While hiring activity has not yet picked up, it should do so soon, according to BioSpace Recruitment Manager Greg Clouse. Meanwhile, another year-over-year decrease in layoffs means less competition for jobs.
Although biopharma hiring activity did not pick up in February as hoped based on BioSpace data, that doesn’t mean the job market is a lost cause. BioSpace Recruitment Manager Greg Clouse expects a hiring uptick this year based on his conversations with human resources and talent acquisition leaders. What’s more, he thinks that increase could happen in March—and that it’s not the end of the world if it doesn’t.
“From conversations, people are going to start hiring,” Clouse said. “It’s just a matter of when.”
BioSpace 2025 U.S. Life Sciences Employment Outlook report findings support that statement. According to the report, 59% of organizations surveyed late last year were actively recruiting, and 42% predicted that their number of open roles in 2025 will increase.
Hiring Activity Slower Than Expected—for Now
Job postings live on BioSpace dipped by 23% from February 2024 to February 2025, outpacing January’s 19% year-over-year decrease. Clouse said February’s drop may have happened in part because companies that posted positions in February 2024 and later froze their hiring have yet to lift that freeze.
Jobs live on BioSpace have also declined month over month. While they increased by 5% in January, they dipped by 10% in February.
Clouse noted that there can be anomalies from month to month and advised not reading too much into the drop from January to February, especially given recruiters are getting more active. It feels like things are moving in the right direction, he said.
Clouse also pointed out there can be various reasons why hiring hasn’t picked up just yet in 2025. For example, he recently spoke with someone whose company had a successful clinical trial and plans to hire a few dozen people this year but is waiting until funding is more secure.
“I think there’s a lot of unknowns out there still for people, so they’re still being pretty careful right now,” Clouse said.
From a more long-term perspective, the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts some positive biopharma hiring activity over the next several years. Employment in the scientific research and development services industry under which life sciences R&D falls is projected to increase by 12.8% from 2023 to 2033, according to data released in February. That’s more than three times the 4.2% growth rate projected for total wage and salary employment.
Layoffs Continue Slowing, Improving Job Seekers’ Odds
Although hiring hasn’t yet picked up, there’s positive news on the layoff front. For the second month in a row, year-over-year job loss slowed, according to BioSpace tallies. The number of employees laid off decreased by more than half, dropping from about 2,180 in February 2024 to roughly 1,045 last month. Those tallies exclude contract development and manufacturing organizations, contract research organizations, tools and services businesses and medical device firms.
February’s 52% year-over-year drop is even more notable given that it far exceeded January’s 14% decrease.
Still, it’s worth noting that some of last month’s cuts were significant, as six biopharmas axed at least 50% of their workforce, including three that are eliminating their entire staff due to shutdowns: Kojin Therapeutics, Spotlight Therapeutics and Viracta Therapeutics. Kojin will close in the coming months, while Spotlight and Viracta have already ceased operations.
Other companies that laid off employees in February include Inventiva, Repare Therapeutics and Bristol Myers Squibb. BMS will let go 57 people in Redwood City, California, effective in April, and nearly 300 people in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, effective starting in April and wrapping up in December.
Regarding recent layoff trends, Clouse noted that although there will always be job loss in biopharma, there’s been some leveling off lately—a great sign for job candidates.
“So, if we’re getting back to just kind of a normal volume, and people start hiring again, you’ll start to see that those people sitting out there looking, there’ll be more opportunities for them,” he said.
In addition, Clouse added, “It’s great that there’s not as many layoffs, because that means there’s not as many people fighting for these jobs that are out there.”
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