UAE Tops GCC in Job Growth at 4%; Financial Services and Real Estate Sectors Leading the Way
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is leading the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries in hiring trends for 2025, as revealed by Cooper Fitch's quarterly reports and recent market insights. The UAE's strong employment outlook, booming tech sector, and strategic labor market reforms set it apart from its neighbours.
The UAE ranks first globally for hiring outlook in Q3 2025, with a Net Employment Outlook of +48%, reflecting high optimism about job growth and opportunities. This optimism is further bolstered by a 145% investment increase to $313.5 million in the tech sector, particularly in AI, cybersecurity, and cloud computing.
Demand in the UAE spans across smart cities, clean energy, and data centers, contributing to sky-high demand for both local and expatriate engineering talent. While Saudi Arabia and Qatar also see strong growth, driven by Vision 2030 and related megaprojects like NEOM and The Line, the UAE stands out due to its visa reforms that attract global talent.
Rapid investment in technology, labor market flexibility, diversity, competitive benefits and salaries, and global positioning as a tech hub are some of the key factors shaping these trends. The UAE benefits from a high rate of female STEM graduates (56%), which is among the highest globally, supporting a diverse talent pipeline. The country offers competitive salary increases (around 4% across industries) and attractive benefits packages to offset living costs like housing, making it an attractive destination for skilled workers.
In essence, the UAE’s combination of aggressive tech investments, labor flexibility reforms, diversity emphasis, and global talent attraction strategies positions it ahead of other GCC nations in hiring trends for 2025. However, some positions such as Chief Strategy Officer remain planned but are on hold, as companies evaluate the cost against immediate returns. Seasonal factors such as Eid holidays and the early onset of summer affected hiring dynamics, causing compressed timelines and delays in decision-making, particularly in countries with large public sectors or family-run businesses.
The UAE's key financial hubs - Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and ADGM - saw a 2% increase in investment-related hiring. Real estate is booming in the UAE, with Q2 seeing an uptick in transactions, especially in Abu Dhabi. Many firms put senior-level hiring on pause due to shifting priorities, extended decision-making cycles, and tighter budgets. Hiring activity slowed in other GCC countries due to Eid Al Fitr and Eid Al Adha holidays.
The UAE saw a 4% growth in hiring in the second quarter of 2025, the fastest pace in the GCC region. Dr. Trefor Murphy, founder and CEO of Cooper Fitch, stated that hiring activity in the UAE gained momentum in Q2, built on strategic groundwork from earlier in the year. As the UAE continues to invest in technology and attract global talent, it is poised to maintain its lead in the GCC hiring market for 2025 and beyond.
- The tech sector in the UAE, with an investment increase of 145% to $313.5 million, is particularly focused on AI, cybersecurity, and cloud computing, attracting high demand for engineering talent.
- Despite seasonal factors affecting hiring dynamics and causing delays in decision-making, the UAE's financial hubs, Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), have seen a 2% increase in investment-related hiring.
- The UAE's booming real estate sector, evidenced by an uptick in transactions in Q2, especially in Abu Dhabi, contributes to its overall prosperity.
- As the UAE invests aggressively in technology, reforms labor markets, emphasizes diversity, and attracts global talent, it becomes a competitive destination for skilled workers, offering competitive salary increases and attractive benefits packages.
- In the field of finance, investing and business, the UAE's unique combination of factors sets it apart from other GCC nations, positioning it as the leader in hiring trends for 2025 and beyond.
- In the health sector, the UAE benefits from a high rate of female STEM graduates (56%), which supports a diverse talent pipeline, contributing to its overall economic growth.
