Mountain View, California — May 14, 2020 — Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA), the global advisor on staffing and workforce solutions recently released its latest Global Staffing Industry Market Estimates and Forecast report. Published twice annually, the Forecast report covers estimates and forecasts for the staffing industry by revenue and segment, with additional labor market information, including regional and historical data and a ranking of the 14 largest countries in terms of staffing industry revenue.
The report estimates that the staffing industry generated USD 497 billion in revenue worldwide in 2019 (EUR 444 billion). The US, Japan and the UK made up a majority of the revenue; and the top 14 countries combined accounted for 87% of total global staffing revenue. Eighty-nine percent of that revenue was made up by temporary staffing and the remainder by place & search.
With the unprecedented global spread of the Coronavirus having a severe impact on economies and industries worldwide and given the uncertainty around the duration of the pandemic and the timeline for lifting of restrictions, SIA’s predictions for 2020 and 2021 contain three scenarios: one assuming a shorter outbreak of the virus, a base case scenario, and one projecting a longer outbreak with more sustained economic impact.
Under the shorter outbreak scenario, SIA would expect a “V-shaped” recovery. Either the Covid-19 virus dissipates on its own or control of the outbreak is achieved via advances in testing, tracking, treatment, and/or prevention. Lockdown conditions are lifted after a maximum of two months, and the economy returns to normalcy reasonably rapidly. Under this scenario, SIA forecasts a decline in global staffing revenue of 14% for 2020.
In the base case scenario where lockdowns remain for three months, SIA predicts that global staffing revenue will decelerate by 24% in 2020, driven by the global economic slowdown and predicated on massive government fiscal aid enabling economies to recover, as well as diminished outbreaks of the virus and effective control measures in place against future waves of the virus, including advances in testing, tracking, treatment and/or prevention. With a “U-shaped" economic recovery, an improvement to 13% growth is forecasted for 2021 per a partial recovery in GDP.
Of the 14 individual markets detailed in the report, 13 are projected to see revenue declines in 2020 in the base case scenario: US (-21%), Japan (-25%), UK (-25%), France (-39%), Germany (-25%), Netherlands (-22%), China (-10%), Australia (-26%), Italy (-39%), Switzerland (-24%), Canada (-21%), Belgium (-28%) and Spain (-28%). The only market projected to see growth in this scenario is India (11%).
The third scenario accounts for a longer outbreak. In this “W-shaped” recovery, lockdown continues for significant stretches of 2020, with the ongoing threat of spread, and many countries struggling to contain the virus. As the “W” shape implies, the countries concerned come out of lockdown, and the economy improves temporarily, but then further outbreaks force a return of lockdowns and halts to business activity. Also, in this scenario, governments may exhaust their ability to use monetary and fiscal policy, exacerbating economic declines. Under this scenario, SIA forecasts a decline in global staffing revenue of 37% for 2020.
“The magnitude of the decline in each market is most driven by the severity of outbreak and how the country has managed it, the mix of jobs in that country’s staffing market, and that country’s role in the global supply chain,” said Barry Asin, SIA President. “As we anticipate a gradual lifting of shutdown measures, we project growth in all 14 of the largest staffing markets in 2021. However, apart from India, we do not predict a full recovery in any of those markets by next year.”
The full Global Staffing Industry Market Estimates and Forecast: May 2020 Update report provides detailed insights for all major staffing markets and is available for SIA Corporate and CWS Council Members.
About Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA)
SIA is the Global Advisor on Staffing and Workforce Solutions
Elevating the Workforce Solutions Ecosystem
Founded in 1989, SIA is the global advisor on staffing and workforce solutions. Our proprietary research covers all categories of employed and non-employed work including temporary staffing, independent contracting and other types of contingent labor. SIA’s independent and objective analysis provides insights into the services and suppliers operating in the workforce solutions ecosystem including staffing firms, managed service providers, recruitment process outsourcers, payrolling/compliance firms and talent acquisition technology specialists such as vendor management systems, online staffing platforms, crowdsourcing and online work services. We also provide training and accreditation with our unique Certified Contingent Workforce Professional (CCWP) program.
Known for our award-winning content, data, support tools, publications, executive conferences and events, we help both suppliers and buyers of workforce solutions make better-informed decisions that improve business results and minimize risk. As a division of the international business media company, Crain Communications Inc., SIA is headquartered in Mountain View, California, with offices in London, England.
Media Contact
Jennifer Arcuni, Communications Director, Staffing Industry Analysts
jarcuni@staffingindustry.com | +1 650-390-6171 | www.staffingindustry.com
