While employment opportunities for women in Singapore have increased, women still earn less than men, according to the latest Ministry of Manpower (MOM) data. Based on the research, the median income for women in Singapore is 14.3% less than that of men in 2023. However, this gap is narrower than the 16.3% gap reported in 2018. The MOM analyzed the incomes of Singaporean or permanent residents aged 25 to 54 working full-time.
Although Singapore’s pay gap was worse than the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries’ average, which is 12.1% in 2022, Singapore still performed well compared to the United States (17%), the United Kingdom (14.5%), and Japan (21.3%).
The report stated that the critical factor affecting the gender pay gap in 2023 was the differences in occupation between men and women, where men dominate higher-paying industries. However, the gender pay gap decreased from 2018 to 2023 as most women were qualified for professional, managerial, executive, and technician (PMET) jobs, with 75% of women in Singapore working in such roles in 2023. In contrast, the percentage of men in PMET jobs increased by 6.3 percentage points to 79.4% in the same period.
The study found that factors such as industry differences and weekly working hours contributed to gender pay gaps, but human capital factors played a minor role. After considering the labor market and human capital factors, Singapore’s adjusted gender pay gap was 6%, down from 6.7% in 2018. That means a female employee working in the same occupation, industry, age group, and education level as her male counterpart would earn less.
Reasons for the remaining pay gap included parenthood responsibilities and biases. Samuel Sobrielo, the Institute for Human Resource Professionals’ deputy director for professional practices and community, suggested that career breaks taken by mothers could be one of the reasons the pay gap persists. Additionally, increased awareness and advocacy for diversity and inclusion in the workplace have helped to narrow this gap. This includes initiatives such as flexible work arrangements (e.g., part-time work, job sharing) and programmes aimed at encouraging women to pursue Stem careers (e.g., scholarships, mentorship programs). However, more can be done to address gender inequality in job compensation.
HR and industry experts advised that employers should tailor their policies to support workers’ equity, such as offering flexibility around parenting or caregiving responsibilities, disclosing pay structures within their organisations and including salary or salary ranges on job postings. Furthermore, employers should ensure the compensation is based on merit, skills, experience, and performance to prevent gender-based pay discrepancies.
Achieving gender parity, which means equal representation and equal pay for all genders, requires significant work on salary and compensation, career progression, and well-being, said Ms Nishita Lalvani, Indeed’s marketing director for India and Southeast Asia.
