Companies making redundancies during the downturn will have to work hard to repair their reputations once they start hiring again, according to research from TMP Worldwide.

Its Job Index Survey – carried out among 1200 UK businesses – revealed that 40% of organisations had made redundancies this year.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development has noted that more firms are beginning to take a ‘drip-feed’ approach to downsizing as opposed to mass redundancies that hit the headlines.