Job Seekers Confidence Breaks new Record

Zurich/Geneva, 30 July 2018 – Job seekers’ confidence in Switzerland reached an all-time high in Q2 (April – June 2018). According to the PageGroup Confidence Index of job seekers, 57% of candidates were confident about improving their overall professional situation over the next 6-12 months. This is the highest figure since the Index began in 2014. Confidence in the German speaking region of Switzerland (61%) was higher than in the Suisse Romande (56%).

The year-on-year increase in confidence +18% (Q2 2017 – 2018) is the highest on record and significantly higher than in neighbouring countries Germany (6%), France (12%) and Italy (11%).
 

Pragmatic but seeking Work-Life Balance

58% of candidates advised that they would not sacrifice work-life balance in moving to a new role. This is the first time, since the survey began, that the majority of respondents have placed work-life ahead of changing roles. Almost half of the respondents (44%) expected their work-life balance to improve over the next 12 months. 18% of candidates were actively seeking a new role in order to improve their work-life balance.

According to Jérôme Bouin, Managing Director of PageGroup Switzerland, the prospects for job seekers have improved significantly since the beginning of 2018 across both permanent and temporary roles. "We see particularly strong demand in the IT, sales, engineering, banking, accounting areas. Candidates understand that salary levels are capped across many industries. It is therefore important for employers to offer other factors which will attract top candidates. These include flexible working conditions, and skills development, so that they can better integrate their professional and personal lives”.

PageGroup

PageGroup is a worldwide leader in specialist recruitment which is listed on the London Stock Exchange (Stock Symbol: PAGE). Founded in 1976, it has been active in Switzerland since 2001 and operates through three key brands: Page Executive (executive search), Michael Page (middle to senior management) and Page Personnel (graduate and skilled employees). PageGroup has 152 offices worldwide including its’ three Swiss offices in Zurich, Geneva and Lausanne.

PageGroup Confidence Index

The PageGroup Confidence Index polls job applicants to identify their outlook regarding the labor market. This index covers only those candidates who actively applied for a job through Michael Page and Page Personnel websites. Initiated in Switzerland in July 2014, the now global study is conducted online and investigates the motivations of job applicants for changing jobs, their confidence in finding a new job and their expectations about the length of their job search. The survey covers approximately 18,000 questionnaires per quarter worldwide, more than 650 in Switzerland.

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