Singapore retrenchment and wrongful dismissal claims: the official data
This page compiles the Ministry of Manpower's own published numbers on retrenchments and employment claims, with nothing added or estimated. Retrenchment counts come from MOM's quarterly Labour Market Report and Labour Market Advance Release; claim outcomes come from the Employment Standards Report 2024, published jointly by MOM and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM). Every figure below is dated and sourced so you can check it yourself.
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Retrenchments in 2026, quarter by quarter
Retrenchments in Singapore rose for two quarters in a row. MOM's Labour Market Report for the first quarter of 2026 recorded 3,830 retrenched workers, up from 3,690 in the last quarter of 2025. The increase was concentrated in Manufacturing, Financial Services and Professional Services, driven mainly by business reorganisation (73.8% of cases) rather than cost-cutting (9.3%). Even so, the incidence stayed low: 1.6 retrenched per 1,000 employees, below the 2014-2019 non-recessionary average of 1.7.
The second quarter went further. MOM's Labour Market Advance Release for Q2 2026 recorded 4,500 retrenchments, a 17.5% rise on Q1, and the incidence climbed to 1.9 per 1,000 employees. HRM Asia, reporting on the same MOM release, called it the highest quarterly retrenchment count in more than five years, the most since Q4 2020, when 5,640 employees lost their jobs.
| Quarter | Workers retrenched | Incidence (per 1,000 employees) |
|---|---|---|
| Q4 2025 | 3,690 | not stated in the Q1 2026 report |
| Q1 2026 | 3,830 | 1.6 |
| Q2 2026 | 4,500 | 1.9 |
Wrongful dismissal claims: how many, and what happens to them
MOM and TADM's Employment Standards Report 2024, the most recent edition available, recorded 1,720 wrongful dismissal claims for the year, an incidence of 0.46 claims per 1,000 employees, up from 0.32 in 2023. That was part of a wider rise: 11,685 employment claims and appeals were lodged with MOM and TADM in 2024 in total, up by nearly 2,000 cases on 2023, and most of them (9,848) were salary claims rather than dismissal claims.
Filing a wrongful dismissal claim in Singapore does not usually mean a long fight through the courts. 71% of the 2024 claims were resolved at TADM mediation, and 86% of all wrongful dismissal claims were concluded within 2 months, up from 79% in 2023. The remaining 29% were referred to the Employment Claims Tribunals (ECT) for adjudication.
Here is the finding worth sitting with before you assume mediation means a payout: of the cases that WERE resolved at TADM, 61% ended with the employer found to have met its contractual or statutory obligations, or the claim withdrawn after mediation. Only the remaining 39% involved some form of employer settlement, a goodwill payment, letting the employee resign on their own terms, issuing a certificate of service, or clearing up a miscommunication. Across all 2024 wrongful dismissal claims, employers paid out about $2.14 million in total, up from $1.72 million in 2023.
| Measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Incidence (per 1,000 employees) | 0.32 | 0.46 |
| Concluded at TADM within 2 months | 79% | 86% |
| Total employer payout | $1.72 million | $2.14 million |
For what wrongful dismissal actually covers under the Employment Act, and the deadlines that apply, see wrongful dismissal in Singapore. If you are trying to work out whether your situation belongs at TADM mediation or the ECT, and what each stage involves, see the employment dispute process and the Employment Claims Tribunals.
Salary claims: the bigger number
Salary claims dwarf wrongful dismissal claims in volume: 9,848 in 2024 against 1,720 for wrongful dismissal. The outcomes look different too. About 9 in 10 salary claims lodged in 2024 were resolved at TADM mediation, slightly higher than 88% in 2023, with the remaining 10% referred to the ECT. 94% of employees who lodged a salary claim fully recovered their salary through TADM and the ECT. In total, employees recovered $19 million through salary claims in 2024, up more than 35% from $14 million the year before, the highest recovery figure MOM and TADM have reported in recent years.
If unpaid salary, an unpaid bonus, or an owed commission is your situation rather than a dismissal, salary claims in Singapore covers the filing process and time limits.
Why are claims rising?
MOM and TADM's own explanation for the increase, published alongside the 2024 figures, is straightforward: "the rise in salary and dismissal claims reflects higher job turnover from retrenchments, dismissals and business closures, and failure or delays in salary payments due to financial difficulties in recent years, rather than a decline in employment standards."
What this means if it is happening to you
If you have just been retrenched, MOM and TADM's own reading of these figures is that the rise in claims reflects job turnover rather than a decline in employment standards, and what you are owed in the process is set by your employer's obligations under the Employment Act. See retrenchment rights in Singapore for what you are entitled to and the checks worth running before you sign anything.
If you believe your dismissal was not a genuine retrenchment, the numbers above are also a reason to keep expectations realistic rather than to give up. TADM mediation resolves most wrongful dismissal claims without a tribunal hearing, but a majority of those TADM-resolved outcomes go the employer's way, not the employee's, on the 2024 data. The claims that do turn into a settlement are still a genuine minority, not a formality. Getting your documents in order and understanding your actual claim (not just your sense that something was unfair) before you file is what the 39%-not-61% split is really telling you.
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Frequently asked questions
How many people were retrenched in Singapore in 2026?
MOM data shows 3,830 people were retrenched in Q1 2026, up from 3,690 in Q4 2025, then 4,500 in Q2 2026, a 17.5% jump on the quarter before. The incidence of retrenchment rose from 1.6 to 1.9 per 1,000 employees over the same two quarters.
Is the rise in Singapore retrenchments a sign of a downturn?
MOM’s own reporting frames it as resilience with a rough patch, not a downturn. Total employment kept growing through the rise, up 10,700 in Q2 2026 alone, the 19th consecutive quarter of growth since late 2021. The increase was concentrated in a few outward-facing sectors and MOM attributed most of it to business restructuring rather than a broad-based slowdown.
What are my chances if I file a wrongful dismissal claim in Singapore?
Of the wrongful dismissal claims MOM and TADM recorded for 2024, 71% were resolved at TADM mediation and never reached a tribunal. But that is not the same as a win rate: of the cases resolved at TADM, 61% ended with the employer found to have met its obligations or the case withdrawn, and only 39% involved some form of employer settlement.
How long does a wrongful dismissal claim take to resolve?
86% of wrongful dismissal claims lodged in 2024 were concluded at TADM within 2 months, up from 79% in 2023, according to MOM and TADM’s joint reporting.
Do most people actually get their money back through TADM?
For salary claims specifically, yes: about 9 in 10 salary claims lodged in 2024 were resolved at TADM, and 94% of claimants fully recovered their salary. Employees recovered $19 million through salary claims in 2024, up from $14 million in 2023. Wrongful dismissal claims are a different, smaller category: employers paid out about $2.14 million across all 2024 wrongful dismissal claims, up from $1.72 million in 2023.
Where does this data come from?
Retrenchment figures are from the Ministry of Manpower’s quarterly Labour Market Report and Labour Market Advance Release. Claims figures are from the Employment Standards Report 2024, published jointly by MOM and the Tripartite Alliance for Dispute Management (TADM) in August 2025, the most recent edition at the time this page was last checked.
This page is a data reference, not legal advice, and it will not tell you the outcome of your own claim. Figures are compiled from MOM and TADM's own published reporting and re-checked each time this page is refreshed; retrenchment counts are quarterly and claims figures are annual, so the two run on different update schedules.
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