Report finds economic climate negatively affecting number of permanent hires
The South of England had a further fall in permanent employee hiring in January, according to the most recent KPMG and REC UK Report on Jobs. According to recruiters, businesses were less willing to commit to new hiring as a result of the ongoing economic uncertainty, but they were also having trouble filling positions because of a candidate scarcity.
At the beginning of 2023, staff vacancies slightly increased. Nevertheless, the supply of candidates continued to decline, and the expense of living increased, which led to further rises in beginning salary.
The number of permanent placements fell for the sixth consecutive month in January, according to recruitment consultancies in the South of England. The pace of decline significantly decreased over the course of the month but was still strong overall. In the most recent poll, only the Midlands saw a faster rate of shrinkage than the South of England.
The most recent decline in permanent staff hiring was blamed on the economy, client cost concerns and a dearth of qualified applicants.
Neil Carberry is the Chief Executive of the REC. He said the following about the report:
“January’s recruitment activity suggests that speculation about a shallower economic downturn may be justified. Higher billings for short-term staff in the South were often linked by recruiters to both greater demand for temp staff and efforts to fill vacancies. In more good news for jobseekers in the region, average starting salaries for permanent joiners increased in January, as has been the case for nearly two years now."
“Underpinning a sense of optimism, vacancies increased for both temporary and permanent roles in January. While this will reflect activity that may have been delayed from the autumn, it is another sign of firms feeling confident to hire, even if they are leaning more to temporary hiring than normal in this uncertain environment. That is the power of our temporary work market – it gives us a way to ensure firms can grow and people can build their careers even when the picture is uncertain."
“The need to address the fundamental challenges our labour market faces has not changed with the turning of the year. From skills to tackling economic inactivity, and from immigration to childcare there is much that can be done in partnership with business to help our economy grow and workers to prosper. Ahead of the Budget, the Chancellor should put the people stuff first across the whole of government. Every department has a role to play in getting growth going – and that starts with enabling our labour market.”
