RECRUITMENT AT LOWEST SINCE 2012
THE number of firms planning to hire staff has hit a seven-year low.
Research by recruitment giant Manpower found many companies have put recruitment on hold after a triple whammy of the slowing global economy, Brexit uncertainty and this week’s General Election.
The survey of 2,101 employers asks whether they intend to take on new workers or reduce their workforce in the coming quarter, and is used by both the Bank of England and the Government.
It found only a net 2% planned to hire workers in the first three months of 2020, the lowest since 2012.
Nearly every sector of the economy reported falling levels of confidence.
Chris Gray, director of ManpowerGroup
HARD TIME For Britain’s jobseekers
Shoe giant Clarks has announced it is axing 170 jobs – only weeks before Christmas.
Just under half, 80, of the job cuts will be made at its headquarters in Street, Somerset. The news follows global changes at the shoe retailer under newly appointed chief executive Giorgio Presca, who replaced former boss Mike Shearwood in March.
In November, the firm announced it
UK, said: “Employers want certainty before they can make investment decisions and firm up hiring plans.” London has the weakest outlook, with a net 1% of firms aiming to shed staff rather than to take on workers.
In contrast, the West Midlands is the strongest region, with a net 13% more companies saying they’ll boost their workforce in the new year. The findings follow data from the Office for National Statistics last month showing the biggest fall in job vacancies for a decade. Between August and October 2019, there were an estimated 800,000 jobs openings, 18,000 fewer than for the three months to July and down 53,000 on the year before. would close its factory in Street with the loss of dozens of jobs because targets were not being met.
A spokeswoman said: “We have announced changes which affect the way our corporate teams across the world are structured which, regrettably, will result in approximately 170 colleagues leaving the business globally.
“These changes do not impact our distribution centre operatives or stores.”