Market Update May 2018

Vacancies

Vacancies rose at quicker pace, latest data indicated that demand for staff continued to increase at the start of the second quarter. There was a significant upturn in job vacancies in April, in fact it was the strongest upturn in demand for three months.

The strongest growth area for vacancies was in permanent roles compared to temporary ones, though rates of increase were steep in both cases.

Public & private sector vacancies

Private sector demand for staff continued to rise in April, with growth of both permanent and temporary vacancies picking up since March.

Demand was also higher in the public sector, with a steeper increases in vacancies signalled for both permanent and temporary staff. That said, rates of growth continued to lag behind those seen for private sector staff.

Other vacancy indicators

Overall, job vacancies rose by 5.7% on an annual basis in the three months to March, according to latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Although strong, this was down from a 7.1% rise in the previous period, to mark the slowest rate of growth since mid-2017.

Permanent staff

The vast majority of job categories had a higher level of permanent staff vacancies during April, with the steepest rates of growth registered across the IT & Computing and Engineering sectors. The Retail sector was the only category to record lower demand for permanent workers.

Temporary/contract staff

Blue Collar and Engineering were the most in-demand categories for temporary workers during April. Nonetheless, all of the remaining job sectors noted higher temp staff vacancies. The slowest growth was signalled for construction.

Staff availability

Availability of permanent staff

The availability of candidates to fill permanent job roles continued to decline markedly during April. Furthermore, the rate of reduction quickened to a three-month record, with the steepest decline seen in the South of England.

Availability of temp/contract staff

Availability of temp/contract staff was lower for the fifty-eighth month running in April, withthe pace of deterioration the most marked for five months and sharper than previously seen

Remuneration

Permanent salaries

Growth in starting salaries for candidates placed into permanent roles remained sharp, with anecdotal evidence linking this increase to candidate shortages and robust demand for staff. The strongest rise was seen in the South of England, though marked rates of pay growth were also seen elsewhere.

Temp/contract pay rates

The rate of inflation of contract/temporary staff pay quickened to a two-year record in April and well above the historical average, with scarcity of suitably skilled staff being the main factor driving up short-term pay rates.

The South of England posted the fastest rise in temp pay, while the weakest was seen in the North of England.

More information

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