The latest Swiss Job Market Index by Adecco shows an increase of 12% for the fourth quarter of 2016 when compared to the same period last year.

The quarterly Job Index, which is run in partnership with the University of Zurich, also shows that when compared to the previous quarter, the Job Index fell by 3% due to seasonal effects.

The number of job vacancies in eastern Switzerland rose by 19% when compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, demand in the Geneva region (13%) and northwest Switzerland (11%) also picked up, with more jobs being advertised in the construction and commercial sectors. In the Geneva region, the demand for personnel also increased, especially in the technical professions as well as in the health care sector, while the range of jobs in the financial sector saw growth, particularly in the Northwestern region. In Central Switzerland and the Swiss Plateau, the number of job vacancies increased by 4% and 2%, respectively. The only region that did not see growth was the Greater Zurich area which saw a decline of 8%.

Among the sectors, the construction sector saw year-on-year demand grow by 31% while demand in health care was up by 23% with demand for nursing staff increasing. Trade and sale saw a decrease in demand of 10% while the IT sector saw an 8% decrease in demand, year-on-year.