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Recruiter Hays has revealed further hefty cuts to its workforce as it ramped up cost cutting in the face of a difficult jobs market.

The firm said it had slashed its worldwide consultancy staff numbers by 14% in the year to the end of March, with a 7% cut to its non-consultancy employee base.

It comes amid efforts to save £45 million a year in costs by 2028-29, with around £30 million of cuts being delivered in the year to the end of June, including about £15 million in its third quarter.

Hays said its consultancy workforce is now “appropriate for current market conditions and (we) therefore expect it to remain broadly stable in the fourth quarter”.

It said it would continue to “structurally reduce our cost base to position Hays strongly for when end markets recover”.

In the UK and Ireland, the group axed 16% of consultant numbers in the year to the end of March as net fees tumbled by 10%.

The group’s largest market – Germany – saw net fees fall 11%, with overall group fees down 8%.

Shares in Hays lifted 7% as the decline in group-wide fees was better than the 10% drop in the previous three months.

Hays cautioned it expects job market conditions to remain “challenging” but kept its underlying operating profit guidance unchanged at £45.2 million.

It reported underlying earnings of £45.6 million for 2024-25, down 57% on the previous year.

Mark Dearnley, interim chief executive of Hays, said: “We remain mindful of heightened global macro-economic uncertainty and the impact this could have on the wider economy.

“However, we are executing well and taking decisive actions to improve our portfolio and restore our financial performance.

“We continue to make strong progress with our structural cost and productivity initiatives and expect the full financial benefits to build over time.”

Michael Hewson, at MCH Market Insights, said: “With September to come, and the summer holidays end, there may be an improvement as the business heads into its first quarter, however given the current mood in business this may well be overly optimistic.”