International recruiter Empresaria Group has entered into an agreement to sell its 60% stake in Dutch staffing business EAR Holding to manufacturer OTTO Holding for €1 in cash.

EAR’s 2009 revenue was £4.7m with a loss after exceptional charges and before taxation of £0.7m and net liabilities of roughly £0.3m as at 31 December 2009. The deal is expected to cut Empresaria’s net debt by £0.1m and will result in a small accounting gain on disposal.

The statement adds: “Empresaria highlighted that the outlook for the Dutch staffing market remained a concern. Consequently, the board has taken the decision to exit the Dutch market entirely, where it had only a relatively small presence, through the disposal of EAR.”