Global recruiter PageGroup saw a drop in profits as employers adopt a cautious approach, delaying hiring decisions due to economic uncertainty. Workers are also hesitant to accept job offers in the current job market climate.
Working with sectors like tech, finance and marketing, the company’s gross profit of £263.5 million for the second quarter marked a 6.5% decrease from the previous year’s record performance. The UK saw a significant drop of 17% in gross profit, following a decline of 9.4% in the prior quarter. Temporary recruitment outperformed permanent hiring during this period, with clients opting for more flexible options.
PageGroup’s Chief Executive, Nicholas Kirk, attributed the challenging market conditions to the declining performance in Asia, the UK, and the US. Similar to other players in the recruitment industry, PageGroup’s slowdown comes after two years of high demand following the pandemic, when many firms expanded or re-built their teams.
The uncertainty in the global market continues to impact both candidate and client confidence. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported a rise in unemployment to 4% in the three months leading up to May, up from 3.8% in the previous quarter.
Kirk said “Looking forward, there remains a high level of global macro-economic and political uncertainty in the majority of our markets. However, against this backdrop, we continue to see candidate shortages and good levels of vacancies, as well as continued high fee rates.”
The company expects its 2023 operating profit to align with the consensus of £137.6 million compiled by the company.