Around 38% of companies in the Czech Republic plan to hire staff going into the third quarter while only 17% plan job cuts, a survey showed on Tuesday, suggesting no easing in sight for the tight labour market, a key driver of soaring inflation.

The 21 percentage point gap between the number of companies hiring and cutting staff in the survey by the Manpower Group job agency was the widest since the Czech survey began in 2008, Manpower said.

The survey, which covered 515 companies, indicates the Czech labour market is likely to remain one of the tightest in Europe. The Czech unemployment rate, the lowest in the European Union for years, inched down to 3.2% in May, the lowest level since January 2020.

Czech inflation soared to a nearly 30-year high of 16% in May, above expectations, and bolstered bets the Czech National Bank would deliver another hefty interest rate hike when it meets on June 22.

The Czech labour market is less out of balance than the global average, according to the survey which showed 47% of firms hiring in the third quarter across 40 countries where Manpower gathers such data, against 15% cutting jobs.

Among the other respondents in the Czech Manpower survey, 38% of companies said they did not see any change to their workforce, and 7% did not know. (Reporting by Robert Muller; Editing by Susan Fenton)


Reuters