Confident Employers Making Plans to hire in 2014
Employers are optimistic about the year ahead with four out of ten (43%) predicting their organisation will fare better in 2014 than in 2013 and a further two in ten (22%) saying they expect things to remain “the same” this year. The figures come from the latest JobsOutlook survey of employers from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC).
Asked about their hiring intentions for the first quarter of 2014:
- 65% said they plan to take on more permanent employees. A further 27% plan no change and 8% said headcount will fall slightly.
- 48% said they plan to increase their use of agency workers. A further 43% said they would keep numbers the same and 5% plan to decrease their use.
Looking ahead to the rest of 2014:
- 59% employers predict they will end the year with a larger permanent workforce. 36% think headcount will remain the same and 5% forecast a slight decrease.
- 38% plan to increase their use of agency workers, 55% will keep use the same and 7% say they will decrease their use of agency temps slightly.
Commenting REC director of policy Tom Hadley says:
“Our data shows business confidence is continuing to build and the jobs market recovery will gain further momentum over coming months. The challenge ahead will be to ensure that the demand for staff and specific skills can be met.
“This tracking of employer sentiment and future hiring plans is a leading indicator and strong predictions from the second half of 2013 have been borne out by January’s employment and GDP figures. Today’s JobsOutlook points to a positive year for business and jobseekers.”
Sourced from REC
