Dubai no longer 'golden goose' for jobs

30. January. 2010
ArabianBusiness
Recruitment consultancy Kershaw Leonard has said that while Dubai will still appeal to job hunters in 2010, it was no longer the "golden goose" it once was.

Mike Hynes, managing partner at Kershaw Leonard, said he was seeing "a lot more" hiring activity in Abu Dhabi than Dubai, and a general willingness by job seekers in Dubai to commute or even relocate to the capital, provided accommodation can be found.

However, he added that the overall sentiment in Dubai remained upbeat.
 
"Generally there is more confidence, more activity, more things going on," Hynes said in comments published by website Ameinfo. "But people are still being cautious about recruiting and cautious about moving jobs."

Hynes said hiring and salary trends in Dubai varied depending on the industry, adding: "Nothing has really changed in the finance and human resources areas. They were not very badly hit in 2009, and continue to remain strong for us now."

But he said that in the construction sector, employers wanted to pay lower salaries, but employees wouldn't move for less money. "So it's a bit of a stalemate. People who have a job are hanging on to it," he said.

Kershaw Leonard also said that job candidates living in the emirate had a huge advantage over those living overseas.
"It's quite tough to get a position from anywhere outside of Dubai right now. For the most part, there are a lot people who have the experience and expertise for mainstream jobs. They are a much lower risk than bringing someone in from, say, the UK," Hynes said.

He added that Dubai was fortunate that it had so much talent already in the emirate, as the lure of the city among job seekers overseas had fallen.

"I think the image of Dubai has been badly tarnished, and it is no longer seen as the magnet that it once was. I do think that there will always be people who will be keen to come here, but it's not the golden goose anymore," he said.

Bassam Gazal, head of Mercer's survey practice in the Middle East, told Ameinfo that companies in Dubai could be under the most pressure to raise salaries in 2010 as competed with firms in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Abu Dhabi for the best candidates.