Hard Brexit fears and weak pound spark exodus among UK jobseekers

New research shows

The number of Britons searching for jobs overseas is climbing back towards levels not seen since the immediate aftermath of the UK’s vote for Brexit, according to data from the world’s largest job site Indeed.

The analysis – of millions of searches made by UK-based jobseekers – also reveals that Britons’ desire to work elsewhere in the EU has increased steadily as the Euro has strengthened against the Pound. It comes after Sterling plummeted to its lowest level against the single currency in five years on Friday.

The biggest beneficiary of UK jobseekers’ wanderlust is Ireland – with British searches for Irish jobs during the 100 days after the referendum averaging 20 per cent higher than in the weeks before the poll.

The sustained interest in Irish jobs matches the picture seen in the immediate aftermath of the vote. At their peak in July, British searches for jobs in Ireland were 22 per cent higher than their pre-referendum figure.

It’s a similar pattern among Britons looking for jobs in Australia. Searches for jobs Down Under were 13 per cent higher in the 100 days following the referendum, and there have been steady increases in searches for jobs in Canada, Germany and the EU as a whole. By contrast, Britons’ interest in jobs in France has fallen by six per cent.

While UK searches for jobs in the EU as a whole are up a modest seven per cent on their pre-referendum levels, British interest in European jobs has broadly mirrored the Euro’s steady rise against Sterling. On referendum day, one Euro was worth 76p, yet it now buys 90p.

Mariano Mamertino, EMEA Economist at the global job site, Indeed, said: “Within hours of Britain’s vote for Brexit, many UK-based jobseekers jumped online to look for work elsewhere – and the first frenzied days after the referendum saw a huge spike in searches for jobs overseas.

“As the dust settled on the result, many expected that Britons’ desire to work abroad would cool. Yet our research reveals that the number of searches for overseas jobs remains high. For the most popular countries, average levels of search during the 100 days since the result now match the immediate post-result surge.