Contractors attracted by lucrative placements in Dubai are leaving in droves as large-scale redundancies hit the construction sector.

Recruiters in the area are shifting geographic focus. Ian Cowx, senior recruitment consultant at construction recruiter Gold Group, told Recruiter: “Internationally we are seeing a shift away from the Middle East by a number of very significant contractors who are seeking work elsewhere. Eastern and mainland Europe have signs of being key areas in 2009 and 2010.” He added that the emirate’s employment situation “changed almost overnight”.

However, recruiters are also trying to place contractors elsewhere within the Middle East. Max Kadim, director of construction recruiter Alan & Partners, told Recruiter: “The two countries… which are busy are Oman and Saudi Arabia.”

Cowx agreed, adding that Kuwait also remains buoyant.

Investment research from Swiss bank UBS estimates 20% of Dubai’s construction workforce will lose their jobs this year, with 30-40% of infrastructure projects being cancelled or delayed.

A civil engineer working in the region told Recruiter his experience of the change in Dubai’s construction market had happened “scarily fast”. “There are rumours going around about huge numbers of people leaving town, but the only people who know for sure are the government and they aren’t saying anything,” he said, adding 60 people had been laid off from his consultancy.

UBS expects the population of Dubai to decline by 8% in 2009.

The Times has claimed 3,000 cars have been abandoned at Dubai International Airport, as expats scrambled to leave. However, Dubai’s chief of police has claimed the information was incorrect.

Steve Thomas, managing director of international construction recruiter Maxim Recruitment, told Recruiter: “I think it’s happening a lot more than they want people to realise.” He said contractors who bought property at the height of the boom are being hit by the double blow of redundancies and negative equity in their homes.