Strong hiring outlook boosts prospects for expat jobseekers in Czechia

Jobseekers, it's time to dust off your resume. According to Manpower’s recently released 2026 Employment Outlook Survey, Czech employers are projecting historically strong hiring optimism for this year, a positive sign for the country’s labor market.

The staffing and recruitment firm found that far more companies plan to hire rather than fire personnel. For expat workers in Czechia, who account for roughly one-fifth of the country’s workforce according to Czech Statistical Office data, this news is particularly relevant and welcome. 

Hiring optimism is strongest in technology and IT services; according to Czechia’s Association of Business Service Leaders, over four in 10 people working in the digital business sector are foreign, so 2026 may offer more job opportunities, greater leverage in salary and role negotiations, and continued demand for international talent as employers compete to fill skills gaps.

In total, 38 percent of employers plan to increase staffing levels, 41 percent expect no change, and 18 percent foresee reductions. The resulting Net Employment Outlook (NET; the difference between companies’ plans to hire and fire) is 20 percentage points, up six points from the previous quarter and nine points year on year.

“This is the strongest first quarter in the history of our survey,” comments Jaroslava Rezlerová, CEO of Manpower Czech Republic. She points to a combination of steady economic growth and persistent labor shortages as key drivers of the positive sentiment.

Company growth and the resultant creation of new positions are the main reasons employers are expanding, cited by 32 percent of respondents. Expansion into new fields (23 percent) and the search for talent with critical skills (22 percent) also play a major role, as does the rise of specific projects (21 percent).

Other factors include the need for specialized employees, strengthening team diversity, and adapting to technological advances.

Rezlerová notes that while some sectors, like manufacturing, have seen selective slowdowns, losing around 16,000 jobs over the past year, workers are largely moving into faster-growing industries. 

All 11 sectors measured by Manpower report expected growth, though optimism varies. Finance and insurance leads with a NET of 36, followed by automotive and professional, scientific and technical services (both 29), and technology and IT services (28). These are all tied to the expat-popular administrative and business industry in Czechia, which is the second-most common sector for foreigners, with 165,000 employees.

The construction and real estate sector posted its strongest first-quarter performance since 2008, while hospitality, recreation, and cultural services also recorded significant gains. The least optimistic sectors, according to Manpower, are information and communication services, utilities and natural resources (10), and public sector, health, and social services (10).

Medium-sized companies are the most optimistic, followed by small companies. Large and extra-large employers (with over 5,000 staff) are more moderate. “Smaller and medium organizations can often respond faster to new opportunities,” Rezlerová explains.

Although one‑third of all employed foreigners in Czechia work in Prague, according to Labor Office data, other regions are becoming more attractive for non-Czechs seeking work. The City of Brno reports that the number of foreign workers across the South Moravian Region has more than tripled over the past 15 years, and the region now leads the country in the number of companies planning to expand their workforce, reaching the highest level recorded since tracking began in 2008.

Bohemia follows in second, and Prague, historically the most optimistic region, records the weakest hiring optimism (yet still stays strong, with a NET of 16).

These projections depend on economic conditions, automation pace, and migration policy, but so far, Czechia enters 2026 with a broadly positive hiring climate. Most sectors, regions, and company sizes anticipate growth, despite ongoing transformation in industries such as manufacturing and automotive.

Employers will continue focusing on reskilling, talent acquisition, and adapting to technological change. “As we enter 2026, we expect a combination of continued modest economic growth, slightly higher unemployment, and a persistent shortage of workers with the required skill profiles,” Rezlerová concludes.