Stable hiring intentions among Swiss companies

According to the current employment forecast According to ManpowerGroup, which surveyed more than 39,000 employers in 41 countries, the global Net Employment Outlook (NEO) for the first quarter of 2026 is 24%, one percentage point higher than the previous quarter but one percentage point lower than the previous year. Similarly, Swiss employers maintain a stable hiring outlook at the start of 2026, with a Net Employment Outlook (NEO) of 27%, representing a decline of 2 percentage points compared to the previous year. Against this international backdrop, Switzerland continues to enjoy robust hiring sentiment for early 2026.

«Swiss employers continue to view 2026 with cautious optimism. While hiring intentions remain stable overall, the decline is most noticeable among the country's largest companies, where the forecast has weakened significantly. This change requires companies to plan more precisely in order to strike a balance between cost discipline and the need to secure the skills that will be important in the medium term,» says Eric Jeannerod, Country Manager of ManpowerGroup Switzerland.

Economic caution changes personnel strategies

Swiss employers are keeping their staffing levels unchanged, mainly because they feel they have sufficient resources: 31% say that their current teams are sufficient to achieve their business goals. Selective hiring and careful evaluation also play an important role: 24% say the market is stable, and another 24% are postponing hiring decisions until the economic outlook becomes clearer. Strategic and structural factors further support this wait-and-see attitude, including a conscious focus on retaining existing staff (22%) and the lack of major projects or expansions (21%).

«Swiss companies are increasingly relying on strategic approaches to talent acquisition and distancing themselves from the previous pressure to hire. Companies are increasingly able to find suitable candidates at the right time through their own recruitment teams, while at the same time adjusting production to market volatility by reducing inventories and accelerating just-in-time methods to increase efficiency and control costs,» says Guido Hofmänner, Head of Sales at ManpowerGroup Switzerland.

Factors for staff reductions

Among Swiss companies planning to reduce their workforce, restructuring and adapting to demand are equally important factors (25%). Other factors include:

• Operational efficiency (22%): Process optimization leading to consolidation of functions.
• Economic pressure (21%): Economic challenges that have a negative impact on employees.
• Changed qualification requirements (19%): Adjustments in the required skills reduce the demand for certain roles.
• Market changes (18%): Changes in the market environment also lead to lower demand in individual areas.

Conversely, the motives for companies planning to increase their workforce are as follows:

• Replacement for departed employees (30%): Replacement for employees who left in the last quarter.
• Business growth (25%): Expansion into new markets or sectors.
• New business areas (23%): Development of new products or services.
• Initiatives to promote diversity (22%): Creation of positions to strengthen workforce diversity.

The decline is particularly noticeable among the country's largest employers. Companies with more than 5,000 employees report the weakest outlook at 9%, representing a sharp decline compared to the previous year.

Differences between industries and regions

The decline is not evenly distributed across all sectors. The sharpest declines compared with the previous year were recorded in the finance and insurance sectors (down 19 points) and trade and logistics (down 24 points). There are also significant regional differences: the Espace Mittelland region recorded the sharpest decline, with an outlook of 13% (-19 points year-on-year). Zurich, on the other hand, is stronger at 30%, but still recorded a decline of 9 points year-on-year, which is attributable to a slowdown in hiring following the recent restructuring cycles.

Source: Manpower Group