Reversal of online hiring slump seen

THE DECLINE in online hiring activities in the Philippines continued through November 2015, although a rebound is expected this year due to strong private and public sector spending, a unit of New York-listed online manpower firm Monster Worldwide Inc. said in a report.

According to its Monster Employment Index (MEI) Philippines, online hiring in November 2015 fell 46 percent compared to the same month the previous year. That decline is faster than the 30 percent year-on-year drop recorded in October 2015 and the 16 percent decline a month prior.

The MEI Philippines records the industries and occupations that show the highest and lowest growth in recruitment activities online.

“The nation’s growth tracked slower than expected in the third quarter. Partly due to the halting investments ahead of the elections and the El Niño dryspell, hiring has also begun to slow down,” said Sanjay Modi, managing director of Monster.com in India, Middle East, Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.

Nevertheless, Modi said in the report that “the overall per- formance of the Philippines amid the economic downturn has been notable, and there is no doubt the nation will continue to perform in the coming months.”

Modi said the trend would see “a rebound in 2016” on expectations of “strong private consumption as well as higher government spending in order to drive growth in the country.”

“Philippine exports, however, may influence overall business sentiments in the country,” Modi added.

The firm said none of the industry sectors measured by the MEI experienced positive annual growth for November 2015.

The banking, financial services and insurance sector posted the smallest decline, or about 3 percent year-on-year to November 2015. Monster said this was the sector’s first negative performance in three months.

E-recruitment in the production/manufacturing, automotive and ancillary sectors performed the worst among industry groups, registering a 68 percent decline.

Demand for customer service professionals also contracted further for the second consecutive month in November, registering a 9 percent drop.