Hiring activities slow down in March

Hiring activities in the country declined last month as most job aspirants were waiting for the outcome of their appraisals, says a survey.

With the ongoing appraisal season in most of the companies, recruitment activities were lower in March compared to the previous month, according to the survey conducted by job portal Naukri.com.

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Indicating a slowdown in hiring, the monthly 'job speak index' fell to 1,170 last month from 1,209 in February.

The index indicates monthly job demand online.

"Hiring tends to slowdown by the end of Q1 every year because of the appraisal cycle. We expect hiring to pick up again by June/July this year," Info Edge India CEO and MD Hitesh Oberoi said.

Naukri.com is part of Info Edge group.

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Most employees await the outcome of their appraisals in March at respective companies before looking for other opportunities.

However, the job index was higher last month in comparison with March 2011.

Except for construction sector, all other segments witnessed positive or stable hiring trends last month.

"Both oil and gas and telecom sector witnessed positive hiring activity with the index moving up by 6 per cent and 4 per cent respectively in March 2012 when compared to February 2012," the survey said.

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During the same period, the demand for professionals in HR, accounts and production dipped in the range of 3 to 5 per cent.

In terms of cities, Chennai saw steady hiring levels while Kolkata and Pune witnessed 9 per cent and 5 per cent upward movement in index, respectively, in March.

"On the other hand, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad saw dips within the range  of 2 and 6 per cent, respectively in March 2012 over February 2012," it said.