European companies lay off staff due to late payments

European companies could hire substantially more staff if they could only secure timely payments for their invoices, a leading credit management company has said.

Intrum Justitia said its survey of 8,979 companies across Europe showed that one in three enterprises would hire more employees if debtors paid their bills faster.

The survey showed large geographical differences, with around four out of 10 companies in Southern and Eastern Europe saying they would hire more people.