Eight in 10 job seekers expect business conditions in the UAE to ‘improve’ in a year’s time, while only 14 per cent of job seekers thought they are below average when it came to current business conditions, a report said.

In regards to availability of jobs specifically, more UAE respondents believe that there are currently “plenty of jobs available across various industries” in comparison to those who believe there are “few jobs available across few industries”, added the ‘Jobseeker Confidence Survey’ from Bayt.com, a leading job site in the region.

 In fact, six in 10 job seekers are either ‘somewhat hopeful’ or ‘very hopeful’ that they will find their ideal job in the next six months. 21 per cent of respondents were neutral in response to this question.

The survey, administered by Bayt.com and YouGov, a top global online market research company, aims to gauge perceptions and attitudes of jobseekers regarding the job hunt. The positive findings of this year’s job seeker confidence index are also echoed in the Bayt.com Middle East Job Index, which showed that nearly 9 in 10 companies in the UAE will be hiring over the next 12 months.

Expectations for Personal Conditions

Even at the personal level, the great majority of UAE job seekers who provided an answer (87.6 per cent) said they expect their personal financial position to ‘improve’ or at least ‘remain the same’ in the next six months.

Likewise, 91 per cent of job seekers who responded to the survey question on career growth said they expect their career growth opportunities to either improve or maintain the same level in the next six months. Currently, only 33 per cent percent of UAE respondents are dissatisfied with their career growth opportunities.

“At Bayt.com, we work to support all professionals, job seekers and employers alike, in their efforts to overcome any economic changes and to make room for improvements in their careers,” said Suhail Masri, vice president of Employer Solutions, Bayt.com. “We are proud to be able to provide tens of thousands of jobs on a daily basis and to connect many companies and organizations to our database of more than 31 million CVs.”

“Jobseeker confidence is a measure of the economic wellbeing of a country, and a reflection of job satisfaction levels and expectations based on a variety of key economic factors. Therefore, by conducting this survey, we gain insights into the influences that could help forecast economic trends across the region,” said Nehal Jibouri, head of Custom Research - Mena, YouGov. – TradeArabia News Service