MONTHLY REPORT ON JOBS

The Report on Jobs is a monthly publication produced by NTC on behalf of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation. The report features original survey data which provide the most up-to-date and comprehensive monthly picture of recruitment, employment and employee earnings trends available.

Click Here for a full job report provided by KMPG and REC updated 10th May 2006

Growth of Staff Appointments Hardened in April

Wednesday, 10th May - London, UK - The latest Report on Jobs survey signalled that permanent staff placements and temporary staff billings rose at the sharpest rates in four months during April. Jobs growth was underpinned by a further robust rise in demand for staff at employers.

The Report on Jobs, published today by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation and KPMG, provides the most comprehensive guide to the UK labour market, drawing on original survey data provided by recruitment consultancies and employers, as well as data on national newspaper recruitment advertising.

Commenting on the latest survey results, Michael Carter, People Services Partner at KPMG said:

“After a first quarter of subdued growth, the recruitment market is returning to the hive of activity we saw in 2005. Job vacancies continue to rise, but those vacancies seem less hard to fill, indicating that the skills shortage has eased. Anecdotally, this is partially explained by redundancies but also by the increased efforts of agencies in identifying candidates from advertising and other promotional activities. Another factor may also be the continued wage and salary inflation.

“Business confidence and activity seems to be increasing and this is reflected in higher demand for both permanent staff, particularly in IT and Computing and temporary staff, particularly in Engineering & Construction. In both categories, there is more and more use of managed service companies, which can assist in containing overall employment costs by enabling individuals to be paid both in salary and in dividends. This is despite announcements in the recent Budget that their effectiveness is under continuous review by the tax authorities. Such arrangements should therefore be used with care.”

Also commenting on the latest report, Gareth Osborne, REC Managing Director said:

"This month’s Report on Jobs is a welcome breath of fresh air following signs of low consumer and employer confidence in recent months. The sharp rise in demand for permanent skilled staff in April is the first real indicator in 2006 of growing confidence among UK employers that the economy is becoming more buoyant. We have seen this recently in UK financial services and the optimism appears to be spreading into other industries, with the IT and Computing sector’s 17-month high in demand for permanent staff. April has also seen a continued easing of the skills shortages, making it less difficult for UK employers to recruit skilled staff.”

Staff appointments rose at fastest rate in four months...

Growth of permanent staff placements picked up to a robust pace that was the sharpest in four months in April. Expansion of temporary/contract staff billings also picked up to a four-month high, recording a solid increase since March.

...as demand for staff hardened...

Recruitment consultancies reported a further substantial rise in job vacancies in April. Growth of demand for permanent staff remained marginally stronger than that for temporary employees, despite an acceleration in the latter to a thirteen-month high.

...and skill shortages eased

Although permanent staff availability continued to fall in April, the rate of decline eased to the weakest in three months, suggesting fewer skill shortages. The availability of temporary staff showed a fractional improvement during the latest survey period.

Robust inflation of staff pay

A further sharp rise in staff pay was recorded in April, with consultants attributing higher wages and salaries to strong demand at employers. Inflation of permanent staff pay remained stronger than that for temporary staff.

Wages and salaries continued to rise

April’s closely-watched PMI surveys signalled a solid and broad-based expansion of UK private sector employment. Service sector hiring picked up to a nine-month high, while manufacturing employment rose for the first time in over a year.

For further information please contact:

KPMG: Judith Dow, KPMG Corporate Communications on 0207 694 8584 or the KPMG Press Office on 0207 694 8773

REC: Susanna Loughnane at the REC press office on 01753 827 282

NTC (technical/data queries): Chris Williamson on 01392 202 361 or Jack Kennedy on 01491 418687.

Notes to editors

The Report on Jobs is a monthly publication produced by NTC on behalf of the Recruitment & Employment Confederation. The report features original survey data which provide the most up-to-date and comprehensive monthly picture of recruitment, employment and employee earnings trends available.

The Report features original research data from NTC, collected via questionnaire from a panel of 400 UK recruitment and employment consultancies. In 2000, some 1,326,000 people were employed in either temporary or contract work through consultancies and over 450,000 people were placed in permanent positions through consultancies. Data for the monthly survey were first collected in October 1997 and are collected at the end of each month, with respondents asked to specify the direction of change in a number of survey variables.

With the exception of the Press Recruitment Advertising Index, all Index numbers are calculated from the percentages of respondents reporting an improvement, no change or decline. These indices vary between 0 and 100 with reading of exactly 50.0 signalling no change on the previous month. Readings above 50 signal an increase or improvement; readings below 50 signal a decline or deterioration. Reasons given by survey respondents for any changes are analysed to provide insight into the causes of movements in the indices and are also used to adjust for expected seasonal variations.

Recruitment Advertising in National Newspapers data is derived from original survey data collected from media owners by NTC on behalf of the UK Advertising Association together with information from Nielsen Media Research. The data from both NTC and Nielsen Media Research refer only to advertisements in UK national newspapers and therefore tend to reflect trends in the managerial, professional white collar and executive job markets.

KPMG

KPMG is the global network of professional services firms who provide audit, tax and advisory services. KPMG LLP operates from 22 offices across the UK with over 9,000 partners and staff. KPMG recorded a UK turnover of £1.28 billion in the year ended September 2005. KPMG LLP, a UK limited liability partnership, is the UK member firm of KPMG International, a Swiss cooperative.

Recruitment and Employment Confederation 36-38 Mortimer Street, London W1W 7RG. Tel: 020 7462 3260. Fax: 020 7255 2878

The REC is the association for the £26 billion private recruitment and staffing industry in the UK, with over 6,500 recruitment agencies and 8,000 recruitment consultants in membership. There are 1.5 million temporary workers registered with UK agencies, and up to 1 million temps are deployed in industry, commerce and the public services every day.

NTC Economics

Farm Road, Henley-on-Thames, Oxon, RG9 1EJ. Tel: 01491 418700. Fax: 01491 571188.

NTC Economics is one of the world’s largest specialist providers of business research information, operating business surveys on behalf of blue chip clients. Current research includes continuous surveys providing original data on economic conditions in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Austria, Ireland, Greece, Russia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hong Kong, India, Japan and China. NTC surveys are widely used by governments, businesses and financial markets.

NOVEMBER 2005 REPORT

Six month high for permanent staff placements and increased pay pressure in November

The latest Report on Jobs survey showed that the UK job market gathered momentum in November. Stronger growth of demand for staff underpinned robust expansions in permanent and temporary staff appointments, while tightening candidate supply was reflected in higher inflation of wages and salaries.

Commenting on the latest report, Gareth Osborne, Managing Director of the REC said:

“This month’s marked increase in the demand for both permanent and temporary workers confirms that the UK labour market remains in good health. However, the ongoing skills shortage remains the key challenge across a number of sectors. As well as calling on the Government to deliver on its skills agenda, UK employers must be pro-active in widening the pool of suitable candidates, in particular by enhancing diversity in the workplace and promoting opportunities for older workers returning to the labour market. This is especially topical within the context of the ongoing debate on retirement ages and pensions.”

The Report on Jobs, published today by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, provides the most comprehensive guide to the UK labour market, drawing on original survey data provided by recruitment consultancies and employers, as well as data on national newspaper recruitment advertising.

Robust expansion in placements...

Recruitment consultants reported a thirtieth successive monthly rise in the number of people they placed in permanent jobs in November. Furthermore, the rate of increase accelerated to a robust pace that was the fastest in six months. Agencies’ billings from the employment of temporary/contract staff also recorded a healthy rise, albeit less marked than in the previous month.

...driven by stronger growth of staff demand

Having shown a slowing trend throughout much of the past year, growth of demand for staff picked up to the fastest in three months in November. Permanent staff demand remained stronger than that for temporary employees, though in both cases the rates of expansion quickened from October. Engineering & Construction workers remained the most in-demand staff category.

Actual employment was broadly unchanged

Growth of UK private sector employment slowed to only a negligible rate in November, according to the CIPS/NTC Employment Index, which is based on the Purchasing Managers’ Index surveys. Services and construction employment continued to rise, but at weaker rates than in October. Manufacturing staffing levels fell for the eighth month in succession, with the latest round of job cuts the most marked in three months.

Skill shortages increased...

Recruitment consultants indicated that the availability of candidates for permanent vacancies deteriorated at the sharpest rate in seven months in November. Temporary/contract staff availability was also down, falling for the first time since June, albeit only marginally.

 ...contributing to faster pay growth

Strengthening demand for staff and growing skill shortages drove permanent staff salary inflation to a seven-month high in November. Temporary/contract staff pay rates, meanwhile, grew at the fastest pace so far this year. Part of the rise in temp pay was attributed to the inflationary effect of the recent increase in the national minimum wage. The most up-to-date official data available showed that growth of employee earnings (including bonuses) cooled slightly to 4.1% in September, as services pay growth slowed. Manufacturing wages, by contrast, rose at the strongest rate in fourteen months.

 

Report on Jobs

The Report on Jobs Vacancies Indicator (which reflects the demand for staff at recruitment agencies) rose to its highest level in three months in November, and signalled a robust rate of demand growth. Meanwhile, the annual rate of decline in national press recruitment advertising in the UK eased to 11.8% in October.

The CIPS/NTC Employment Index (based on the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply surveys of 1,500 manufacturing, service sector and construction firms) indicated that growth of UK private sector employment slowed to only a negligible rate in November. Hiring slowed in the services and construction sectors, while manufacturing employment fell.

 

 

OCTOBER 2005 REPORT

 

4 November 2005

Demand for staff at lowest level in over two years

The latest Report on Jobs survey showed that UK labour market conditions continued to improve in October, with both permanent and temporary staff appointments posting further solid gains. However, growth of demand for staff at employers remained at the lowest level for over two years.

The Report on Jobs, published today by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation, provides the most comprehensive guide to the UK labour market, drawing on original survey data provided by recruitment consultancies and employers, as well as data on national newspaper recruitment advertising.

Commenting on the latest report, Gareth Osborne, Managing Director of the REC said:

"Although the rate of growth in demand for staff has continued to plateau, the UK labour market remains in good health. Temp staff wages are up as a result of the increased minimum wage but the on-going skills shortages in sectors such as construction and engineering continues to create severe resourcing challenges.”

Reflecting on the diversity challenge facing employers, Osborne continued

“By 2010 only 20% of the labour market will be white non disabled men under 45, so employers across all sectors that are serious about developing a more diverse workforce need to work with recruiters to access a wider pool of potential candidates.”

Slightly quicker growth of staff placements

Recruitment consultancies reported a slight quickening in the rate of increase of permanent staff placements in October. Temporary/contract staff billings also grew at an accelerating pace, with the latest rise in the biggest in ten months.

Growth of demand for staff unchanged

Job vacancies continued to rise in October, though the rate of increase was unchanged from September’s twenty-five month low. Demand for permanent staff remained stronger than that for temp workers. Engineering & Construction workers were again the most in-demand staff category.

Two other job vacancy indicators pointed to slowing demand for staff. National press recruitment advertising in the UK was down 13.1% on a year earlier in September. That was the fastest pace of decline since November 2002. Meanwhile, government figures showed that the stock of vacancies at UK employers fell at the sharpest rate for two years in September.

 Small rise in private sector employment

UK private sector employment continued to rise at a moderate rate in October, according to the CIPS/NTC Employment Index, which is based on the Purchasing Managers’ Index surveys. Staffing levels in the services and construction sectors rose again, reflecting growing workloads and expansion programmes at firms. However, manufacturing employment remained in decline, though the latest fall was the smallest in the current period of workforce reduction.

 Lower availability of permanent candidates

The availability of suitably qualified permanent candidates continued to decline in October, with the latest fall the biggest in five months. Temporary/contract staff availability was little-changed on the previous month.

 Faster growth of wages and salaries

Average starting salaries for successful candidates placed in permanent jobs rose at a robust pace in October, in part reflecting shortages of skilled workers. Temporary staff hourly wages grew at the strongest rate in seven months, largely due to the inflationary effect of the increase in the national minimum wage (which came into force at the start of the month). Official data showed that the headline annual rate of growth of employee earnings (including bonuses) remained at 4.2% in August.

PRESS NOTICE

Report on Jobs

The Report on Jobs Vacancies Indicator (which reflects the demand for staff at recruitment agencies) remained unchanged from September’s twenty-five month low in the latest month (though still signalled a solid rise). Meanwhile, levels of national press recruitment advertising in the UK were down 13.1% on the same period a year earlier in September.

The CIPS/NTC Employment Index (based on the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply surveys of 1,500 manufacturing, service sector and construction firms) indicated further modest growth of UK private sector employment in October. Employment continued to rise in services and construction, but manufacturing jobs were again cut.