Record high in health, management and organisation professions
Swiss job market: slowdown at high level
Zurich, 3 October 2019 – The Adecco Group Swiss Job Market Index increased by 5% in the third quarter of 2019 and stagnated compared to the same quarter of the previous year. This is reflected in the scientifically substantiated survey of the Adecco Group Swiss Job Market Index conducted by the Swiss Job Market Monitor from the University of Zurich. Swiss companies are continuing to search for personnel, the number of job vacancies is stagnating at a high level and growth in the major regions is more moderate than several quarters ago.
The Adecco Group Swiss Job Market Index increased by 5% in the third quarter of 2019 compared to the same quarter of the previous year. “Compared to the previous year there has been a rise in the number of job advertisements, although compared with the previous quarter the level is stagnating. It remains to be seen whether this is an initial indicator of how companies are responding to the insecure economic situation in their search for personnel,” comments Nicole Burth, CEO of the Adecco Group Switzerland. “In many occupational groups we are also currently seeing a slowdown in growth,” adds Anna von Ow.
More job vacancies than ever for health, management and organisation professions
During the third quarter of 2019, companies in most occupational groups searched for more personnel compared with the previous year. However, there was only a moderate rise in the number of job advertisements in many occupational groups, and in most occupational groups we observed stagnation or even a decline in the demand for personnel compared with the previous quarter. While the number of job advertisements for professions in the health sector (+15%) as well as the construction and renovation sector (+12%) increased the most compared to the previous year, there was a decline for finance and fiduciary professions (–7%)
With an increase of 15%, companies are increasingly searching for personnel in the health professions especially, compared with the previous year. In comparison with the previous quarter, the demand for personnel in these professions remained stable (+2%). The job index for health professions has thus reached a new high since the start of the measurement series (2012). This occupational group includes, for instance, professions for human medicine, pharmaceutics and dental care, along with care, therapy and medical engineering professions.
The job index for management and organisation job vacancies is currently experiencing a growth of 9% compared with the previous year. After rising steadily since the start of the measurement series in 2012, growth continued in the current quarter and has reached a record high. This occupational group includes professions from the fields of market and opinion research, HR specialists, directors, head clerks and project managers, for example.
The demand for personnel in construction and renovation professions has increased above average by 12% compared with the previous year. The rise in comparison with the previous quarter is slightly lower at +6%. Companies are continuing to look for personnel to complete upcoming building construction projects. Contrary to the medium- to longer-term risks, which include an increasing number of vacant properties, this positive development is still continuing.
At a slightly more moderate rate than in the summer of this year, the teaching and public services professions saw an increase of 10% compared with the previous year. There was an increased demand for teachers, for example. Compared with the previous quarter, the demand for personnel in the teaching and public services professions fell by –11%, however.
For all other occupational groups, the rise in the number of job advertisements was 5% or lower. Finance and fiduciary professions even saw a decline in the number of job vacancies in the third quarter of 2019, with 7% compared with the previous year and 6% compared with the previous quarter. This decline primarily relates to job advertisements for fiduciary and accounting, however, also concerns sales and administrative careers.
Moderate rise in most Swiss regions
While the recent development in the number of job advertisements differed significantly from region to region, in the third quarter of 2019 only a moderate increase or stability on the job market was observed in most regions compared with the previous year.
With an increase of 8% compared with the previous year and a slight positive development of 4% compared with the previous quarter, the rise in the number of job vacancies in Northwestern Switzerland was greater than in the other regions. Furthermore, all occupational groups in this region saw an increase compared with the previous year. Professions from industry and construction experienced the greatest rise (+23%) in demand for personnel in Northwestern Switzerland. These include professions in vehicle manufacturing and chemical processing, for example. The number of job vacancies for professions in the personal and social services sectors (+13%) has risen by more than 10%. These include teachers and care professions, for example.
Eastern Switzerland has seen a moderate increase (+7%), however in the quarter-on-quarter comparison there was a slight decrease (–4%) in the number of job advertisements. In Eastern Switzerland, companies searched for a greater number of personnel for the industry and construction occupational group (+13%), whereby the positive upwards trend for job advertisements was attributed to construction and renovation professions rather than industry professions. In comparison with the previous quarter, the number of job advertisements for this occupational group stagnated, however.
Compared with the previous year, both the Lake Geneva region and Espace Mittelland saw a 5% rise, though compared with the previous quarter this level stagnated. The companies in the Lake Geneva region and Espace Mittelland searched for more personnel in the personal and social services sectors (+23% and +12%, respectively) compared with the previous year. This occupational group includes health and teaching professions as well as hospitality and cleaning professions. Fewer job advertisements were published compared with one year ago by companies in the Lake Geneva region and in Espace Mittelland for industry and construction jobs (–13% and –9%, respectively), such as metalworking professions.
The job market in the Greater Zurich area increased by 4% compared with the previous year, however stagnated with a slight 2% decline compared with the previous quarter. In the Greater Zurich area, the increased demand for personnel in the technology and IT professions (+12%) was higher than in the other regions and in the other occupational groups in the region. In the quarter-on-quarter comparison, this occupational group stagnated. This occupational group includes technicians, for example.
Central Switzerland saw a slightly negative development rather than stagnation, both in the year-on-year and the quarter-on-quarter comparison (–3% in each case). Professions that are affected in particular are technology and IT (e.g. IT and engineering professions), which have declined by 16%, as well as personal and social services (e.g. health and hospitality professions), which have declined by 9% compared with the previous year. Only the professions in industry and construction did not experience a downwards trend but instead increased by 4%. The professions in construction and renovation in particular had a positive influence upon this development.
Importance of print media as advertising channel sinks dramatically
According to our company surveys, print media now has almost no relevance when it comes to advertising job vacancies. As a result, as of the second quarter of 2018, the number of job advertisements published in the print media will no longer be factored into the calculations of the job index.
GRAPHICS
11 occupational groups:
Percentage values
4 occupational groups:
Percentage values
Major regions:
Percentage values
Note regarding data collection: Optimisation
Based on revisions to the Adecco Group Job Market Index, some of the figures listed in this media release differ slightly from the figures published earlier. The revisions serve to align the index with a constantly changing job market. They pertain above all to the regional allocation of advertisements, the allocation of individual job titles to job groups, and the multiple publication of job advertisements. The revisions are intended to optimise the index, and therefore do not render the earlier published figures invalid in any way.
