Labour market stagnates

Want a job? Swiss unemployment stood at 3.7 per cent last month Keystone

A survey of 23 countries has found that employers in Switzerland are reporting the weakest hiring expectations for the third quarter of 2005.

The study by the Manpower employment agency on the worldwide labour market revealed that 85 per cent of Swiss firms did not expect any change in employee numbers in the forthcoming months.

The survey included Switzerland for the first time in its quarterly reports since it began in 1962.

Of the more than 800 Swiss companies questioned across 10 business sectors, six per cent forecast an increase in the size of their workforce. The same percentage expected a decrease.

Public sector workers and employees in the social security fields had the most to fear, with employers predicting an eight per cent drop in their staff numbers over the next few months.

The biggest increase – 11 per cent – was expected in agriculture and forestry, which may come as no surprise given the large seasonal demand for workers in these sectors.

Counting on banks

The banking, insurance and services industries also said they would increase their workforces by an average of six per cent.

According to Manpower, more workers in Zurich and eastern Switzerland could lose their jobs than in any other part of the country – where a decrease of eight per cent is forecast.

Many of the jobs appear to be moving to the central Swiss cantons and the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, where companies say they will hire on average 11 per cent more staff.

The Manpower Global Outlook Survey is based on interviews with more than 45,000 employers in 23 countries.

The employment services agency said Indian companies were “the most optimistic about adding to their payrolls in the upcoming quarter”.

It also reported that most employers in Germany – Switzerland’s largest trading partner – said they would be hiring again for the first time since Manpower began its survey there in 2003.

“Employer optimism in seven of nine German industry sectors is at an all-time high,” Manpower said.

swissinfo with agencies

Key facts

The Manpower Employment Outlook is conducted quarterly to measure employers’ intentions to increase or decrease their workforces.
The survey was conducted in 23 countries, and included Switzerland for the first time.
Only 6% of the 809 Swiss companies surveyed said they planned to increase their workforces in the third quarter.
The same number said they expected their workforces to shrink, while 85% predicted no change.
Unemployment in Switzerland stands at 3.7%.