Slower rate of hiring seen in 2009
Greek employers anticipate a decrease in hiring in the first quarter of next year, with the manufacturing and tourism industries offering the gloomiest forecasts, according to survey results made public yesterday. The survey, prepared by staffing services company Manpower, found that 13 percent of the 751 employers questioned are preparing to lay off staff. Six in 10 said they do not anticipate any change in hirings while 16 percent replied that they anticipate an increase in their payroll. «It is encouraging that a significant 16 percent of employers interviewed plan to take on more staff, indicating that job opportunities, however limited, still exist,» said Venetia Koussia, managing director of Manpower Greece, in a statement. Hiring projections weakened for eight of the nine sectors surveyed, the most optimistic forecast reported in the public sector. On the other hand, employers in manufacturing and the restaurant and hotel sectors report gloomy outlooks, added the survey. Greece’s jobless rate is seen rising to 8 percent in 2009 from 7.5 percent this year, as the economy slows due to the global financial and credit crisis, according to the OECD.
