to suddenly become an entrepreneur may be too risky. They should start a small business, something that would give them $3,000 a month and which they will be happy with.”
One participant, Mr Sen — who only wanted to be known by his surname — was working in a bank before being laid off last year. He spent the past few months sending out resumes to no avail, so he decided to try the entrepreneurial route.
“What else is there for a 55-year-old to do?” said the father of a 16-year-old. “It’s depressing being at home.” With weaker job prospects, older job hunters turn to entrepreneurship seminars
- TODAY newspaper
Some recruitment firms told Today the trend has picked up. Some employers do not want resumes from anyone above 40, said Ms Wendy Kwek, managing director of Career Express. Her firm has seen a “slight increase” in the number of such employers.
Two other employment firms, JobPlus and MDK Personnel Resources, confirmed that their clients prefer younger applicants.
“Some don’t even want to see resumes from those who are 35,” said Mr Kor Lai Hock, MDK’s managing director. The company’s clients include those in manufacturing, engineering, and food and beverage.
The practice however is “nothing new”, said JobPlus’ director Alex Thong.
On the other hand, firms such as Adecco, Manpower, JobStreet and JobsDb said they have never received such requests from their clients who include multinational and blue chip companies.
Rather, would-be employers are now more demanding in terms of applicants having the relevant skills, said Adecco’s strategic accounts director Yue Yin Mun.
With job prospects for older workers bleak, it is no surprise then that entrepreneurship seminars are doing a brisk business.
On Tuesday, there were three such events with turnouts of 120 and 100 for the two that were held by Executive Directions at International Plaza. The third was organised by Harriet International Network.
Those who were late — even if they had registered earlier — had to be turned away. It was standing room only.
“Compared to last year, I would say there’s a 20- to 30-per-cent increase in the number of people attending,” said Ms Kwek of Career Express and a managing director of Executive Directions.
For two to three hours, the participants listened to various speakers extol the benefits of being their own boss. However, many baulked at the cost of the courses which ranged from $5,000 to more than $7,000. More than half then left.
Mr James Chua, chief executive of Harriet’s, said he was not surprised.
“Most people over 40 want something more stable. Asking them to suddenly become an entrepreneur may be too risky. They should start a small business, something that would give them $3,000 a month and which they will be happy with.”
One participant, Mr Sen — who only wanted to be known by his surname — was working in a bank before being laid off last year. He spent the past few months sending out resumes to no avail, so he decided to try the entrepreneurial route.
“What else is there for a 55-year-old to do?” said the father of a 16-year-old. “It’s depressing being at home.” With weaker job prospects, older job hunters turn to entrepreneurship seminars
- TODAY newspaper
Mar 24, 2009
UBS lays off Singapore team serving rich Turks
UBS, the world's biggest wealth manager, has axed a team of six private bankers in Singapore, who were managing wealth for Turkish clients, sources familiar with the situation told Reuters on Monday.
UBS is struggling after losing billions in the risky U.S. housing market, which forced it to obtain financial aid from the Swiss government.
The Singapore team was managing clients' assets worth between $200 million to $300 million and was hired from Swiss rival Credit Suisse two years ago, a source briefed on the situation said.
Singapore acts as an offshore booking centre for UBS' clients from Asia and Europe.
A second source said the firm has no plans to exit wealth management for Turkish clients despite the removal of the team in Singapore, which was done as part of a group restructuring.
"Like any organisation, UBS continually reviews its strategic needs and resources the businesses according to the environment and its outlook," a UBS spokeswoman said in a statement.
"Asia Pacific remains a strategic priority for UBS, and a region in which the group will continue to invest," she said. UBS declined comment on the layoffs.
UBS is struggling after losing billions in the risky U.S. housing market, which forced it to obtain financial aid from the Swiss government.
The Singapore team was managing clients' assets worth between $200 million to $300 million and was hired from Swiss rival Credit Suisse two years ago, a source briefed on the situation said.
Singapore acts as an offshore booking centre for UBS' clients from Asia and Europe.
A second source said the firm has no plans to exit wealth management for Turkish clients despite the removal of the team in Singapore, which was done as part of a group restructuring.
"Like any organisation, UBS continually reviews its strategic needs and resources the businesses according to the environment and its outlook," a UBS spokeswoman said in a statement.
"Asia Pacific remains a strategic priority for UBS, and a region in which the group will continue to invest," she said. UBS declined comment on the layoffs.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)