Is Hiring Confidence Cooling? What Employers Need to Know
The ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey (MEOS) for Q1 2025 offers key insights into hiring trends across Australia, providing employers and employees with a forward-looking perspective on the job market. While optimism remains in some sectors and organisation sizes, the data suggests a softening in overall employment confidence.
Key Findings
The Net Employment Outlook (NEO) for Australia in Q1 2025 stands at +11%, indicating that more employers expect to hire than reduce staff over the coming months. However, this figure has declined by 3 percentage points compared to Q4 2024 and by a significant 17 percentage points year-on-year from Q1 2024.
Despite this broader decline, small organisations (those employing 10-49 people) are bucking the trend, reporting a robust +23% NEO. This is a 4 percentage point improvement from the previous quarter, reflecting continued confidence among smaller businesses.
Sector Highlights
The Information Technology (IT) sector leads the charge with the highest hiring intention, reporting a strong +27% NEO. This growth aligns with increasing demand for digital transformation, cybersecurity, and cloud-based solutions.
The Health Care and Life Sciences sector follows closely with a +21% NEO, driven by Australia’s ageing population and the ongoing focus on healthcare innovation and infrastructure.
What It Means
While the overall hiring outlook has softened, the data highlights resilience in key sectors and small businesses. The IT sector’s strong performance indicates continued demand for technical skills, making it an opportune time for job seekers to upskill or pivot into tech-related roles. Similarly, the Health Care and Life Sciences sector offers stable opportunities, reflecting Australia’s long-term focus on healthcare.
For employers, the report underscores the importance of retaining and attracting top talent, particularly in high-demand sectors, as hiring intentions in these areas remain strong. Small businesses, showing higher optimism, may drive employment growth despite broader market challenges.
As Australia navigates economic and labour market fluctuations, these insights provide valuable guidance for workforce planning in early 2025.
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