Employers report the most positive hiring outlook since the pandemic

ManpowerGroup’s Employment Outlook Survey has taken place every quarter since 1962 and measures the growth or decline of hiring plans amongst companies around the world.

To do this, the survey takes the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in hiring activity and subtracts it from the percentage of employers expecting a decrease.

In the most recent survey, hiring plans appear to have spiked, despite ongoing issues with finding and attracting talent with desired skills.

In all 43 countries that were involved in the survey, that outlined hiring plans for Q4, there were stronger hiring intentions year-over-year. This comes in the wake of fears about the “Great Resignation” impacting staff retention, as employers have struggled to offer the benefits or balance that employees desire.

Leading the way in hiring intention with year-on-year improvements were the Netherlands (+41%), India (+40%), and the UK (+39%).

15 countries have also shown that they have the highest hiring plans since the survey began 59 years ago. Despite these plans, employers still have difficulties to overcome if they want to increase the size of their workforce.

Employer hiring difficulty

As part of these plans to increase employee numbers, there are also upskilling initiatives being pushed.

Across the globe, there are talent shortages. The survey found that globally 69% of employers cannot find the skills that they need. Employers in India (89%), Romania (84%), and Singapore (84%) are reporting the greatest difficulty.

As a result, HR leaders have a renewed focus on educating and upskilling their current staff. The Employment Outlook Survey found that 25% of employers intend to invest in accelerated upskilling programs for their staff. Additionally,  21% of companies intend to launch career coaching programs in the next six months.

A focus on education has been shown by Microsoft with its acquisition of TakeLessons, as well as the likes of Walmart, Amazon, and Target who will offer to pay student fees for staff.

Speaking about the results of the survey, Jonas Prising, ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO said: “This recovery is unlike any we have seen before with hiring intent picking up much faster than after the previous economic downturn.”

Prising added: “As vaccine rollouts gain momentum and lockdown restrictions ease in many markets, we’re seeing sharp increases in hiring optimism reported by employers.

“At the same time, some workers are hesitant to re-engage with employers as factors including health concerns and childcare challenges continue.

“Continued talent shortages mean many businesses are prioritizing retaining and training workers with the skills they need to succeed as the economic recovery continues.”