Published April 17, 2009

Singapore talent a big draw for MNCs in China

By ANNA TEO

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(SINGAPORE) Singaporeans - along with Hongkongers - are, and will continue to be, a key source of foreign labour for China, a survey has found.

In turn, multinationals here that hire executives and other skilled staff from China say that almost half (48 per cent) of their foreign employees come from the mainland - and expect the proportion to grow over the next three years.

This reciprocal labour dependence between Singapore and China is one of the findings from the survey by KPMG International of 260 MNC senior executives in 11 economies on their priorities when deciding where and how to locate their businesses, and their hiring practices.

Some 18 per cent of the respondents from China indicated that they recruit from Singapore. Of these, 34 per cent of their foreign workforce are Singaporeans, according to the findings.

By far, Hong Kong and Singapore stand out as the biggest sources of foreign skills for China, with smaller 'contributions' from Korea, Japan and the US, although Malaysia, Australia and India are expected to make inroads into China's expatriate scene in the next three years.

Singaporeans also figure as a key source of foreign labour for MNCs in Hong Kong, accounting for 46 per cent of their non-local staff. Other countries that list Singapore among their top 15 sources of foreign staff are Japan, Australia, Switzerland and the United States - but not the United Kingdom nor India.

Overall, what emerged from the survey conducted late last year is a growing pool of Chinese expatriates worldwide, with companies in Australia, India, Japan, Spain, the UK and US all planning big increases in the number of Chinese they employ.

The survey also found that while countries in Asia Pacific tend to rely on a small number of other states for workers, companies in the UK, Spain and the US show no particular preference as to where their foreign workers come from.

But some 60 per cent of suggested that 'businesses' preferred to hire local workers while a further 37 per cent had no preference.

And while there is growing pressure in many countries to protect domestic labour, and despite rising recruitment and wage costs, businesses recognise the advantages of diversifying their sources of skilled labour.

Singapore respondents, it seems, are second only to the Chinese in their enthusiasm for a strong government hand in attracting and retaining workers; elsewhere, in Europe particularly, businesses see that as their own responsibility.

In all, some 90 per cent of all respondents agreed that governments should collaborate by introducing more flexible immigration policies to attract workers to sectors where they are most required. Eight in 10 said immigration requirements should be relaxed overall.

And while tax policies aimed at improving labour flows are welcome, companies generally prefer direct incentives. They also value 'favourable business conditions' rather more than a well-qualified workforce when considering a new business location.

When asked where they would locate themselves if they were to start afresh next year, and again in five years' time, China came out the clear favourite, with the US in second spot for 2009 but overtaken by India for 2013.

In fourth and fifth positions are Singapore and Hong Kong, 'both punching well above their weight in GDP terms', the report notes.