Almost 60% Of UAE Firms To Hire In Q1 2013

The majority of companies in the UAE – 57 per cent, said that they are planning to hire new employees in the coming three months, according to a new survey by jobsite Bayt.com and research firm YouGov.

While 35 per cent of the companies are ‘definitely’ hiring, 22 per cent stated that they are ‘probably’ hiring in the next three months.

In a year’s time, up to 67 per cent of the companies claimed that they expect to hire, said the survey.

“The clear improvement in the number of jobs to be available in the coming three and 12 months is a positive sign for the UAE’s economy,” said Suhail Masri, VP of Sales, Bayt.com.

“We have seen a regional increase in terms of the numbers of employment opportunities,” he added.

Among the companies hiring in the first quarter of 2013, 67 per cent expect to hire up to 10 employees, found the survey.

The sectors attracting and retaining top talent in the UAE include banking and finance, oil, gas and petrochemicals and construction.

In terms of qualification, employers consider an educational background in engineering to be most important for new hires, followed by business management and commerce.

They also consider good communication skills to be an important criterion, followed by the ability to be a cooperative, helpful and flexible team player, and having good leadership skills.

Companies are mainly looking to hire candidates who have experience in team management, computer skills, sales and marketing, engineering, and those who have between three to seven years of experience.

In the wider MENA region, the survey found that 30 per cent of the respondents are ‘definitely’ hiring, while 27 per cent said they are ‘probably’ hiring in the first quarter of the year.

Multinational private sector companies are planning to hire the highest number of new employees in the next three months, and are predominantly looking for junior executive level personnel.

“A high number of lower-tier jobs is good news for new graduates. This provides a more open field at entry-level, which will give first-time jobseekers more opportunities to find employment in the industries that they wish,” said Sundip Chahal, CEO, YouGov.

The UAE topped the list of the most attractive countries in the region, followed by Qatar and Saudi Arabia. In terms of sectors, banking and finance and telecommunications are considered to attract and retain the top talent.

Data for the survey was collected online from December 21, 2012 to January 31, 2013 across the MENA region.