Global recruitment giant Hays has reported a significant downturn in its earnings, highlighting the continued pressure on the jobs market as companies remain cautious about hiring.
Fees Fall as Hiring Slows
The company disclosed that the fees it collected for placing candidates fell by 10% overall in the final quarter of 2025 compared to the same period last year. This decline was driven by a particularly sharp drop in permanent recruitment, where fees plummeted by 14% on a net basis. Income from temporary and contracting roles also decreased, though less severely, by 8%.
Hays stated that placing people into permanent roles continues to be a major challenge, with the process now taking considerably longer than before. The firm has been impacted by a widespread hiring slowdown over the past year, as many businesses cut back in response to a tougher economic climate.
Public Sector Hit Hardest in UK & Ireland
The pain was not felt evenly across the economy. In the UK and Ireland, the public sector faced an especially difficult environment. Recruitment fees from public sector roles tumbled by 16% year-on-year, a much steeper decline than the 5% fall seen within the private sector.
Amid the broader downturn, one area showed a glimmer of growth. For the first time since mid-2023, Hays reported a year-on-year increase in fees generated from technology jobs, suggesting resilience in this specialist sector.
Banking on a New Year Boost
Looking ahead, Hays is counting on a traditional uplift in hiring activity at the start of the new year to improve its fortunes for the 2026 financial year. The company said it will be monitoring activity levels closely, describing the post-holiday "return to work" trend as particularly important.
Chief Executive Dirk Hahn commented on the ongoing difficulties, stating: "Amidst ongoing macroeconomic uncertainty, challenging perm (permanent hiring) conditions, and weaker average hours worked in Germany, we are executing well against our strategy and continue to make significant operational progress."
He added that the recruiter is sharpening its focus on long-term growth markets and prioritising high-demand job categories. This strategy centres on roles that are higher skilled, better paid, and within growing industries, as well as servicing its largest enterprise clients.
The company believes this refined focus, combined with ongoing cost-saving measures, will help it return to its previous peak profit level of £250 million. In the immediate term, Hays is expecting to make a profit of around £20 million for the first half of its financial year.
The market reaction to the update was negative, with shares in Hays falling by more than 3% in trading on Wednesday morning, 14 January 2026.
