Employment prospects remain stable in the fourth quarter
Published: Friday, Nov 1st 2024, 10:50
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The employment outlook in Switzerland will remain stable towards the end of 2024. According to the KOF Swiss Economic Institute at ETH Zurich, employment in Switzerland should therefore continue to develop solidly.
The employment indicator calculated by the KOF stood at 3.9 points in the fourth quarter, as the institute announced on Friday. In the previous quarter, it stood at 3.8 points (revised from 5.2 points). Despite burgeoning economic concerns, it has proved robust in the current year.
The evaluations are based on the responses of around 4,500 companies that were surveyed by the KOF in October on their employment plans and expectations. On balance, the majority of participating companies still consider their current headcount to be too low.
The proportion of companies planning to increase their workforce in the next three months slightly exceeds the proportion of companies planning to cut jobs.
Stabilization in the current year
After reaching its highest level to date in the second quarter of 2022 at 16.6 points, the KOF Employment Indicator subsequently fell back. Since the first quarter of this year, however, the indicator has stabilized and recorded values of around 4 points for three consecutive quarters.
Overall, the indicator is therefore slightly above its long-term average, the KOF continued. As it is slightly ahead of the actual employment trend in Switzerland, the latest figures point to a moderate employment trend in the coming months.
Little movement in the sectors
According to the latest evaluation of the company survey on employment, there was little change not only in the overall picture, but also in the individual sectors. For example, the outlook in manufacturing, construction, hospitality and banking had changed little compared to the previous quarter. The employment indicators were still close to zero.
In wholesale, however, the KOF indicator, which was already at a low level, fell again and is now quite clearly in the red at -12 points. The outlook in the insurance sector has also deteriorated, although the indicator is still in positive territory.
According to the KOF, however, other service providers are planning a considerable increase in jobs. This category includes important sectors for Switzerland such as information and communication, real estate and housing, scientific and technical services and health and social services.
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