Hiring activity across the Gulf rose two per cent in the third quarter of 2026, returning to growth after a three per cent decline in the previous quarter as confidence bounced back after the regional situation, according to the latest Gulf Employment Index from recruitment firm Cooper Fitch.
The UAE recorded the strongest gain among the six GCC markets, with hiring up four per cent.
Dr Trefor Murphy, founder and CEO of Cooper Fitch, described the UAE’s performance as “a very decent recovery”.
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Hiring in the UAE had fallen 4 per cent in Q2, which he called an “8 per cent swing in terms of the amount of work” once the Q3 rise is counted.
April was the weakest month, May improved but remained down, and June was “pretty decent”, he said.
September was a strong month, he added, roughly on par with the same month in 2025 and 2024. Firms, nonetheless, remained cautious about the year ahead, the report said, even as new export business grew at its fastest pace in almost two years.
Among the other regional countries, hiring in Saudi Arabia rose 1.5 per cent as companies expanded sales and technical teams to support new investment, and Oman recorded 0.5 per cent growth.
Declines narrowed in Qatar (down 1 per cent) and Kuwait (down 2 per cent). Bahrain fell 2 per cent. Murphy noted that all three have now contracted for two quarters in a row. In Bahrain, the government extended its support programme for smaller businesses affected by the conflict and lengthened operating-expense support from three months to six to help firms retain national staff.
Top hiring sectors
Energy hiring rose seven per cent in the region, the biggest increase of any sector, as mandates stalled during regional tensions resumed once conditions eased. Growth was supported by multi-year contract awards for major gas programmes in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
Murphy said public sector projects in the UAE were starting to regain momentum. Public sector hiring rose three per cent.
Senior finance and strategy each rose six per cent, while finance grew five per cent. Strategy recorded its first increase of 2026. Murphy said the growth was in in-house strategy roles rather than consulting practices, but called it a positive sign. Real estate, software and cyber each gained 4 per cent, and sales and marketing rose three per cent.
Banking fell four per cent and investment management declined five per cent, the sharpest drop of any sector, in a quarter when most functions grew.
Cooper Fitch said the investment management fall appears to reflect a pause after a strong run of hiring earlier in the year, not a change in market direction.
Mining a surprise
Mining hiring rose one per cent after a strong previous quarter, but Murphy said underlying growth in the sector was far stronger. “There’s a massive underlying growth in the mining sector at the moment, something I’m very surprised about,” he said.
He identified two drivers. One is domestic mining where natural resources exist. The other is investment vehicles in Oman, the UAE and Saudi Arabia developing and investing in mines overseas, much as Gulf players have done in oil and gas. That is creating demand for investment, technical and strategic skills, he said.
Talent shortages
Non-oil business conditions improved in every month of the quarter in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Cost pressures persisted, however, with UAE businesses raising selling prices at the fastest pace since May 2011 as raw material and freight costs rose.
In mid-September, central banks in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman raised interest rates by 25 basis points, following an increase in the US federal funds target range to 3.75 per cent to 4.00 per cent.
Competition for scarce specialist talent has intensified, the report said.
In energy, project directors, commissioning specialists and contracts leaders remained difficult to secure, with candidates often receiving multiple offers. Murphy said the shortage of specialists is not unique to the region. “It’s nothing particularly new,” he said, adding that specialist roles are in big demand everywhere.
Employers look to 2027
Businesses are now looking beyond this year, he said. “We’re in catch-up now for what we missed this year, and we’re trying to get that in.” Most employers, he added, are positive about 2027.
That optimism is feeding into longer-term hiring.
“If you’re confident about the world and the market, then you start having a longer-term view on workforce planning, then you start looking at longer-term hires,” Murphy said. “Consumer confidence is coming back in. People are starting to look at long-term hires, at those more strategic hires.”
The report cautions that the question for Q4 is whether the improvement can be sustained, given elevated costs and limited visibility on trade and shipping.
Source: Khaleej Times