Monster Employment Index Records High Demand for UAE Medical Professionals

Dubai, 16 August, 2016 – With ambitious healthcare objectives and several advancements in the pipeline, the Monster Employment Index (MEI) July 2016 shows that demand in healthcare professionals has increased by 12 percent from the same period last year.

In reaching Vision 2021 healthcare goals, the UAE government is investing heavily in the healthcare industry to help further raise its high standards on a global level. The investments have taken shape in various forms from introducing the latest in technology, to advancing medical institutes and developing a number of new medical facilities.

“Amid an uncertain employment landscape in the UAE, healthcare continues to demonstrate strong demand for medical professionals, and with exciting plans ahead in the industry, opportunities are bound to arise across other sectors as well including construction, technology and education which will be needed to support these initiatives,” said Sanjay Modi, Managing Director – APAC and Middle East, Monster.com.

Recent developments in the field include the construction of a number of new international hospitals being built across the emirates, a USD 2billion project to establish a modern medical university by 2017, and the implementation of high-tech sensors, biometric readers and even robots that are helping medical staff perform more effectively and efficiently.

Despite a 22 percent annual dip in UAE job opportunities listed online in July 2016, the MEI reveals optimistic results across Consumer Goods/ FMCG, Food & Packaged Food, Home Appliance, Garments/ Textiles/ Leather, Gems & Jewellery, with 25 percent year-on-year growth in online job posts in the UAE. This is followed by Production/Manufacturing, Automotive, Ancillary; and Engineering, Construction and Real Estate with a growth of 8 percent and 6 percent respectively in job opportunities posted online, as compared to the same period a year ago.

From the GCC countries analysed, the latest MEI records that Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman are the only nations to register year-on-year growth in July 2016 with an 11 percent increase in online recruitment activity observed in Bahrain, followed by 10 percent in Kuwait and Oman.

 The Monster Employment Index is a monthly gauge of online job posting activity in Middle-East based on a real-time review of tens of thousands of employer job opportunities culled from a large representative selection of career Web sites and online job listings. The Index does not reflect the trend of any one advertiser or source, but is an aggregate measure of the change in job listings across the industry.

 Monster Employment Index Middle East results for the past 18 months are as follows:

 Industry Year-over-Year Trends: Of the twelve sectors monitored by the Index, four industry sectors saw online hiring exceed the year-ago level.

Consumer Goods/ FMCG, Food & Packaged Food, Home Appliance, Garments/ Textiles/ Leather, Gems & Jewellery (up 26 percent) led all monitored industry sector by the way of long-term growth even in July 2016. It is notable, however, that the pace of growth in the sector is gradually moderating. The sector recorded a negative month-on-month (down 17 percent) and three-month (down 16 percent). The six-month growth rate eased from 27 percent in June to three percent in July 2016.

Production/Manufacturing, Automotive and Ancillary (up 10 percent) was next in the rung. Online hiring in the sector has been going strong this year. E-recruitment activity has been positive, on an annual basis, in all months starting January 2016. Month-on-month, there has been a one percent decline in online opportunities.

IT and Telecom/ISP (up three percent) and Health Care (up two percent) were the only other sector to exhibit a positive long-term growth.

Engineering, Construction and Real Estate (down 12 percent); BFSI (down 49 percent); Retail/Trade and Logistics (down 55 percent) charted steeper annual declines this month vis-à-vis June 2016. Online hiring activity eased the most in Hospitality (down 62 percent).

 Occupation Year-over-Year Trends: Online demand exceeded the year-ago level in just one out of the 11 occupation groups monitored by the Index.

There continues to be high demand for Health Care (up 27 percent) professionals. Year-on-year growth rate improved six points from 21 percent in June 2016.

Online demand for Customer Service professionals matched the year-ago level. Month-on-month, the group saw a 22 percent decline in demand.

The growth momentum even though negative improved two points and six points respectively for Purchase / Logistics / Supply Chain (down six percent); and Engineering and Production (down 17 percent). Online demand for Purchase / Logistics / Supply increased three percent between June and July 2016 while demand for Engineering and Production remained at June level.

Marketing & Communications/Arts/Creative (down 60 percent) witnessed the steepest annual decline in demand.

 Geographic Year-over-year Trends: Online hiring surpassed the year-ago level in three countries out of the seven monitored by the Index

Bahrain (up 11 percent); Kuwait (up 10 percent); and Oman (up 10 percent) are the only countries to record a positive annual growth even this month. Bahrain continued to lead the chart; the year-on-year growth rate eased 12 points between June and July 2016. The growth momentum in Oman improved seven points. Kuwait registered a positive annual growth following low levels in April, May as well as in June 2016.

E-recruitment activity in UAE (down 22 percent) slipped below the year-ago level. This is the first negative growth since January 2015. Online demand dropped 17 percent between June and July 2016. KSA (down 15 percent) continues to chart negative growth trend.

Egypt (down 34 percent) recorded the most notable annual decline among all monitored countries yet again.

 COUNTRY-WISE TRENDS

KSA Highlights

• Monster Employment Index KSA declines 15 percent from the year-ago level
• Oil and Gas sector continues to lead on an year-on-year basis
• Online recruitment activity declines the most in Hospitality
• Health Care professionals witness the most notable growth in demand even in July

UAE Highlights

• Monster Employment Index UAE registers a 22 percent drop from the year-ago
• Among industry sectors, Consumer Goods/ FMCG, Food & Packaged Food , Home Appliance, Garments/ Textiles/ Leather, Gems & Jewellery leads by the way of long-term growth even this month.
• Online recruitment activity declines the most in the Hospitality yet again
• Health Care professionals continues to be most in-demand even in July

By Industry

 By Occupation