Hiring in India could slow down next quarter: Survey

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Corporates in India may go slow with their hiring over the next quarter of 2011, but the employment outlook for the country is still among the strongest in the world, according to a survey released Thursday.

"The survey of 5,118 employers across India indicates that the hiring activity will remain healthy but decline over the next quarter as employers become less confident," according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.

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"Yet, the seasonally adjusted net employment outlook of over 30 percent is among the strongest in the 41 countries and territories where the survey is conducted," it added.

Employers in the services sector reported the most robust hiring plans this quarter with over 37 percent indicating their intent to recruit, but the sector's outlook declined by 10 percentage points when compared to the previous quarter and is six percentage points weaker year-on-year.

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However, over 32 percent of companies in the manufacturing sector reported a 12 percentage point decline in hiring intentions over last quarter, while 31 percent employers in the transport and utilities sector said there was a marginal improvement in their employment outlook.

Hiring intentions in the public administration and education sectors trailed all other industry sectors.

"In the wake of uncertainties in global markets, employers in India are adopting a wait-and-watch policy. This is probably the reason we are not seeing them commit to the same optimistic hiring plans they reported at the beginning of 2011," said Sanjay Pandit, managing director of Manpower India that conducted the survey.

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"One of every four employers is uncertain about their hiring plan for the last quarter of the year-an unusually high percentage when compared to past quarters," Pandit added.

The survey, conducted globally, revealed that hiring expectations in the fourth quarter of 2011 are positive in 36 of 41 countries. Hiring intentions were strongest in Brazil, Taiwan, India, Singapore, Panama, New Zealand, Colombia and Hong Kong, and weakest in Greece, Italy Slovenia and Spain.