Bleak outlook as employers to reduce staff numbers

13% of employers expect to reduce staff numbers between July and September, according to workforce management solutions provider Manpower.

The survey also deals with the hiring outlook.

It predicts that the outlook for hiring is bleakest in Munster with an anticipated 11% decrease in the numbers, year on year, being taken on over the next three months.

The promising news though is that the rate of job losses appears to have peaked.

“There is finally some evidence, albeit tentative, to suggest that the rate of deterioration may be easing,” Manpower boss Krissie Davies said.

The losses were occurring at the same time as employers were continuing to adjust and align payrolls to the current difficult business climate.

The company’s employment survey, which measures 634 employers’ intentions to increase or decrease their workforces over the next three months, also reveals that the net employment outlook for the period is -11%, the weakest hiring forecast globally.

Considerably weak hiring activity is reported by employers in the transport, storage and communication sector (-20%) and the mining and quarrying sector (-37%) declining by 29 and 24% points, respectively, when compared to the same time last year.

The finance, insurance, real estate and business and manufacturing industry sectors employers are also forecasting a gloomy hiring environment for job seekers, reporting an outlook of –14%.

The exception is the public and social sector, where the net employment outlook is a cautious +5%.

Employers in the construction sector report a gloomy employment outlook of -28%, representing a 4% point increase quarter-over-quarter but a 5% point decline year-over-year.

The -11% is calculated by taking the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in total employment, 6%, and subtracting from this from the percentage expecting to see a decrease, 13%.

This figure of –7% is then amended according to any seasonal variations in recruitment patterns, resulting in a net employment outlook figure of -11%.

Employers in all five regions had reported negative hiring intentions for the forthcoming quarter.

However, quarter-over-quarter comparisons showed that the net employment outlooks had slightly improved in four of the five regions.

Article courtesy of The Evening Echo