Skip page header and navigation

Swiss permanent hiring down 19.4% as temporary hours also decline

Swiss permanent hiring down 19.4% as temporary hours also decline

Danny Romero
| January 31, 2025
Switzerland Flag and a Group of Business People

main article

A weak economy, skills shortages, and structural shifts made 2024 a challenging year for staffing firms, according to Swiss Staffing. Permanent staffing turnover fell 19.4% in 2024 from the previous year, while working hours in the temporary sector declined by 4.7%.

The research also noted that, for the first time in 30 years, the temporary staffing sector has shrunk two years in a row. After a fall of 5.8% in 2023 in the temporary staffing sector, Swiss Staffing noted that the downward spiral seemed to be slowing in early 2024. The market then went downhill again in the second half of the year.

In 2023, the decline in staffing was primarily driven by a severe skills shortage. However, by early 2024, as the economy slowed and the labour market began to normalize, companies faced growing uncertainty and cost pressures. This led to increased caution in hiring, even for temporary roles, particularly in the second half of the year.

In the permanent staffing sector, the rate declined for nine straight quarters in 2024. For comparison, while the fourth quarter of 2022 was up 21.8% on the previous year, the market fell by 28.2% in the fourth quarter of 2024. 

Even staffing firms specialising in specialist professions are not immune to market challenges. Data from labour market analyst Lightcast showed a sharp decline in job postings within core sectors in Switzerland in 2024—down 24% in industry, 18% in construction, and an unexpected 11% in IT.

Swiss Staffing noted excess production capacity, weakening economies in neighbouring countries and China as impacting the labour market, adding that a lack of skilled specialists is creating challenging market conditions. This, paired with new risks such as protective tariffs from the incoming US government, has led to CEOs of Swiss Staffing’s members to remain cautious.

A flash poll conducted by gfs-zürich on behalf of Swiss Staffing showed that after two years of decline, 40% of CEOs are expecting business to stagnate and almost a quarter are even anticipating further drops. However, 33% are expecting to see moderate market growth in 2025.