A number of recruitment and labour hire firms in Australia have crumbled recently as the slowing economy makes employers more reluctant to spend money to external recruitment firms who are struggling to fill job vacancies with qualified candidates, reports Sydney Morning Herald. The publication cited public insolvency notices published by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.

According to the notices, The Nudge Group, Digital Gurus Recruitment, and multiple labour hire businesses, have fallen into the hands of liquidators or administrators over the past four months. National insolvency firm Mackay Goodwin director Grahame Ward, who is the administrator for Digital Gurus, said times were challenging for recruiters amid fierce competition for new candidates.

Insolvency Australia director Gareth Gammon observed that recruitment agencies were struggling with more vacancies than they could find qualified candidates for. At the same time, a broader collapse in the construction industry has reverberated through labour hire companies such as Duet Recruitment, ARI Recruitment, Collar Up Recruitment, GRB 365 Recruitment and PG Labour Services, who have called in administrators as their work dries up. The country has also seen hospitality and retail sectors experience distress against the backdrop of a slowing economy. The national GDP grew by 0.4% in the three months to June, which saw Australia technically slide into a per capita recession.