(14.08.2024) The labor market has been showing signs of fatigue since the beginning of 2024. In the second quarter, the number of job vacancies nationwide dropped by 11% year-on-year, according to the Swiss Job Market Index conducted by the Adecco Group and the University of Zurich.
Job offers declined by as much as 20% in the hardest-hit sectors. Office professions (secretaries, clerks, processing agents), saw a 20% decrease. Similarly, healthcare roles requiring university degrees (nurses, physiotherapists, doctors) and IT positions requiring advanced qualifications (system administrators, programmers, database developers) experienced a 19% drop.
Marcel Keller, head of the Swiss market at Adecco, noted that there are currently 17,000 more unemployed people in the country than at the same time last year. Employers are now finding it easier to recruit.
In contrast, jobs in the construction and finishing trades (painters, plumbers, electricians) saw a 10% increase in available positions compared to the first quarter of 2024. However, the sector is still below its record level from the second quarter of 2023 (-4%).
Meanwhile, demand for specialists in information and communication technologies continued to decline, reaching its lowest level since 2016. This downturn may be due to a combination of two factors: high interest rates and uncertain economic conditions. The rising costs of investments needed for IT project development, coupled with a cautious business environment, have likely contributed to this decline.
The Swiss Job Market Index is based on data collected from 12 job portals and 1,500 company websites, providing a representative snapshot of the Swiss labor market.
Last modification 14.08.2024
