CZECH EMPLOYERS REPORT MODEST HIRING INTENTIONS
Prague, 10 December 2019 – ManpowerGroup Czech Republic today released results of the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey for the fourth quarter of 2019.
According to the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey, job seekers can expect a soft hiring pace in the Czech Republic during the next three months. Employers surveyed report a seasonally adjusted Net Employment Outlook of +4%. Hiring plans are 2 percentage points stronger when compared with the previous quarter, while remaining unchanged in comparison with last year at this time.
“The Czech unemployment rate remains the lowest in Europe, but the pace of unemployment is slowing down significantly in year on year comparison from more than 26% in 2017, 22% in 2018 and 7% in 2019. Even though the overall labor market situation is positive, despite the future hiring uncertainty in the automotive industry due to new EU environmental legislation. In Q1 we expect a seasonal decrease in employment in agriculture, construction and mining,” said Jaroslava Rezlerová, Managing Director of ManpowerGroup Czech Republic.
Industry sector comparisons
Employers in seven of the 10 Czech industry sectors expect to add to payrolls during 1Q 2020, while employers in two sectors forecast a decline in headcount. When compared with 4Q 2019, employers in six sectors report stronger hiring plans, with weaker hiring prospects reported in two sectors. In a year-over-year comparison, Outlooks dip in five sectors but climb in four.
Transport, Storage & Communications sector employers report the strongest of the 10 industry sector forecasts with an Outlook of +8%, unchanged in comparison with 4Q 2019, but 5 percentage points stronger year-over-year. Hiring prospects are also stronger than the national forecast for the country as a whole in the Restaurants & Hotels sector, where the Outlook of +7% improves by 5 and 8 percentage points from 4Q 2019 and 1Q 2019, respectively.
The weakest labor markets are anticipated in two sectors where employers expect to trim payrolls. In the first of these, the Mining & Quarrying sector Outlook of -3% decreases by 7 percentage points when compared with the previous quarter and is 4 percentage points weaker in comparison with 1Q 2019. With an Outlook of -1%, Construction sector employers report the weakest hiring plans in three years, declining by 7 and 11 percentage points from 4Q 2019 and 1Q 2019, respectively.
Regional comparisons
An increase in payrolls is forecast for all three Czech regions during the forthcoming quarter, with hiring plans improving for two of the three in comparison with the previous quarter. When compared with the same period last year, hiring prospects are unchanged in all three regions. For the second consecutive quarter, Moravia employers anticipate the strongest regional hiring pace, reporting an unchanged Outlook of +5%. Hiring prospects in the region are also unchanged year-over-year. The weakest regional labor market is anticipated in Bohemia, where the Outlook of +2% is 2 percentage points stronger quarter-over-quarter and unchanged when compared with this time one year ago.
Organization Size Comparisons
Workforce gains are anticipated in three of the four organization size categories in the January to March time frame. Large employers report the strongest hiring prospects with a steady Outlook of +13%. Meanwhile, Small employers expect a flat labor market, reporting an Outlook of 0%.
Global overview
In the ManpowerGroup research for the first quarter of 2020, employers in 42 of 43 countries and territories surveyed expect to grow payrolls in the period up to the end of March 2020. When compared with the previous quarter, hiring plans strengthen in 15 of the 43 countries and territories, while employers in 23 report weaker hiring prospects, with no change reported in five. In a comparison with last year at this time, employers in 12 countries and territories report stronger hiring sentiments, while hiring intentions weaken in 26 and are unchanged in five. The strongest labor markets are anticipated in Greece, Japan, Taiwan, the U.S. and Romania, while the weakest hiring activity is expected in Panama, Argentina, Costa Rica, Italy and Spain.
The next ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey featuring the forecast for the 2Q 2020 period will be published on 10 March 2020.
About the Survey
The global leader in innovative workforce solutions, ManpowerGroup releases the ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey quarterly to measure employers’ intentions to increase or decrease the number of employees in their workforce during the next quarter. It is the longest running, most extensive, forward-looking employment survey in the world, polling over 59,000 employers in 44 countries and territories. The survey serves as a bellwether of labor market trends and activities and is regularly used to inform the Bank of England’s Inflation Reports, as well as a regular data source for the European Commission, informing its EU Employment Situation and Social Outlook report the Monthly Monitor. ManpowerGroup’s independent survey data is also sourced by financial analysts and economists around the world to help determine where labor markets are headed.
About ManpowerGroup™
ManpowerGroup® (NYSE: MAN), the leading global workforce solutions company, helps organizations transform in a fast-changing world of work by sourcing, assessing, developing and managing the talent that enables them to win. We develop innovative solutions for hundreds of thousands of organizations every year, providing them with skilled talent while finding meaningful, sustainable employment for millions of people across a wide range of industries and skills. Our expert family of brands – Manpower®, Experis®, Right Management® and ManpowerGroup® Solutions – creates substantially more value for candidates and clients across 80 countries and territories and has done so for 70 years. In 2019, ManpowerGroup was named one of Fortune’s Most Admired Companies for the seventeenth year and one of the World’s Most Ethical Companies for the ninth year in 2018, confirming our position as the most trusted and admired brand in the industry. See how ManpowerGroup is powering the future of work: www.manpowergroup.com.
About ManpowerGroup Czech Republic
Through a network of over 35 offices, we provide staff (nearly 12,000) for approximately 1,200 clients. With employment opportunities in the public and private sector, on both a permanent and temporary basis, we make it easy for people to find employment and for companies to find staff with the skills they need. Solutions include permanent and temporary positions, holiday, maternity or sick coverage, through to large workforce transformation and outsourcing contracts.
More information available on www.manpowergroup.cz
