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TL;DR
Singapore recorded 4,800 retrenchments in the third quarter of 2026, the highest quarterly total since the end of 2020, according to preliminary Ministry of Manpower data. The ministry says business reorganisation was the main driver; the figures do not identify AI as a cause. Employment grew overall, while graduates faced weaker job outcomes and slower access to permanent work.
Singapore recorded 4,800 retrenchments in the third quarter of 2026, the highest quarterly total since the end of 2020, according to preliminary figures released by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on October 30. The increase has renewed concern about the effects of artificial intelligence on jobs, but the ministry identified business reorganisation as the main driver and the data do not establish AI as the cause.
The preliminary count rose from 4,620 in the second quarter and 3,670 in the third quarter of 2025. The last higher quarterly total was 5,640 in the fourth quarter of 2020. Despite the increase, the retrenchment rate remained at 2.0 per 1,000 employees, according to MOM.
Services accounted for about 4,000 retrenchments, manufacturing for 700 and construction for 100. MOM said layoffs remained elevated in selected outward-oriented sectors, including information and communications, financial services and manufacturing, and that business reorganisation continued to be the main driver.
The broader labour market did not contract in the quarter. Total employment grew by 27,700, up from 11,400 in the second quarter, while the overall unemployment rate was 2.0% in September. The full third-quarter report, with further sector detail and re-entry data, is due in mid-December.
Infographic 01 · The numbers
Singapore's layoffs climb to a near six-year high
Retrenchments have risen in each of the last five quarters while employment kept growing. The official reason is restructuring.
Retrenchments per quarter
Number of employees laid off · selected quarters · rounded to the nearest 10
3Q 2026 by sector
Main driver: business reorganisation · elevated in information and communications, financial services, manufacturing
Mixed signals for the next quarter
Share of firms, August → September 2026
- Expect to hire in the next 3 months30.5% → 42.3%
- Expect to raise wages16.9% → 19.9%
- Expect to retrench2.8% → 3.1%MOM: “emerging weaknesses … that warrant close monitoring”
The economy grew 5.9% year on year in 2Q 2026 (MTI). Rising layoffs in a growing economy point to restructuring rather than a collapse in demand. The 3Q figures are preliminary; the full report follows in mid-December 2026.
Sources: MOM Labour Market Advance Release 3Q 2026, 30 Oct 2026; MOM Labour Market Report 2Q 2026, 21 Sep 2026; MOM Labour Market Report 1Q 2021 (4Q 2020 figure).
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A Layoff Rise Amid Job Growth
The figures show a labour market moving in two directions: more workers were retrenched, but total employment also expanded. That distinction matters for interpreting the headline. It does not describe a general collapse in hiring or employment; it points to pressure concentrated in parts of the economy as employers reorganise.
MOM reported that the share of firms expecting to retrench rose from 2.8% in August to 3.1% in September. At the same time, the share planning to hire in the next three months increased from 30.5% to 42.3%. The ministry said the rise in layoffs and layoff intentions pointed to weaknesses in parts of the labour market that warrant close monitoring.
For workers, the distinction between losing a job and struggling to enter one is also important. Available data suggest that experienced professionals account for most layoffs, while graduates are encountering a less favourable job market and fewer permanent placements. Those are related pressures, but the figures do not show that AI caused either trend.
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What the Data Says About AI
Singapore’s retrenchment figures record the scale and distribution of layoffs, but they do not include an AI-specific cause category. The ministry’s stated explanation is business reorganisation. Its separate survey in April found that 6.2% of firms adopting AI said they had cut headcount after adopting the technology. That is a reported survey finding, not evidence that AI explains the current quarterly rise.
The latest detailed occupational breakdown supplied in the source material is for the second quarter. Of 4,620 retrenched workers, 3,950 were professionals, managers, executives or technicians, or PMETs. The same data indicate workers under 30 had the lowest retrenchment rate among age groups. These figures suggest the layoffs are concentrated among experienced workers, but they do not identify the reason for each individual’s job loss.
Graduate outcomes point to a separate challenge. Across Singapore’s six public universities, 83.4% of job-seeking 2025 graduates had found work within six months, down from 87.1%. Full-time permanent employment fell to 74.4% from 79.4%; the reported figure for arts, design and media graduates was 50%. The source also cites International Labour Organization analysis estimating about 80 million workers in Southeast Asia have some exposure to generative AI, while saying it had found no evidence so far of large-scale job losses from the technology.
“The bottom rung of the career ladder”
— Prime Minister Lawrence Wong
The Cause Behind Each Layoff
The preliminary figures do not show how many of the 4,800 retrenchments involved AI, and the ministry’s published categories do not single out AI. Business reorganisation is the stated main driver, but the data supplied do not establish what changes within individual companies led to each worker’s departure.
The occupational breakdown for the third quarter is also not yet available in the cited release. The second-quarter figures show that PMETs made up about 85% of retrenched workers then, but that proportion should not be assumed to hold for the following quarter. The third-quarter number is preliminary, and the full report may refine the count and add detail.
It is also unclear how many retrenched workers will quickly find comparable jobs, or how graduate outcomes will change in the next survey. The current evidence supports concern about restructuring and a tighter graduate job market; it does not confirm that AI is driving Singapore’s layoff increase.
Full Labour Report Due in December
MOM is expected to publish its full third-quarter labour-market report in mid-December, adding sector detail and information on workers’ re-entry into employment. Those figures should help show whether the retrenchment rise was concentrated in particular industries and how affected workers fared afterward.
Until then, the ministry’s data on hiring and retrenchment intentions provide a mixed near-term signal: more firms said they planned to hire, but a slightly larger share also expected to cut jobs. The next reports on graduate employment will help establish whether the decline in job placement and permanent roles continues.
Government officials have warned that young people may face a weaker entry point into the workforce as technology and business practices change. The available evidence does not yet show large-scale AI-related job losses. The next key test is whether later data connect specific workforce reductions to AI adoption—or continue to describe them primarily as restructuring.
Key Questions
How many retrenchments did Singapore record in the third quarter of 2026?
4,800, according to preliminary Ministry of Manpower figures released October 30. The total was up from 4,620 in the previous quarter.
Is this Singapore’s highest layoff total ever?
No. It was the highest quarterly count since the end of 2020. The source material gives 5,640 retrenchments in the fourth quarter of 2020, a higher figure.
Does the data show that AI caused the rise in layoffs?
No. MOM said business reorganisation was the main driver, and the retrenchment statistics do not have a separate AI category. The figures do not establish how many layoffs, if any, were caused by AI.
Were young workers the most likely to be laid off?
The cited second-quarter data show workers under 30 had the lowest retrenchment rate among age groups. In that quarter, 3,950 of 4,620 retrenched workers were PMETs. A comparable occupational breakdown for the third quarter is not yet available.
When will more detailed third-quarter figures be available?
MOM is expected to publish its full third-quarter labour-market report in mid-December 2026, with further sector information and data on re-entry into employment.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
