Staff appointments increase at quicker pace…
The number of people placed into permanent jobs in the UK rose at a sharp and accelerated rate in October. Notably, the latest increase was the second-fastest since March. At the same time, billings for temp staff expanded at the quickest pace since May.
…as demand for staff remains robust
Although job vacancies expanded at the softest pace for nearly two years in October, growth of demand for staff remained historically sharp at the start of the fourth quarter.
Starting salary inflation holds close to multi-year high…
Starting salaries continued to rise sharply in October, with the rate of inflation holding close to September’s 41-month record. Hourly pay rates for temporary staff also increased markedly, despite the rate of growth edging down to the least marked since March.
…driven by sustained fall in candidate availability
Overall candidate availability declined at the quickest pace for nine months in October. The supply of both permanent workers and temporary staff fell at steeper rates compared to September, with the former noting the sharper pace of reduction.
Regional variation
All four English regions monitored by the survey registered steep increases in permanent placements, led by the South of England.
The Midlands saw the quickest increase in temp billings in the latest survey period, though sharp rates of growth were also registered elsewhere.
Sector variation
Demand for staff continued to increase at a quicker pace across the private sector compared to the public sector during October.
In the private sector, both permanent and temporary staff vacancies rose at softer, but still sharp, rates. In the public sector, demand for permanent staff increased at a faster pace, but softened for temporary workers.
Vacancies for permanent staff rose across all ten monitored job categories in October. IT & Computing and Engineering registered the steepest increases in demand, while the slowest (but still marked) rise was seen for Construction staff.
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