The placement of temporary agency staff in the manufacturing and industrial sector increased by +33% during the first quarter of 2014, compared with the same period last year. During the same period, the number of staff placed in the warehouse/logistics sector rose by +15%, while healthcare staffing increased by +20%.

According to the Swedish Staffing Association (Bemanningsfӧretagen), this data highlights the three key areas in the Swedish economy where the staffing industry has become a central player: industrial, logistics, and healthcare.

In the course of one year 20,000 metal workers are recruited as temporary agency workers and supplied to the industry. Every day there are 1,000 doctors placed by recruitment firms at healthcare centres. Warehousing and logistics businesses are increasing their use of temporary agency workers, sometimes across the entire business or in selected parts.

For the third consecutive quarter the industry reported positive growth on the whole, compared with the same period last year. During the first quarter, revenue increased by +9% for Q1 2013. Quarterly sales amounted to more than SEK 5 billion (€552.5 million).

From a regional perspective, northern Sweden, the smallest region accounting for 10% of total sales, reported the strongest growth of +19% in Q1 2014. Stockholm remains the largest region, accounting for a third of all sales, followed by the industry-heavy western Sweden with 27%. 

Following the third consecutive quarter of growth, the Swedish Staffing Association expects that there will be a further increase in the use of temporary agency workers.