A January survey found that almost one-third of workers in Singapore feel they need to combine a full-time job with freelance work or another source of income in order to survive. (EPA Images pic)
SINGAPORE: By day, Adele Lee juggles schedules and administrative work as a personal assistant to a senior director at a financial advisory firm. Three evenings a week, the 32-year-old logs back on, this time to sell second-hand clothes through TikTok livestreams, fielding questions from viewers and packing orders herself after the broadcast ends.
The side hustle brings in about S$500 a month, supplementing her monthly salary of almost S$4,000. The extra cash helps pay for her insurance premiums and dog’s expenses.
“It feels good to have money coming in so I don’t have to worry about ‘Oh, I need to pay my bills’,” Lee said. It’s a “safety net” as living costs rise.
While Singapore’s economy has remained resilient — gross domestic product grew 5.7% in the second quarter and Thursday’s June inflation print was weaker than forecast — strong headline indicators have done little to dispel anxiety among its young workers.
The city-state’s economy is largely centered around exactly the kind of employment artificial intelligence is beginning to transform. With such a heavy reliance on finance, wealth and other white-collar jobs, Singaporeans entering the workforce increasingly wonder what the embrace of AI means for them. Families’ strong historic emphasis on academic achievement and professional credentials is only heightening that pressure.
A January survey by Randstad Global found that almost one-third of workers in Singapore, routinely also ranked as one of the world’s most expensive cities, feel they need to combine a full-time job with freelance work or another source of income in order to survive.
According to Barnabas Gan, group chief economist at RHB Bank Bhd., some firms in the island nation are more cautious about hiring as well due to the uncertain global outlook.
“Reports of companies moving operations away from Singapore, mainly driven by rising costs and the need for larger manufacturing footprints, may be an early indicator that potential labour demand is weakening,” Gan said.
Swedish fashion retailer H&M and bread maker Gardenia are among companies that have recently shifted parts of their regional operations from Singapore to Malaysia to save on expenses.
That wariness is starting to show in the labour market.
Unemployment rose in the first quarter while retrenchments climbed to their highest level in almost three years. The Monetary Authority of Singapore said in April that labour demand is likely to remain subdued as firms grow increasingly prudent.
Worry about a bleaker jobs outlook and how AI could reshape the workforce is the key reason Celest Chew started a home cafe. The appeal of building something of her own is another draw.
“If I depend on my whole income from my full-time job and one day it’s gone, what am I going to do?” the 24-year-old said.
From her family’s apartment in Singapore’s east, Chew prepares beverages and tarts on weekends, earning about S$500 a month alongside her salary of just under S$4,000. Working full-time in marketing, she’s seen first hand how AI tools generate images and content that once required human input.
“It’s quite scary,” she said. “The reason why I started the home cafe is because it’s something that AI can’t take over.”
Her concerns come even despite Singapore being widely regarded as Southeast Asia’s most prepared economy for AI, with the government rolling out training programs to future-proof workers.
Preparedness doesn’t eliminate uncertainty, however, because no one can predict how companies will ultimately deploy AI or which jobs will be reshaped, said Walter Theseira, an economics professor at the Singapore University of Social Sciences.
“Nobody can give that assurance,” Theseira said. “People will end up knowing more about AI and how to use it, but that’s not the same thing as being able to use AI to keep their job.”
For Sherman Sam, a childhood hobby has evolved into his second source of income.
The 27-year-old, who works full-time in private equity, spends part of his evenings listing Pokemon cards on marketplaces such as eBay. One card he bought for S$2,000 later sold for nearly S$20,000.
After working for two years, relying on a single salary no longer seemed enough to meet his long-term financial goals, Sam said. Like many Singaporeans, he saw home ownership as the next major financial milestone but after calculating how long it would take to save for a down payment, he got discouraged.
Now, he attends Pokemon card fairs in Singapore and overseas as a vendor. The additional cash has given him greater financial flexibility, allowing him to splurge on everyday conveniences such as taxis instead of public transport.
“It’s exhausting,” said Sam. “But you don’t want to be in a situation where you have to scrimp on everything else.”
