Employers plan 'more' staff cuts

The survey suggests many junior staff may be at risk

Employers are planning to make deeper and broader cuts in staff numbers, a new survey suggests.

It found 46% of the organisations surveyed are planning to cut staffing levels in the next few months.

A total of 350 organisations, both public and private, were interviewed on behalf of recruitment firm Randstad.

The news comes as steelmaker Corus is believed to be preparing to cut 3,500 jobs worldwide, including more than 2,500 in the UK.

The survey suggested that an increasing number of employers plan to cut at least one in 10 of their workforce.

And employers said they are also planning to save on labour costs in other ways, by cutting expenses and pushing extra work onto staff.

BBC employment correspondent Martin Shankleman said that cuts are most likely to fall on junior staff, with clerical and administration positions seeming particularly vulnerable.

One other effect employers are already noticing is that staff are now working longer hours voluntarily and taking fewer days off sick, our correspondent added.