A Ministry of Manpower (MOM) report has found that the number of workers laid off last year increased slightly compared to 2011, but remained at the lower end of the range for non-recessionary years.

The "Redundancy and ReEntry into Employment, 2012" report released on Thursday by the Manpower Ministry's Research and Statistics Department also found that the increase in lay-offs took place amid a rise in overall employment over the year.

The rate of re-entry into employment declined slightly after rising in 2011, though it stayed above recessionary levels, the report found. Last year, 11,010 were laid off - an increase of 10 per cent from 9,990 in 2011.

The Manpower Ministry said this translated to 5.8 workers affected per 1,000 employees, up from 5.5 per 1,000 in 2011. Still, it noted that this remained at the lower end of the range for non-recessionary years, and substantially below the recessionary highs of 11 and 14 workers laid off for every 1,000 employees in 2008 and 2009 respectively.