Businesses are three times more likely to shed staff or hold off on hiring new employees compared with March this year, according to a survey conducted by global consultancy Hay Group. Almost half the respondents from businesses in Australia and New Zealand indicated that they would not hire anyone new, with 17 percent saying they would decrease staff numbers.
The main reason indicated for the employment strategy was the expectation that economic conditions would worsen according to 27 percent of respondents, although 64 percent still expected to reach targeted levels.
Almost two-thirds of businesses in the retail sector expected poor results for the year, comparatively worse than sectors such as the oil and gas industry, which had 19 percent predicting better than targeted outcomes.
More than 2,500 organisations participated in the survey worldwide.
