Fifty per cent of UAE professionals are considering an industry change in the next few months, a survey said, adding that only one in four respondents reported having changed industries during the last two years.

The desire to find a new job, switch current career or industry altogether is also translating to heavier online activities, said Bayt.com, a leading job site in the region, in the survey titled “Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa” conducted with YouGov, a pioneer in online market research.

Bayt.com reported that over 60,000 job applications are submitted on the job site every day and over 15,000 new professionals join the Bayt.com platform on a daily basis.

Amongst those considering an industry change in the UAE, the most appealing industries include banking/finance/accounting (10 per cent), followed by Aerospace/Airline/Aviation (8 per cent), and Manufacturing (7 per cent).

When asked about their reasons for considering an industry change, the top answers were ‘better salary’ (51 per cent), ‘better career growth’ (47 per cent), and ‘better work-life balance’ (36 per cent). For those who have already changed industries, the most common reasons for having done so were a ‘better salary in the new industry’ (42 per cent), ‘better career growth opportunities in the new industry’ (33 per cent), and to ‘fulfil a lifelong ambition of working in a particular role’ (25 per cent).

Assessment of current or most recent industry

According to the survey, the most common industries UAE respondents are currently working in or worked in most recently are hospitality/recreation/entertainment (10 per cent), advertising/marketing/public relations (9 per cent), and real estate/construction/property development (8 per cent). Of those seeking employment in the Mena region as a whole, the most popular industries are banking/finance/accounting (11 per cent), education/academia (7 per cent), and engineering/design (7 per cent).

When it came to satisfaction with the current or most recent industries in the UAE, respondents were most satisfied with the working hours, followed by work culture, work-life balance, and job security.

Most attractive industries

When asked about their perception of job attributes in various industries, survey respondents claim that the best salary packages in the UAE are found in certain industries including aerospace/ airline/ aviation (19 per cent), banking/ finance/ accounting (18 per cent), government/civil services (18 per cent), and military/ defence/ police (15 per cent).

According to respondents, government/civil service (31 per cent), banking/finance/accounting (17 per cent), and education/academia (16 per cent) are among the industries with the best work-life balance, while banking/finance/accounting (21 per cent) remains high on the list for having the best career growth opportunities.

Further, among industries perceived to have the most optimum job security are government/ civil service (31 per cent), military/defence/police (28 per cent), and banking/finance/accounting (18 per cent).

For survey respondents, the industries believed to have experienced the strongest growth in the past year include tourism (17 per cent), banking/finance/accounting (16 per cent) and real estate/ construction/ property development (16 per cent).

“Here in the Mena, we are seeing a collective push towards the diversification of the regional economy and the establishment of a knowledge-based economy in which a highly talented workforce is spread relatively evenly across industries,” said Suhail Masri, VP of Employer Solutions, Bayt.com.

“Increasingly, the most attractive industries are defined by factors that include, but extend beyond salary, such as work-life balance, opportunities for career growth, and job security. Today, job seekers are looking for employment in industries that tick every box on their job hunt checklist; and at Bayt.com, we aim to use this information to help employers and job seekers connect more effectively.

“We have already witnessed a spike in job postings during the first of 2018 by more than 50 per cent. The region’s professionals are also very active on our jobsite, with over 15,000 daily registrations, 60,000 daily applications and CV updates. The market is very dynamic and continues to bring new and more diverse career opportunities that we always make available on Bayt.com,” he added.

In terms of the talent being attracted by various industries, those that are most attractive to women in the UAE include healthcare/medical services (26 per cent), hospitality/ recreation/ entertainment (23 per cent), banking / finance (20 per cent), and education/academia (20 per cent). Meanwhile, industries attracting the highest proportion of fresh graduates in the UAE are banking/finance/accounting (17 per cent), hospitality/ recreation/ entertainment (16 per cent), and government/civil services (15 per cent).

Across the UAE, a majority (75 per cent) of respondents agree that the government is an employer of choice, with over half (58 per cent) claiming that the government is an “extremely favourable” employer. The survey found that government/civil service emerged among the top five industries in terms of optimum job security (31 per cent), best work-life balance (31 per cent) and best career growth (19 per cent).

Most challenging industries

In the UAE, respondents perceive the most stressful industries to be real estate/construction/property development (19 per cent), followed by banking/finance/accounting (16 per cent), and hospitality/ recreation/ entertainment (12 per cent).

Among industries perceived to have the longest working hours, hospitality/recreation/entertainment (23 per cent), healthcare/medical services (13 per cent), transport/ travel (13 per cent) and real estate/ construction/ property development (13 per cent) emerged at the top.

“We can see from this survey that industries are becoming increasingly competitive amongst each other in terms of securing top talent in the Mena,” said Nehal Jibouri, head of Custom Research, YouGov Mena.

 “The difference in percentage points between the most and least appealing industries is generally small across the board, indicating that the regional workforce is quite diverse and multifaceted. We are delighted to see this trend emerge as the region evolves to become a global hub for talent and innovation, but this also calls for each individual employer to become more attentive to their branding, workplace, and methods of securing top talent.” – TradeArabia News Service