Almost a quarter of businesses across all major industries in New South Wales plan to cut staff numbers over the next three months, new research has found.
The study by industry body Business NSW showed 23 per cent of companies expected to reduce their workforce in the coming quarter, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.
While 62 per cent aimed to retain the same staff numbers, only 15 per cent expected to hire additional workers.
The survey canvassed 1,000 employers with a total workforce of about 78,000 staff.
The companies ranged from sole traders to major businesses in NSW.
For the majority of this year, unemployment in the state has been at historic lows, despite 12 interest rate rises since last May.
But there are indications the jobs market is changing.
While concern about interest rates is slowly subsiding, reduced customer spending is slashing the demand for labor, the research found.
Business confidence is “deep in negative territory”.
Many employers have been grappling with changed customer behaviour since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fall in the numbers of workers travelling to the Sydney CBD has been a big concern for employers.
Research by Business NSW showed most NSW regions now have jobless rate that is higher than the 12-month average.
Despite the gloomy outlook, some businesses were more confident about the future than the start of this year. They included retail, construction and manufacturing.
Australia’s unemployment rate has increased above expectations as the nation’s economy cools, further improving the case for the RBA to keep interest rates steady.
Data released last month from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed that in July, the unemployment rate increased by 0.2 percentage points to 3.7 per cent.
(SMH)
