While the world is gripped by a gloom and doom scenario and there have been some layoffs in the real estate sector in the UAE, a number of experts still believe that the country remains the employer of choice.

Varina Nissen, Managing Director at Manpower Middle East, said although the UAE is seeing increased interest from candidates based in the United States and Europe, salaries are not expected to decline sharply.

"We don't expect to see a significant decline in salaries as more workers come to the region," she said, adding that there are talent shortages for certain types of jobs.

"As businesses here continue to grow, they will need the right resources to manage that growth and workers with particular skill sets will always be in demand," Nissen said.

The UAE has been the most favoured place in the GCC in terms of employment opportunities. But with skyrocketing inflation, high cost of living and reported job-cuts in the real estate sector, do you think this trend will continue?

The UAE is not just the first choice for jobseekers in the GCC. In a recent research paper by Manpower, The Borderless Workforce, the UAE was placed sixth in the world as a job destination of choice. The survey covered 31,574 workers from 27 countries and also considered motivations for movement. Monetary incentive, while of course high on the list of priorities, was not the only reason for people to move. Career advancement, better quality of life and a desire to experience a new culture also play a significant role for jobseekers considering a move to another country.

Therefore, despite the increasing cost of living in the UAE, its attractiveness as a destination, whether for career advancement, higher salary opportunities, tax-free earnings or quality of life, is unlikely to be affected in the short term.

With the financial crisis increasing in other countries - namely the US and United Kingdom that came out as number one and number two respectively as work destinations of choice in our relocation survey - more jobseekers are likely to consider alternative destinations, such as the Middle East, for work purposes than before. We would, therefore, expect this trend to continue for at least a number of years, and if the region continues its economic upturn, perhaps even longer.

How will the human resources sector be impacted by the current financial crisis?

In terms of talent mobility, the UAE and GCC are already experiencing an increase in jobseekers looking to relocate from countries affected by the financial crisis. Financial services professionals are experiencing the greatest challenges. The Dubai International Financial Centre, Qatar Finance Centre and Bahrain Financial Harbour are all gaining international recognition. So professionals looking for alternative destinations are increasingly turning to the Middle East.

More talent in the region has a positive knock-on effect for businesses here in terms of the size and quality of the local talent pool for companies' hiring needs. And more people coming to the region stimulate other businesses such as construction, retail and leisure.

Of course there is a wider issue than just movement of talent. Businesses that have operations in countries that are experiencing financial crisis will be looking to save costs here to offset losses elsewhere, but at the same time will also be looking to increase market share where their businesses are profitable. An upturn in operations in booming markets, such as the GCC, leads to more requirements for staff and therefore rapid absorption into the economy of the additional talent.

Salaries are certainly on the rise in this region, with increases of more than 10 per cent in all the GCC countries over the past year with the UAE and Qatar experiencing the sharpest raises. Many of the candidates that our consultants talk to who are moving from overseas agree that salaries in the region are comparable to their home countries but direct comparisons are difficult as outgoing costs are not the same. Rents in the UAE may be high but not as high as rents in London or New York for example, and workers in the UAE do not have to account for taxes.

Some analysts say the influx of new workers in the region would drive down salaries. Do you agree?

There is already strong competition for jobs due to the increasing number of people looking to move here, and that competition started before the global financial crisis. Despite this, salaries experienced a sharp increase, so we don't expect to see a significant decline as more workers come to the region.

There are talent shortages for certain types of roles all over the world. Manpower's white paper on Confronting the Talent Crunch showed that the top 10 jobs, in terms of demand, in 2008 are of skilled manual trades primarily carpenters, welders and plumbers; sales representatives; technicians primarily in production, operations, engineering and maintenance; engineers; ma