Midlands bucks UK trend on jobseekers
THERE has been a sharp rise in the availability of both permanent and temporary jobseekers in the Midlands together with a growth in demand for staff – bucking the UK trend, a new study has claimed.
The Report on Jobs, prepared by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation in conjunction with KPMG, said that after falls during June, the number of permanent placements was unchanged in the Midlands during July. This compared with a second consecutive fall in placements across the UK as a whole.
The study contains original data from recruitment and employment consultants in the Midlands. The report is designed to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date guide to labour market trends.
It said while permanent placements in the Midlands were unchanged, temporary billings continued to rise during July. People responding to the study highlighted the Olympics as a factor behind the rise in temporary billings. Although the rate of growth eased from that seen in June, the rise in the Midlands contrasted with a further fall at the UK level.
Three of the four regions posted declines in permanent placements as the Midlands registered no change. The steepest decline in appointments was in London. Apart from the Midlands, the South of England was the only other region to post a rise in temporary billings, while the North recorded the fastest reduction.
Demand for both permanent and temporary workers in the Midlands increased further in July. The rate of growth in demand for permanent staff was solid and unchanged from that seen in the previous month. The expansion in the region was stronger than the UK economy average. Demand for temporary staff increased at a solid pace that was faster than the average for the UK as a whole.
After decreasing in the previous three months, the availability of permanent staff rose in July. Moreover, the extent of the increase in availability was substantial, and the sharpest in 2012 so far.
The rise in permanent candidate numbers in the Midlands was also stronger than the UK economy average. As has been the case in all but one month of the past two years, temporary candidate numbers increased in the Midlands during July and the latest rise was the fastest since March, and more marked than that recorded at the UK level.
The South of England was the only region where the number of permanent candidates decreased in July, with the strongest rise seen in London. This trend was repeated with regards to temporary candidate numbers.
Permanent salaries in the Midlands increased for the second successive month in July. The rate of inflation quickened to the fastest since January, but was still weaker than the long-run series average. Permanent salaries in the region rose more quickly than the UK economy average. Meanwhile, pay rates for temporary staff in the Midlands were unchanged in July. The stabilisation in the region ended an 11-month sequence of inflation. At the UK level, hourly pay rates fell marginally.
Permanent salaries increased across all four monitored regions, with the fastest rise seen in the Midlands. Meanwhile, only the South posted inflation of temporary pay rates. Both London and the North saw falls in temporary pay, with the sharper decline in the capital.
Kevin Green, chief executive of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, said: “The UK’s labour market deserves a gold medal for its incredible performance in the face of adversity so far this year. In the last few months, it has defied gravity as unemployment has fallen and jobs grew even while the economy slipped back into recession.
“But this run might be coming to an end as national data this month shows that permanent appointments have fallen for a second month and temporary employment has seen an eighth consecutive month of contraction. However, the Midlands appears to be faring better than other regions – and we have always said that we expected to see ups and downs in the employment figures rather than a continued sustained period of jobs growth.”
He emphasised that despite the state of the economy employers were still hiring and that the number of vacancies had grown. Sadly, fragile confidence means they are taking longer to make decisions about appointments and the whole process of recruiting is slowing down, a situation likely to worsen as thousands of new school and university leavers join the jobs market over the next month.
Sectors which are likely to experience the highest demand for staff have been flagged as engineering, computing and healthcare.
Steve Hollis, chairman of KPMG in the Midlands, said: “Once again the Midlands labour market outperformed the national average in terms of staff placements – something that has proved to be the case for the past six months. Stable permanent appointments and a further rise in short-term jobs contrasted with declines at the UK level.
“The work undertaken here in the region to attract investment is clearly paying off, but while this is good news for the Midlands, it is worrying that the employment picture across the UK is not picking up. We need the UK as a whole to embark on an uptick – let’s hope the much needed Olympic boost provides the start.”
