Taiwan's hiring outlook improves in Q4: Poll

Taipei, Sept. 8 (CNA) Taiwan's hiring outlook for the fourth quarter of this year improved with the information sector reporting the strongest hiring prospects during the current AI boom, according to a survey released by human resources advisory firm ManpowerGroup on Tuesday.

The ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey (MEOS) showed that Taiwan's net employment outlook in the fourth quarter was 26 percent after seasonal adjustments.

The fourth quarter figure was up from 17 percent in the third quarter and 16 percent a year earlier, data compiled by the advisory firm indicated.

The survey calculates its net hiring index by subtracting the percentage of employers anticipating a decline in the size of their workforce from the percentage expecting an increase.

The survey found 37 percent of 651 employers polled in Taiwan said they expected to hire more people in the fourth quarter, while 10 percent said they anticipated a decline in hiring and 52 percent said their hiring plans remain unchanged.

This translated to a fourth-quarter net employment outlook index of 27 percent before seasonal adjustments, and 26 percent after seasonal adjustments, according to ManpowerGroup.

Among the major business sectors in Taiwan, the information sector recorded the highest hiring outlook for the fourth quarter as the net employment outlook stood at 42 percent, up 23 percentage points from a quarter earlier.

In a statement, Sandy Chang (張淑君), general manager of ManpowerGroup Taiwan, said employers in the sector demonstrated a strong willingness to hire in a wide range of positions such as development and operations (DevOps) talent, AI application developers and communication system and cybersecurity experts to meet robust global robust for AI and digital transformation needs.

The construction and real estate sector came in second with the net employment outlook for the fourth quarter at 41 percent, up sharply from 5 percent in the third quarter, the survey found.

Chang said the hiring outlook in the sector significantly improved as AI developers and high-end semiconductor suppliers are keen to expand production, accelerating the pace of construction of new offices and plants.

The trade and logistics sector reported the third highest net hiring outlook at 35 percent for the fourth quarter, up 19 percentage points from a quarter earlier, with Chang saying employers largely aimed to expand their talent pool to meet online business needs and strengthen automation in logistics.

Of the 11 Asia-Pacific economies in the ManpowerGroup survey, India had the highest net hiring outlook for the fourth quarter at 54 percent, ahead of the United Arab Emirates (41 percent) and Vietnam (36 percent).

Taiwan came in seventh with 26 percent, while Japan was at the bottom at 7 percent.

Among the 42 economies surveyed worldwide, ManpowerGroup said all reported positive hiring outlooks in the fourth quarter, according to the survey.

Taiwan's score for the fourth quarter was slightly below the global average of 29 percent, the survey found.