Uncertain economic outlook in Taiwan dampens demand for employees: survey

TAIPEI, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- Enterprises in Taiwan are more reluctant to hire workers in the first quarter in 2018 compared with Q1 2017 due to an uncertain outlook for the island' s economic growth next year, a survey showed.

About 60 percent of 1,133 employers surveyed said they planned to recruit in the first quarter of next year, down two percentage points from the same quarter this year, according to the latest quarterly employer survey released Monday by local human resource platform 1111 Job Bank.

Employers in the information technology, general merchandise store and service sectors appeared most willing to recruit in the upcoming quarter, while employers in construction and real estate were the least willing to hire.

The conservative recruitment plans are mainly a result of the view on the island' s economic performance in 2018 -- about 30 percent of polled employers said they were upbeat about Taiwan's economy next year, down 3 percentage points year on year. Enditem