KEY POINTS:
The rate of employment growth in privately owned businesses is slowing and lagging behind most other countries in their employment rate.
An international survey by accounting and business advisory firm Grant Thornton shows employment among privately-held businesses in New Zealand has risen only 1 per cent in the past year, ranking it alongside Ireland and France on 1 per cent, Italy at zero growth and Thailand on minus 4 per cent.
In comparison, Australia's private employment growth figure moved up to 6 per cent from the previous year's 4 per cent when New Zealand's growth stood at 3 per cent.
Grant Thornton NZ spokesman Peter Sherwin said it was bad news for New Zealand.
"The best that might be said for it is that the employment market has been tight. But that is because there has been a shortage of skilled staff in New Zealand and one of the reasons for that is many potential employees have gone to Australia," he said.
"Regrettably, a lot of these people would have been valuable employees and many of them will probably not return," he said.
The survey showed double-digit employment growth in Vietnam (14 per cent), India and mainland China (both 12 per cent), Brazil (9 per cent), Argentina and Singapore (both 8 per cent), Turkey and South Africa on 6 per cent.
The International Business Report surveyed more than 7500 owners of medium sized businesses in 34 countries. In New Zealand, Consumer Link surveyed 150 businesses.
For the purposes of the survey, a medium-sized business in New Zealand was seen as employing between 10 and 149 people.
