Dubai: More jobs will be created in the UAE and other countries in the Middle East over the next few months, with the bulk of recruitment likely to take place in the construction sector, according to hiring specialists on Monday.

In the latest NaukriGulf Hiring Outlook survey, 49 per cent of companies said they have plans to hire for new positions, while 90 per cent intend to hire in general, or for existing vacant positions.

The majority of the recruiters in the region (58 per cent) also said they expect new vacancies to be announced in the next six months. Most of the new positions will likely be for candidates with three to eight years of work experience.

Out of the 140 recruiters and employers polled for the survey last month, 44 per cent said they expect new jobs to be created for middle management posts, while 25 per cent expect new jobs to be created at senior management levels.

About 35 per cent said they expect the construction industry to offer most of the new jobs. Aside from construction companies, those in the banking and finance, hospitality and retail industries are also expected to open a significant number of positions.

The results of the study indicated that the employment scenario in the UAE and the rest of the region is improving, according to Tarun Aggarwal, business head at Naukrigulf.com.

“As far as job creation and hiring scenario are concerned, 2015 looks to be a better year than 2014,” Aggarwal said.

While the decline in oil prices is hurting company bottom lines and slowing the recruitment activity in certain sectors, Aggarwal noted that companies in the construction industry are still adding more jobs, as new projects are being built for Expo 2020 in the UAE.

“With the recent decline in oil prices, oil and gas and related sectors are expected to see a dip in the creation of new jobs. However, construction and allied sectors continue to grow, given the build-up towards Expo 2020 in UAE, the Fifa World Cup 2022 in Qatar and increased focus on infrastructure development,” Aggarwal said.

“The overall economic outlook, hence, remains largely positive.”

There are also fewer people quitting their jobs, with 84 per cent of the employers saying they are “enjoying” low attrition rates of less than 15 per cent in their organisations. In March 2015, 73 per cent of the companies reported attrition rates of less than 15 per cent.

About six in ten (60 per cent) of employers also said that talent crunch has improved in the last six months.