Political uncertainty in the run-up to the election may put the brakes on hiring in the second quarter of this year, according to the latest survey by recruiter Manpower.

Employers’ second-quarter hiring intentions in the finance and insurance sector are down three percentage points on the previous quarter, to a net employment outlook of 16%.

But this is still well above the overall outlook of 4% and up three percentage points on last year.

The survey measures more than 2200 Australian employers’ recruiting intentions for the coming quarter.

In the finance and insurance sector 4% plan to decrease hiring, 22% plan to increase it and 72% will make no change to their plans.

“We’ve seen a number of conflicting economic indicators recently,” Manpower Group MD Lincoln Crawley said.

“Consumer and business sentiment recovered slightly in January, while retail sales during December were weak and building approvals were also subdued.

“These conflicting indicators, coupled with the uncertainty an election year brings, are creating caution in the job market as employers take a wait-and-see attitude to hiring.”