Taiwanese companies are planning to raise their staffing levels next quarter, buoyed by the advent of the high-season for technology products, US-based human resources advisory firm ManpowerGroup said yesterday.
The quarterly survey showed that 30 percent of employers are looking to increase staffing levels, while 4 percent expect to cut numbers and 64 percent plan to hold steady.
The net job gains after seasonal adjustments should stand at 24 percent, unchanged from three months earlier, but a gain of 5 percentage points compared with the same period last year, it said after polling 1,008 Taiwanese employers.
“The uptrend is most notable in the manufacturing, logistics and communication industries which posted a hiring intention increase 8 percentage points higher than the same period last year, as the nation’s export-oriented economy is benefiting from a global inventory-rebuilding cycle,” ManpowerGroup Taiwan operations director Joan Yeh (葉朝蒂) said.
Taiwan is home to the world’s leading contract chipmakers, chip designers and suppliers of camera lenses, flat panels, casing and other electronics components used in smartphones, laptops, TVs, connected vehicles and Internet of Things applications.
With major global technology brands launching next-generation devices in the fall, upstream Taiwanese suppliers might see business upturns earlier.
Employers in the finance, insurance and real-estate sectors were most positive about increasing staff levels, with 32 percent looking for employees, 3 percentage points higher from the same period last year, it said.
“Firms in the finance and insurance sectors are developing fintech and expanding into other Asian markets and therefore need a larger workforce,” Yeh said.
They are recruiting software developers, designers and engineers, Yeh said.
In the wholesale and retail-trade sectors, 28 percent are looking to hire, an increase of 3 percentage points from three months earlier and 4 percentage points higher from the same period last year, the survey indicated.
Convenience stores and drug stories are supplying growth momentum as they seek to add outlets to capitalize on growing demand for non-prescription drugs, cosmetics and health-enhancement products, Yeh said.
About 25 percent of traditional manufacturers want to increase workforce levels, 8 percentage higher than the same period last year, encouraged by a “smart” production trend and plans by Washington and Tokyo to bolster infrastructure facilities, the survey showed.
For the first time, the human resources advisory this quarter added a job outlook for the leisure and hospitality industry.
The sector will register a 21 percent increase in jobs, as food and beverage providers normally fare stronger in the third quarter, their high-sales season, the survey said.
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