More than one third of employers see a change in their staff levels and only 62% see staff numbers remaining unchanged in the next quarter, said ManpowerGroup Romania general manager Valentin Petrof, adding the market is more dynamic than in previous quarters.
“Activity will largely be positive as one in four Romanian employers plan to raise staff numbers but differences between regions and sectors of activity persist, meaning job seekers should assess their employment opportunities on a larger scale and employers should consider wider workforce pools,” said Petrof.
With one exception, in the past ten quarters, employers in the manufacturing industry were the most optimistic in the country and continue to forecast a sustained employment rate in the next quarter. The manufacturing sector has a net employment outlook of +19%, 7 points lower than in the second quarter and one point lower than in the third quarter of 2014.
The most abrupt quarter-to-quarter decline in employment outlook is reported in the retail and wholesale sectors, where the net outlook dropped to +9% for the third quarter from +22% in the second quarter.
While hiring intentions have mellowed in eight out of ten analyzed sectors of activity, they have remained stable and outlook remains positive across the board, except for the energy and utilities sector, where the outlook stands at -8% for the second quarter in a row and has just once entered positive territory in the past two years.
By regions, employment outlook weakened compared to the second quarter, with a decline of 23 points in the north-west and of 18 points in the south. The most optimistic employers are in the western region, with an outlook of +21%, 4 points lower than in the second quarter but considerably higher than in the third quarter last year, with a growth of 15 points. The outlook for the north-east and the Bucharest-Ilfov regions remains moderate, at +8% and +7%, respectively, the survey notes.
For Romania, the study was conducted between April 15 – 28 and polled 625 employers. The study has an error margin of +/-3.9%.