Is AI really killing Singapore's entry-level jobs – or is hybrid work the hidden driver?
A study by Warwick, Oxford, and LSE researchers challenges the narrative that AI is reducing junior hiring in Singapore, instead finding hybrid work as the primary driver of declining entry-level positions. The research, based on 243 million hire records across four countries, shows AI’s impact weakens when accounting for remote work exposure, particularly in knowledge-intensive sectors like Singapore’s economy.
Singapore’s graduate employment rates have dropped sharply, with only 74.4% of 2025 university graduates securing full-time jobs, down from 87.5% in 2022, according to the Ministry of Education’s survey. The median salary for new hires has remained stagnant at S$4,500 for two years, raising concerns about labor market accessibility for early-career professionals. The prevailing explanation for this trend has been automation, with AI tools replacing tasks traditionally handled by junior employees, such as data analysis and drafting. However, a new study from the University of Warwick, London School of Economics, and Oxford’s Ellison Institute disputes this, arguing that hybrid work—not AI—is the key factor. The research analyzed 243 million hiring records and 407 million job postings from 2017 to 2025 across the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia. The study, *The Broken Ladder: AI, Remote Work, and Early-Career Hiring*, by Peter John Lambert and Yannick Schindler, found that AI and remote work exposure are highly correlated (0.77) across occupations. When both variables were tested together, remote work consistently explained hiring declines, while AI’s impact diminished to near-zero. The findings held after rigorous testing, including alternative measures and country-specific controls. Singapore’s push for flexible work arrangements, formalized in the 2024 Tripartite Guidelines on Flexible Work Arrangement Requests, may inadvertently contribute to this trend. The policy, aimed at improving work-life balance, aligns with the study’s conclusion that remote work reduces demand for entry-level roles, particularly in white-collar sectors where AI and hybrid models overlap. The research suggests that Singapore’s economic focus on knowledge-intensive jobs—where both AI and remote work are prevalent—exacerbates the decline in junior hiring. Employers may prioritize onsite work for early-career positions, despite broader flexible work policies, reinforcing the study’s findings. The implications challenge businesses and policymakers to reassess how hybrid work structures shape labor market entry points.
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