Services sector to be the highest employer in Q1'10:Survey

RELATED NEWS Infy to hire 20000 in FY11, says job scene improving Retailers hiring on-demand this holiday season Global biggies look to India for fresh talent Nifty BSE | NSE 10/02/12 Are Mutual Funds betting on Nifty?

Those looking for a job in the services space have some reason to cheer. A Manpower Employment Outlook Survey for Q1 2010 says employers in the services space anticipate strong hiring plans in the entire Asia Pacific region. "Employers are pressing the hiring accelerator again in anticipation of their contract pipelines firming up. About 10% more expect to add employees in the next three months," a Manpower release stated.

Things are also looking up for job seekers in public administration, education, mining, construction, finance, insurance, real estate, and the wholesale and retail trade sector.

India outlook:
India's employment outlook at 36% leaves other economies way behind. Singapore and Taiwan come in second best at 22%. Superpowers China and the US stand at 11% and 6% respectively. The survey included 5,109 employers across 30 cities in India. The net employment outlook is derived by taking the percentage of employers anticipating total employment to increase, and subtracting from this the percentage expecting to see a decrease in employment at their location in the next quarter. The outlook has improved by 11 percentage points quarter-over-quarter, and 18 percentage points when compared to the first quarter last year.

Dr Naresh Malhan, Managing Director, Manpower India, says, "India has been reporting the strongest hiring expectations globally since the third quarter of 2008. The good news is that employer hiring expectations across all industry sectors are improving in the first quarter of 2010, and job seekers in key industry sectors can look forward to the most favourable hiring environment in over a year. Hiring optimism is strongest among employers in the services sector (47%). The sector outlook is 20 percentage points stronger QoQ and improves by 23 percentage points year-over-year. We are also witnessing stronger hiring trends in all regions in India. Employers in the north region are the most optimistic about adding employees; their outlook stands at 44%, and is 16 percentage points stronger QoQ and 24 percentage points stronger YoY." The same for the west, east and south stand at 40%, 40%, and 36%, respectively.

The finance, insurance, and real estate sector saw a 16 percentage point improvement in net employment outlook over last quarter. The softest hiring pace is seen in transportation and utilities (28%), although employer optimism  improved by 4 and 11 percentage points QoQ and YoY, respectively.  The manufacturing space (33%) is also seeing substantial improvements in their QoQ and YoY outlook.

Asia-Pacific region:
There is an increased optimism among employers in all the eight countries and territories surveyed from Q4 2009. Stronger hiring plans are expected in all the countries and territories surveyed. Japan stands out as the only sore thumb in the entire pack, with employers reporting a negative outlook.  The manufacturing space is likely to be the key employment driver in this region.

Global picture:
Globally, hiring is expected to pick up throughout Asia Pacific (except Japan) and Americas. The forecasts for Europe, West Asia and Africa remain mixed. Countrywise, India, Brazil, Singapore, Taiwan, Costa Rica, Australia, and Peru are likely to hire the most hiring in Q1. However, hiring in Ireland, Romania, and Spain is predicted to be the weakest. Employers in Belgium, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland and and Romania are reporting their weakest hiring plans to date.

Employers in 25 of the 35 countries and territories surveyed expect to add to their workforces. There is also an improvement in 25 countries and territories QoQ. Hiring expectations are also stronger in 19 of 33 countries and territories where year-over-year comparisons can be made. 

Thirty-eight percent employers expecting total employment to increase, 2% see a decrease, while 53% see no change in employment next quarter. The net employment outlook stands at 36%. With seasonal adjustments, that figure inches to 39%.

Sample size:
Nearly 71,000 human resource directors and senior hiring managers from public and private organizations, spread across 35 countries and territories, were asked to measure employment trends between January and March 2010.