Town firms less sure of growth (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Town firms less sure of growth

EMPLOYERS in Swindon are being cautious about their hiring intentions.

Research carried out by management firm Manpower shows companies in Swindon and the south west are less confident about being able to take on more staff in the future than in other parts of the UK.

Lara Dawson, the business manager for Manpower in Swindon, said: "The employment climate in Swindon on both the permanent and temporary side is stable.

"This reflects the cautious confidence recorded among south west employers.

"We are constantly seeing new businesses coming into the area and with a large number of industrial employers based in and around Swindon the demand for temporary staff is likely to pick up considerably over the coming months as we approach the busy Christmas period."

The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey provides a forecast of employer hiring intentions for the quarter ahead: October to December 2005.

To complete the survey, 2,100 UK employers were surveyed in the UK and 45,000 employers in 23 countries globally.

Ms Dawson added: "Job seekers with specialist skills are constantly in demand and for these candidates there are a number of attractive jobs out there.

"Opportunities are also good for job seekers with a sales background or legal secretarial skills.

"Where candidates do not have relevant skills we would encourage them to retrain for other areas."

Across the UK, eight of the nine industry sectors surveyed by Manpower are planning to take on staff next quarter.

About 13 per cent of employers in construction are planning to take on more labour, as is the finance and business services sector, where 11 per cent of firms are planning to take on more staff, although that figure is down from 23 per cent last year.

Employers in the agriculture sector are the least optimistic and the only ones to expect cutbacks.

Across the rest of the UK, Wales is the most optimistic region, with 20 per cent of employers looking to expand their workforce an increase of nine per cent in the past year.

Only one per cent of businesses in Yorkshire and Humberside and five per cent of firms in the south east were looking to expand their workforce.