Abu Dhabi slowing pace of job cuts, say recruiters

State-linked companies in Abu Dhabi are expected to rein in staff redundancies after the UAE capital vowed to press ahead with key infrastructure projects in 2012, experts said.

Companies including Aldar Properties and Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage cut dozens of jobs in 2011, but the city’s move to loosen the purse strings should help staff levels stay steady, said Chris Greaves, GCC managing director of recruitment consultancy Hays.

“The Abu Dhabi developers particularly have been letting a lot of people go,” he told Arabian Business. “But the lowest point in the cycle of construction has probably been turned and the projects in Abu Dhabi seem to be picking up.

“That’s bound to be good for employment prospects.”

Analysts predicted a slew of job cuts after Abu Dhabi last year moved to delay cornerstone projects worth billions of dollars, amid fears a slowdown in Europe and the US could hurt its economy.

At least nine state-controlled companies saw top managers exit last year, including investment vehicle Mubadala and developer Aldar, under a government-wide review.

Masdar, a $22bn state-owned renewable energy company, shelved plans for a 100,000 sq m headquarters building in September, and said in November it had cut nine percent of jobs.

But Abu Dhabi’s decision last week to green light a number of key projects – including spin-off branches of the Louvre and Guggenheim museums – suggests that the city is again spending.

“I would say they are probably mostly done now [with job cuts],” said Ben Waddilove, director of Dubai recruitment firm MacDonald and Co. “The Abu Dhabi companies that had an expat clear-out towards the end of last year and the beginning of this year are by and large finished, there may be one or two more, but we’re getting to the end of the cycle.”

Pay rises will be few and far between over the next 12 months, however, he said.

“There have been a couple of incidents recently where companies in Abu Dhabi have made pay cuts, and people have been given ultimatums. In 2012, wages will stay around the same sort of level. There could be downward pressure. Firms know they’re in a good bargaining position.”

Abu Dhabi may face increased competition for talent from other Gulf state in the year ahead, as job markets pick up in Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Both countries have unveiled ambitious state spending plans, including huge infrastructure project, which recruiters say is triggering demand for specialist workers.

“There is a massive need to recruit skilled people in Qatar,” said Bernard Ward, Qatar country manager for Reed Global. “There are a number of companies who have recently secured contracts through Ashgal [Public Works Authority of Qatar] and if the companies don’t have certain head counts within certain time scales they get charged by their clients for not meeting the quota.”

Waddilove said Dubai and Bahrain had also seen more activity than Abu Dhabi in recent months.

“We have had more work in Bahrain recently within real estate. I wouldn’t say employment is picking up across the board in Bahrain, but there is certainly a bit of activity going on there. There are projects happening, particularly affordable housing.

“There is also more going on in Dubai than Abu Dhabi, at junior levels, but there is more activity there.”