Gave employment to (5)
I believe the answer is:
hired
'gave employment to' is the definition.
('hire' can be a synonym of 'give employment to')
This is all the clue.
(Other definitions for hired that I've seen before include "Rented out" , "like a Merc" , "Employed for wages" , "Taken on to staff" , "Paid to work" .)