IT Sector Has Highest Recruitments in Greece

The Information Technology (IT) industry is emerging as the most dynamic sector regarding the highest increase in recruitment intentions in Greece, according to the latest ManpowerGroup – among the world’s largest staffing firms – Employment Outlook Survey carried out for the second quarter of 2024, presenting the hiring intentions of companies in the country.

This marks a 32% rise from the previous quarter and 37% from the second quarter of 2023, reflecting the highest employment prospects recorded in IT since the first quarter of 2022. Greece ranks first globally in quarterly growth in the IT sector, surpassing the average quarterly increase by 33%.

The encouraging outlook in the IT sector is contrasted by a rather damp hiring outlook on average in the country for the second quarter of 2024, with the Overall Employment Prospects set at 6%, according to the survey.

Communication Services followed with hiring intentions reaching 25%, while the Health and Biosciences sector stands at 17%, and the Financial & Real Estate sectors follow at 12%. Conversely, the Energy and Utilities Services sector showed zero hiring prospects, according to the data.

In general, employment prospects have weakened by 6% from the previous quarter and by 2% compared to the same period last year, the survey’s authors note.

Specifically, out of 525 Greek employers, 30% expect an increase in hiring, 19% anticipate a decrease, and 47% report no change. Employment prospects foresee an increase in hiring in 6 out of 9 sectors from April to June 2024, while 2 sectors anticipate a decrease and 1 sector does not predict any change.

Babis Kazantzidis, the Managing Director at ManpowerGroup Greece said that global volatility due to conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East made employers more cautious, a development reflected in the slowdown in hiring. “In Greece, despite the challenges, the strength of sectors such as IT, Telecommunications, and Health/Biomedical Sciences serves as a benchmark for a resilient labor market,” he added.

The survey revealed that in 5 out of 6 organizations, Greek employers anticipated an increase in personnel in the second quarter of 2024, while one predicted a decrease. Compared to the first quarter of 2024, hiring intentions have diminished in 3 out of 6 organizations and strengthened in 3 organizations.

Greek employers in large enterprises with 5000+ employees appear the most optimistic (22%), marking a 13-unit increase from the previous quarter. These organizations report the highest increase in expectations compared to the last quarter.