Staffline reports pick-up in hiring

The recruitment company Staffline predicted its earnings for this year were likely to be well ahead of expectations, because economic uncertainty was prompting companies to use more temporary staff.

Staffline, which specialises in providing factory workers, said it expected its earnings this year to be boosted not only by recent acquisitions and new business wins but also because of demand from existing clients.

"What seems to have happened now is that there is a little bit of demand with customers restocking, and there is a trend for people employing temporary rather than permanent staff," said the chairman and chief executive, Andy Hogarth. "If a country is coming out of a recession, then the recruitment business is one of the first to do well."

His comments echo those of Staffline's larger rival Michael Page, which said in April that improvement in the jobs market had reached Britain.