More than a third of respondents across the Middle East and North Africa said their management is more prone to hire fresh graduates after the recession, according to the latest online poll series conducted by the Middle East’s number one job site Bayt.com. The results of the ‘Fresh Grads in the Middle East Workforce2010/2011’ poll showed that37.6% of respondents said management was keener on hiring fresh graduates since the recession,26.4 said they were less and19.2% said things remained unchanged.
When asked which percentage fresh beginners constituted in the workplace,27.7% of respondents said up to10%,14.6% said between10 and20%,12.4% said between20 and30%,9.7% said between30 and50%,18.2% said more than50%, and another17.4% said there were no fresh beginners in their office right now.
The polls went on to ask the region’s respondents how many fresh graduates on average their companies had recruited in the past12 months. Over half of those polled (56.3%) said only0 to5,16.8% said5 to10 and27% said more than10.
Participants in the poll were asked what departments are likely to employ the biggest share of fresh grads in their companies;27.1% said marketing,20.2% finance and accounting,18.4% IT,15.2% HR and administration,4.7% creative department and14.5% said other departments.
The respondents were then asked what they thought the number one motivation for employers to hire fresh graduates is. More than half (51.7%) said less salary and benefits,12.7% said more passion and desire to learn,10.4% said fresh zest of life and creativity,8.5% said more self motivation and initiative,8.4% indicated fresh analytical thinking,5.1% indicated communication skills,
“As the number one job site in the Middle East, Bayt.com is dedicated to researching and analyzing data that can be useful to both employees and employers,” Mr. Amer Zureikat, VP Sales, Bayt.com. “The results of our most recent poll show that in times of economic strife employers are perceived as more likely to hire fresh graduates mostly due to the fact that they accept a lower salary and require fewer benefits.”
Most of the respondents (49.2%) said their companies provided mentorship programs and proper training for fresh beginners once recruited, however39.6% said their companies did not. When asked what most of the fresh graduates that respondents knew were currently looking for, the vast majority (76.5%) said job enrollment. A few said internship opportunities (9.7%), and a small minority said further education (6.4%) and setting up their own businesses (6%) .
Data for the ‘Fresh Grads in the M.E Workforce2010/2011’ poll series was collected online between July7,2010 and August17,2010, with a total of13,197 respondents from across the Middle East. This and other Middle East research, as well as information on Bayt.com’s classifieds, are available online on www.bayt.com.