Recruitment firm Robert Walters experienced a downturn in income during the second quarter of 2025, as economic challenges continued to impact hiring practices.
The company reported a 13% decrease in net fee income to £72.7m, attributing the decline to macroeconomic uncertainty becoming “more pronounced”.
Specialist professional recruitment saw a 14% reduction in fee income to £60.7m, while recruitment outsourcing net fee income dropped by 6% to £12m, as reported by City AM.
The UK market fared slightly better, with an 8% fall in fee income, which was less severe than the 14% drop in Asia and the 23% decline in Europe.
Toby Fowlston, the chief executive of Robert Walters, said: “Geographically, we continued to see the most challenging conditions in Europe, with a more resilient performance in the UK and stable trends in Asia-Pacific.”
The recruiter’s workforce decreased by 2% from the previous quarter to 3,125 employees, representing a 14% year-on-year reduction. Specifically, fee earners – those in revenue-generating roles – were down by 17% compared to the previous year, while non-fee earners saw a 10% decrease but remained unchanged since the first quarter.
The group has stated its intention to be “highly selective in replacing fee earner natural attrition” and “is allocating resources in the front office to areas with the most compelling returns.”
Toby Fowlston highlighted the intensification of economic difficulties in the second quarter, especially following President Donald Trump’s tariffs that shook global trade confidence.
Trump imposed hefty tariffs across Europe and Asia at the start of the quarter. While the UK was initially caught up in the situation, an early May trade agreement with the US averted further trouble.
Mr Fowlston said: “We remain focused on our strategic initiatives to strengthen the business. We are rigorously engaged in improving fee earner productivity across our markets, driving efficiencies in our front and back-office teams, optimising our office network and leveraging more co-ordinated procurement.
“In today’s rapidly changing world of work, clients need a wider range of services than before. We have a full suite of talent solutions to support them, delivered by experienced and motivated teams, and remain excited by the opportunity we have to win as markets improve.”
Robert Walters is based in London and has offices in Birmingham, Bracknell, Manchester, Liverpool and Milton Keynes.
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