jobsdb shares post-crisis labor market outlook, saying there are signs that the job market has bottomed out
Jobs in various sectors and businesses expected to turn positive as Thailand’s employment demand continues to recover. JobsDB’s user interface got a facelift with new job matching features driven by AI for better precision and optimized job-seeking results.
In its recent labor market outlook entitled “Wake-up Talks: Job Market Projection after Crisis,” JobsDB found that, in February 2021, overall job demand in Thailand both on digital job-seeking platforms and other online channels recovered from the lowest points in April 2020 and December 2020. The job market survey shows that there is a 24.65% improvement in employment demand after the second wave of the outbreak.
According to the outlook, the most in-demand jobs are: 1) Sales, Customer Service and Business Development, which represents 16.0% of overall market; 2) IT, 14.7%; and 3) Engineering, 9.8%. In business perspective, it is found that sectors with the most recovered cases when compared to the second half of 2020 are: 1) Insurance; 2) Electronics; and 3) Manufacturing.
It is also found that the ratio of job vacancies to job applications is 1:100, and most of these job seekers compete for positions with a monthly salary of not more than 30,000 baht.
Regarding the employment situation in four ASEAN major economies, countries posting the highest rebound are Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines, respectively.
To show a concerted effort to help the employment market get through the challenges together, JobsDB recently launched the "Jobs That Matter" campaign. As part of this, new solutions for businesses and job seekers have been introduced: for instance, a redesigned user interface and newly-developed AI-driven features to facilitate efficient job search for Thai people nationwide. JobsDB currently has more than 10,000 new job postings per month.
“JobsDB has analyzed data and assessed the trend of the post-crisis labor market. This shows, in February 2021, employment demand in Thailand both on job search platforms and other online channels recovered from their lowest points, leading to an increase of 24.65%. It’s going to be a great sign of the recovery of the Thai labor market,” said Pornladda Dathratwibul, JobsDB Thailand Country Manager.
She continued, “Thailand’s employment demand has bottomed out in April and December 2020 after the second wave of the outbreak, and it is forecast that the number of job openings across the country would turn positive with a 5% growth in mid-2021 compared to the same period of the previous year. Unless there is another wave of the outbreak, the employment market is expected to experience a throwback to the time before the Covid-19 crisis in early 2022.”
Top in-demand categories for jobs, as posted on the JobsDB website in the first quarter of 2021, include: Sales, Customer Service and Business Development (16.0%); IT (14.7%); and Engineering (9.8%).
Compared with the second half of 2020, partially recovered job categories with the highest growth of job postings include: Marketing and PR (29.7%); Transportation and Logistics (24.7%); and Manufacturing (20.8%). In addition, emerging jobs, which have become in high demand recently due to changing domestic employment demand after the covid-19 pandemic, include AI Developer, Blockchain and Crypto Consultant, Business Transformation Specialist, and Growth officer.
In business perspective, industries with the highest number of job postings are: IT (12.9%); Manufacturing (8.1%); and Retail & Wholesale (6.6%). Compared to the second half of 2020, sectors with the highest recovery rate of employment are: Insurance (42.9%); Electronics (41.9%); and Manufacturing (37.7%).
It is also found that the ratio of job seekers versus job openings is likely to increase by 20% during the Covid-19 pandemic. The competition ratio is 1 to 100 applications, with a larger proportion of job seekers competing for positions with a monthly salary of not more than 30,000 baht.
The employment situation in most ASEAN countries remains in negative territory. Countries with the highest decrease in the number of online job postings since the period prior to the Covid-19 outbreak include: Indonesia, a drop of 55.7%; The Philippines, a drop of 46.6%; Malaysia, down 39.0%; and Thailand, a decline of 35.6%.
Taking into account online job postings in February 2021, countries experiencing a rebound of employment demand are: Malaysia (+14.8%); Indonesia (-16.4%); Thailand (-20.5%); The Philippines (-37.7%), compared to the same period in 2020.
JobsDB has partnered with major consulting firms, Boston Consulting Group and The Network, to conduct a global survey entitled "Global Talent Survey” Report 1, with over 200,000 survey respondents in 190 countries. Riding on the topic “Where do people what to work?," the survey is destined to get an insight into the changing needs of workers around the world on an annual basis, especially the year that was affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Two major phenomena were observed during the outbreak, according to survey results. The first one was that workers were more interested in virtual work, with 57% of the global workers surveyed were willing to work for remote employers and 50% of Thai respondents were willing to work for remote employers. Top 3 countries where Thai workers want to work the most include Australia, Japan and Singapore respectively. Top 5 countries from which foreign workers were interested in working with employers in Thailand include Singapore, Malaysia, China, Indonesia and Russia respectively. In 2020, Thailand was ranked #35 out of the best countries to work abroad, raised from #43 in 2014 and #39 in 2018.
The second phenomenon, according to the survey by JobsDB, was that after the Covid-19 outbreak workers in Thailand were more reliance on virtual work in all career fields, especially those in the digital technology and science sectors.
These two phenomena have demonstrated the hidden potential of the virtual talent pool whose capabilities can be the key to new possibilities for government agencies, employers and their peer workers in the post-Covid-19 era. For instance, it would be the opportunity for workers to find new jobs abroad without relocation, or the opening for employers to find the right talent from overseas.
Recently, JobsDB has revised its brand identity and business direction to reflect today’s global changing environment. The job matchmaker has launched "Jobs That Matter" campaign and introduced new solutions to serve businesses and job seekers. These encompass a newly revised user interface and improved job matching features such as new matching algorithms, shortcut to personal profile and AI-driven job recommendations system – to provide job seekers with a personalized experience.
Additionally, an initiative entitled "#levelupyourcareer” has been launched to upskill and reskill job seekers with more than 80 online courses such as fin-tech and e-commerce, digital marketing and languages. This is part of our effort to give the employment market a boost and help job seekers overcome pandemic challenges. We expect everyone to gain the utmost benefit from the JobsDB platform, which currently has more than 10,000 new job postings per month,” said Pornladda.
Recently, JobsDB held an annual press conference on “Wake-up Talks: Job Market Projection after Crisis” at The Society Room, 22nd floor of Gaysorn Tower in Bangkok.For more information, contact JobsDB (Thailand) at 02-670-0700 or visit http://bit.ly/JobsDBTH
About JobsDB
JobsDB is a part of SEEK Asia, we believe in bringing you #JobsThatMatter. As a Career Partner, we have over 6,000 employees all over the world. SEEK is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, where it is a top 100 company. We are committed to helping all jobseekers find passion and purpose in every career choice. And as the number 1 Talent Partner in Asia, we connect employers with the right candidates who truly make a positive and lasting impact on the organization.
