AGP Executive Report

Pay and Classification: Malaysia is drafting starting-pay guidance for graduates and semi-skilled workers. Analysts say clear enforcement and job-duty-based classifications are needed to prevent low offers being obscured by job titles or allowances. Workplace AI Rules: California will bar employers from relying solely on automated systems to discipline or fire workers from July 2027; human review and written notice will be required. Layoffs and Hiring: Arsenal plans to cut up to 60 jobs, about 7% of its permanent workforce. Meanwhile, U.S. Customs and Border Protection is holding a Fort Lauderdale career expo Oct. 23–24, with recruiters offering application and interview guidance. Skills Investment: Solent Freeport is offering businesses £500–£5,000 grants for staff training. New Zealand’s Green Party is proposing an end to the apprentice training wage and a $2,000 equipment grant.

Workforce Transition: An EU-funded programme in Ireland’s Midlands created 183 jobs, well short of the 1,094 expected, as more than 1,000 workers and contractors face the shift away from peat production. Hiring & Growth: Ingalls Shipbuilding will host an Oct. 24 hiring event for applicants at all skill levels, with training and career pathways on offer. Texas employers added 154,300 jobs over the past year, outpacing national growth. Skills Investment: Maryland awarded more than $4.7 million to train over 1,700 people and connect nearly 600 with jobs; Canada committed $258.6 million over five years, plus ongoing funding, for skilled-trades development. Work Permits: Starting Nov. 3, Canada will give more Express Entry points to eligible candidates with high-wage job offers and waive the job-offer LMIA requirement. Taiwan also opened its Employment Gold Card to professionals in 12 sectors without requiring a local sponsor. Workplace Rights: A former Atlanta country club worker alleges age discrimination led to his dismissal and has filed suit.

Skills for the Future: Malaysia’s partnership with China has secured 2,500 technical and vocational training placements for 2026, with courses increasingly focused on AI, robotics, automation and semiconductors. Malaysian industry leaders warn that access to AI tools also needs practical training and follow-up support to deliver workplace gains. Youth Employment: World Bank President Ajay Banga says 1.2 billion young people are expected to enter the labour market over the next decade, while only about 400 million jobs are projected to be created. Workplace Rules: From October 30, UK employers must take reasonable steps to protect staff from harassment by customers and other outsiders or risk legal liability. Career Support: Maryland has launched a search tool connecting residents to more than 900 training, adult education and workforce programs. Layoffs: Netflix named Peter Rice as its new content chief after announcing cuts affecting about 1,000 employees.

Family-Friendly Workplaces: Moldova is awarding grants to eight companies to add workplace childcare, family-friendly spaces and policies, aiming to help women enter and stay in work. Hiring Outlook: UK hiring confidence has fallen: just 15% of businesses say they are hiring confidently, down from 24% last year, as employers cite rising labour costs and regulation. Union Access Rules: The CIPD wants the UK government to delay new union workplace-access rights until January, warning employers lack practical guidance on how to comply. Early-Career Support: A third of UK employers say young applicants lack workplace understanding, but HR leaders say employers must set clear expectations and help recruits build communication and reliability skills—not mistake inexperience for lack of potential.

Layoffs and job search: Netflix plans to cut about 1,000 jobs, or 6% of its workforce. Former employees are offering support and referrals to affected colleagues. Jobs and skills: UNDP has launched initiatives to attract investment and create jobs in developing countries, warning that only 400 million of the 1.2 billion young people entering the labor market over the next 15 years may find work. Retraining: East Durham College will help adults retrain through a £250 million North East skills program designed to meet employer needs. AI and hiring: Infosys CEO Salil Parekh says AI-related work could reach half of the company’s workload in two to three years. Meanwhile, HCLTech added 6,450 employees in the latest quarter, including 6,136 graduates, as attrition edged up to 12.8%. Pay and opportunity: Indian salaries are forecast to rise 9.1% in 2026–27, while overall attrition climbed to 18%. Local openings: A job fair in Laos offered 1,762 positions, alongside CV-writing practice and career guidance.

Layoffs: Netflix plans to cut nearly 1,000 jobs—about 6% of its workforce—with product, tech, legal and HR teams most affected. Kroger also plans to eliminate 3,000 corporate roles over three years as it shifts toward AI. AI and Skills: Wisconsin awarded $6.6 million to 84 employers to train 3,823 workers in advanced manufacturing and AI, aiming to help workers adapt as jobs change. Hiring Experience: A poll found 66% of job seekers would rather hear nothing than receive a chatbot response after applying, underscoring the risk of automating candidate communication. Workplace Rights: A Smithfield subsidiary settled an EEOC suit alleging it put a pregnant worker on unpaid leave and fired her after she sought lighter duties and breaks. Talent Development: South African employers facing skills shortages are being urged to invest in developing current staff, not rely only on outside hires. Employment Access: The Philippines launched programs to help workers build skills and find jobs, targeting barriers including poor access to job information and skills mismatches.

Retention & Development: As workers “job hug,” HR advisers say employers should use the pause in job switching to build skills and create internal career paths. AI & Jobs: Kroger plans to cut 3,000 corporate roles over three years as it adopts AI, while the IMF warns that automation could narrow entry-level opportunities. UNDP says 800 million of the 1.2 billion young people expected to enter work in developing economies over the next 15 years may find no jobs without action. Skills & Training: Malaysia’s RM8 billion TVET budget could have greater impact if training is paired with certification, equipment, mentoring and help finding work or starting a business. HR Compliance: UK right-to-work checks, expanded from Oct. 1, may now apply to more working arrangements, including some individual subcontractors. Employee Well-being: A new report urges employers to address the causes of strain—such as heavy workloads, poor management and limited flexibility—rather than relying on benefits alone.

AI and Jobs: Kroger plans to cut 3,000 corporate jobs over three years as it expands AI use, while the IMF warns automation could make it harder for graduates to land entry-level roles and gain experience. Relocation and Job Security: Hasbro has offered 587 Pawtucket employees jobs at its Boston headquarters; those who decline face losing their jobs in December. Skills Investment: Wisconsin awarded $6.6 million to 84 employers to train 3,823 workers in advanced manufacturing and AI. Career Development: A WTW report finds fewer employees say managers help build their skills, while only about 30% of surveyed employers track workers’ capabilities—leaving many unsure how to keep up as work changes.

Skills & Apprenticeships: Telangana plans industry-focused training for 4.5 million young people over five years. In the UK, the University of Suffolk and Halo launched a paid, three-year project-management degree apprenticeship. Entry-Level Hiring: Rising employment costs are pushing 44% of UK firms surveyed toward experienced hires, while 53% say they’re offering fewer apprenticeships. Swiss commercial-apprenticeship graduates face a similar squeeze: AI is automating some entry-level tasks, and nearly two-thirds say employers reject them for lack of experience. AI & Jobs: The IMF warns AI could reduce entry-level opportunities for graduates, even as employers seek more AI skills. Workplace Policy: A Dutch survey finds only 6% of labor agreements address menstrual or menopausal symptoms, though many women plan work and appointments around their cycles. Layoffs: Amazon cut nearly 1,000 jobs across the US, UK and India as it restructures its Stores business and boosts AI investment.

Youth Readiness: A Reed survey found 34% of UK employers say young applicants lack workplace understanding; 29% of young people say limited work experience is a barrier, while nearly a quarter say entry-level roles demand prior experience. AI and Early Careers: IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva warned AI could affect 60% of jobs in advanced economies and erode entry-level opportunities. Singapore’s digital development minister stressed that workers will need AI skills alongside human judgment and continuous learning. Learning at Work: Malaysia’s Agrobank will cover half the tuition for employees pursuing master’s or PhD degrees, with interest-free financing available for the balance. Fair Hiring: A logistics firm will pay $500,000 to settle claims it excluded women from repair jobs; it also agreed to review hiring policies and provide training. Cybersecurity and HR: As attacks target employees through impersonation, experts say awareness alone does not change behavior, putting HR in a key role in building safer workplace habits.

Youth Employment: Wolverhampton opened a Careers and Skills Hub offering job leads, training and work-readiness support as youth unemployment runs nearly twice the national rate. Somerset Council, meanwhile, says flaws in tracking mean it may not know how many young people are out of work or education. Hiring: Toss Place is recruiting hundreds across roles from engineering and HR to sales, opening applications to entry-level and experienced candidates. AI and Job Search: Job seekers face automated CV screening that can reward keywords and formatting over merit, while Westpac says AI saves staff time in loan assessments but denies it drove offshoring. AI Skills: South Korea’s SK Group will offer young adults a two-year AI program with real-world projects and a monthly stipend of 3 million won. Workplace Privacy: US lawmakers urged Spirit Airlines and Google to protect former employees’ sensitive records before any transfer for AI training. Mid-career Work: A UK job seeker in her late 50s says months of applications have brought little response, highlighting the barriers experienced workers can face.

Hiring: Boots is recruiting 6,000 seasonal workers across stores, warehouses and customer support, offering first-time jobseekers a chance to gain workplace experience and skills. Allen County, Indiana, is also holding a job fair for roles across multiple departments. Skills and Training: New Zealand training provider Skills Group wants apprenticeships recognised at degree-level qualifications, with employer incentives and better financial support for trainees. In Nigeria, 60 young people will begin a year-long oil and gas technical training programme combining classroom learning with supervised work placements. AI and HR: A survey of New Zealand accounting practices finds AI is changing hiring: 35% are prioritising soft skills and relationship management, and 20% are recruiting for roles such as data analyst. Still, 94% don’t expect AI to reduce team numbers over the next year. Workforce Support: New investment will expand help for unpaid carers balancing jobs and care responsibilities, as national figures show more than a million carers have left work in the past two years.

Skills and Training: Malaysia’s Budget 2027 sets aside RM8 billion for vocational training, including pathways for religious-school students and former military personnel into jobs, business or further study. AI and Work: Vietnamese clerical workers face high exposure to automation as AI takes on routine office tasks. Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal says delivery work should give way to better jobs as technology advances. Hiring: India’s Krystal Integrated Services plans to create more than 10,000 jobs across 25-plus cities by March 2027, while job fairs in the Philippines offered over 6,000 openings. Workforce Policy: New Zealand First proposes replacing its accredited employer visa with a skills-shortage-based system, requiring employers to show they tried to hire or train local workers. Employment Pressures: Trinidad and Tobago’s energy-sector shutdowns and cutbacks at Nutrien and Proman are raising concerns about job losses and workers leaving the country for work.

Hiring: Job fairs in three Eastern Visayas cities offered more than 6,000 openings, including 2,600 in Tacloban; Barrie’s community career expo is set for Oct. 21. Skills and Training: Malaysia’s HRD Corp plans to fund three million training opportunities with RM3 billion from its levy fund, while a Philippine education initiative aims to build more flexible routes from learning and skills training into work. Career Paths: Google DeepMind is advertising a high-paying engineering role without a degree requirement, putting the spotlight on problem-solving skills over formal credentials. Labour Market: Canada’s job market weakened, with 68,000 jobs lost in September. By contrast, a Louisiana forecast projects 2,500 new jobs in the Shreveport-Bossier area in 2027, driven by investment in data centers, manufacturing, energy and military activity.

Labor Market: Canada lost 68,000 jobs in September, pushing unemployment to 6.5%; young people and women were hit hardest, with losses in education, health care and manufacturing. Hiring Challenges: Small-business hiring also slowed, but 32% of owners still had vacancies they couldn’t fill. Among those trying to hire, 87% said few or no applicants were qualified, highlighting the gap between available workers and employers’ needs. Career Support: Wolverhampton has opened a Careers and Skills Hub offering job-search, CV and interview help alongside training. It has already helped about 65 people find work. Workplace Rights: A Sydney worker dismissed for secretly working overseas won an unfair dismissal claim because his employer failed to follow a fair process, though he received no compensation. Severance Dispute: Former Nutrien workers in Trinidad are seeking legal advice and considering collective action over severance after the company announced it would close its nitrogen operations.

Pay and Protections: Malaysia’s Budget 2027 proposes RM2,500 starting pay for graduates and semi-skilled workers. ABIM says the rules must protect allowances and clarify which employers and workers qualify. AI in Hiring: A Yale study warns that candidate-screening tools can appear unbiased without being fair; a new California law will require employers to disclose AI use in hiring and firing. Career Moves: 55% of Gen Z professionals surveyed plan to seek a new job by year-end, with pay, benefits and advancement among their motivations. Skills and Pay: 72% of managers say they’re raising pay for relevant AI skills, while Alabama’s skilled-trades workforce grew 11.3% from 2019 to 2025—even as training programs nationally produce just 55 workers for every 100 needed. Workplace Wellbeing: Irish employers face rising stress and burnout, with legal and business risks if they fail to address workplace pressures.