[Photo: Andrea Ross, managing director of Robert Walters Singapore.]

By JOYCE HOOI

WHILE Singaporeans may be warming up to the idea of contract positions in a tight job market, they still lag their regional peers in terms of willingness to do so.

Only 33 per cent of Singapore respondents indicated that they would be 'happy to take on a contract role', according to a survey of professionals by recruitment consultancy Robert Walters.

This is far below the global average of the 55 per cent who said that they would have no qualms taking up a contract position.

Within the region, 53 per cent of respondents in Thailand and 42 per cent in Hong Kong felt the same way. Only Malaysia recorded a smaller proportion of respondents who would be happy with a contract position, at 30 per cent.

Nevertheless, reality has begun to sink in for local professionals, with 50 per cent of them saying that they would consider contract work if there were 'no permanent options', compared with the global average of 33 per cent.

But 50% of local professionals say that they will consider contract work if there were no permanent options.

According to Andrea Ross, managing director of Robert Walters Singapore, more professionals and employers are beginning to see contract work as mutually beneficial.

'It is well known that employers can turn to temporary recruitment in tougher economic conditions as a way to control headcount costs and maintain productivity,' she said.

'What is interesting is that candidates are also increasingly focusing on the flexibility that contract work can offer - from hours worked to experiencing different work environments and roles.'

The remaining 17 per cent of local respondents said that they would not consider contract work, against the global average of 12 per cent.

The survey was conducted with 4,288 people in 17 countries, including about 700 people in Singapore.

This article was first published in The Business Times .