March 13 (SeeNews) - Job seekers in Croatia are likely to benefit from a strong hiring environment in the next three months, especially in hospitality and construction, recruitment company ManpowerGroup said on Tuesday.
Of the 620 Croatian employers who participated in the initial survey, 33% told Manpower they plan to add to their workforce in the second quarter , while only 4% plan to reduce payrolls, ManpowerGroup said in its latest Employment Outlook Survey which includes Croatia for the first time.
Based on this calculation, Croatia’s net employment outlook stands at a solid +29%, the recruitment company noted.
"The second-quarter survey reveals that employers are generally very optimistic regarding job gains in the next quarter. Much of the employer confidence revealed in the survey may be based on hiring that routinely takes place as we approach the busy summer months", Nebojsa Biskup, CEO of Manpower Croatia, said.
There is no guarantee, however, that gains like these will be sustained later in the year as they are spurred by the approaching tourist season, Biskup warned.
The survey reveals that employers in the restaurants and hotels sector (+48%) report the strongest second-quarter hiring plans, while a vigorous hiring pace is also expected in the construction sector (+46%).
The weakest second-quarter hiring plans are reported in the transport, storage and communications sector, even though the sector’s outlook of +21% indicates opportunities for job seekers that are expected to remain solid for the next three months.
In terms of regional employment, positive hiring intentions are reported across all four regions with the strongest third-quarter hiring plans reported by employers in the western region (+40%), while employers in the central region (+25%) expect more modest - but still strong - job growth.
"Central Croatia has seen growth of economic activity and exports for quite some time, and employment growth will be significantly influenced by the active employment policy measures, which are most rapidly implemented in that region," Biskup concluded.