Stay vigilant or jobs will go, says Chamber president

Wednesday 31st December 2008, 9:12AM GMT.

GUERNSEY must be careful if it is to avoid significant job losses next year, according to the Chamber of Commerce.

Its president, Paul Luxon (pictured), said the business community would have to keep a close eye on the effects of recession on the Continent and in the UK during the next year.

‘We have to make sure we do not overreact, but we cannot be complacent either,’ he said.

‘We have to be vigilant and optimistic, but not complacent.’

A report released by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development this week claimed that at least 600,000 jobs would be lost in the UK during 2009.

It added that even those who escaped redundancy would face pay freezes in what it predicted would be ‘the UK’s worst year for jobs in almost two decades’.

Mr Luxon said there was a confidence issue in Guernsey.