Europe – Job vacancy rate up in Q4

The job vacancy rate in the euro area (EA19) was 1.7% in the fourth quarter of 2016, up from 1.6% recorded in both the previous quarter and the fourth quarter of 2015, according to figures published by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union.

The job vacancy rate in the EU28 was 1.8% in...

UK – Gig economy workers want government to guarantee basic employment rights and benefits

According to new research from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), 4% of UK working adults aged between 18 and 70 are working in the gig economy, and 63% of them believe the government should regulate the gig economy to guarantee them basic employment rights and benefits such...

Italy – Government cancels temp worker vouchers to avoid referendum

The Italian government has signed a decree on the cancellation of vouchers issued as payment for temporary work in order to avoid a referendum on their future use.

The law was signed by Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni.  A referendum was originally scheduled for 28 May which would have addressed the...

France – Employment duration for temp workers up by 15%

The employment duration of temporary workers in France has increased by 15% in 2016, compared to the previous year. The number has been increasing since a collective bargaining agreement signed in 2014.

According to Prism’ Emploi, the agreement called the Securitization of Interims Fund (FSPI), is dedicated...

Netherlands – ManpowerGroup appoints new Managing Director

ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN) has announced that José Brenninkmeijer has been appointed Managing Director for ManpowerGroup Netherlands, effective 1 April 2017.

Brenninkmeijer will lead all of ManpowerGroup's brands which include Manpower, Experis, ManpowerGroup Solutions and Right Management.

Jilko Andringa,...

UK – Firms more concerned about retaining and developing staff than the impact of Brexit

Businesses are more concerned about retaining and developing staff in the next six months than the potential impact of Brexit, according to research from Alexander Mann Solutions.

The research, which polled more than 3,000 senior HR professionals, found that 23% of companies are most concerned about how...

UK – SThree provides Q1 trading update as UK fall offsets European growth

International recruitment firm SThree (STHR: LSE) published a trading update for Q1, covering the period from 1 December 2016 to date; financial information relates to the quarter ended 28 February 2017.

Gross Profit for SThree was broken down as follows:

UK – Chancellor does U-turn on national insurance contributions for self-employed

Chancellor Philip Hammond, who announced last week’s Spring Budget 2017, which included a rise in National Insurance Contributions (NICs) for self-employed workers, has scrapped the increase for self-employed workers.

The decision to drop the changes to NICs came in a letter from Hammond to Conservative...

Switzerland – Temp staffing market down in January

The number of temporary workers in Switzerland decreased by 5.1% in January compared to the previous year, according to the latest figures from Swiss Staffing, the Swiss Federation for Staffing Companies.

According to Swiss Staffing, it is important not to overestimate this 5.1% decrease as traditionally,...

Sweden – Almega service indicator reaches highest level since 2007

The latest services indicator from Almega, the employer and trade organisation for the Swedish services sector, for the first quarter of 2017 reached its highest level since 2007.

The service indicator measures the growth of production of services. The index value for the first quarter was at 103.3, the...