Daughter asks if 53-year-old mum can still get a job in Singapore? ‘I’m pretty desperate to help her’

SINGAPORE: A 21-year-old daughter has turned to social media, overwhelmed and worried, after learning that her 53-year-old single mother has still not been able to find work since losing her job in December 2025. 

“I’m pretty desperate to help her since I’m still studying and can’t rake in much cash besides part-time work, and my brother is serving NS with low pay,” she wrote on the r/singaporejobs forum on Thursday (Mar 12). 

“Can my mum still get a job at 53? She doesn’t expect more than an S$4k pay based on the current market. I’m just wondering what her chances are and if there’s any advice from fellow Singaporeans.”

To give others a clearer picture of her mother’s background, she shared details about her long career and qualifications.

“My mother is overqualified; she’s been working since she was 14 years old and has been in many positions, some high-paying for her time and some that were decent/good status. Her highest qualifications are some random diplomas and she recently completed a recognised law diploma.” 

She added, “Most of her positions in the past 10-ish years have been demanding admin/secretary staff at MNCs. All have taken a toll on her physical and mental health, leading her to have liver surgery in 2022.”

The daughter also revealed that her mother had even tried delivering for foodpanda in a desperate attempt to meet the family’s daily needs. “My mum is unable to do physically demanding jobs… [but] she tried doing foodpanda for a while. She has completely exhausted herself physically since she delivers on foot. She earned only S$20 within the first few weeks of working.”

“There are lots of easy sales coordinator or admin roles.”

In response to her post, one user suggested, “Maybe she can try applying to temp admin jobs through recruitment agencies? They will be able to source listings.”

Another wrote, “Fractional work. There’s a shift toward that right now, where older workers can do part-time work for a few companies. But of course, like any role that is performance-based, payout and how many jobs one gets are dependent on how well she does.”

A third commented, “Program Coordinator. Not physically taxing most of the time but overtime and working on weekends are expected.”

A fourth added, “There are lots of easy sales coordinator or admin roles in Tuas, take transport from JE MRT, S$2.8k-3.5k salary.”

In other news, one Singaporean woman said she “got the biggest shock of her life” after her date unexpectedly sent her a bill and asked her to transfer money for their dinner.

Sharing her story on the r/sgdatingscene Reddit forum, the woman said she met the man through a matchmaking event and thought things started off on a reasonable note.

Read more: ‘Biggest shock of my life’: Woman says date unexpectedly asked her to pay for dinner