Review of the UK Jobs Market – August

Welcome to our Review of the UK Jobs Market for August. Each month, we share market insight on the state of the UK jobs market.

You can either read our short blog, or see our infographic.

The main findings were:

• Staff appointments continue to fall during August
• Slower growth in permanent staff pay
• Staff demand down slightly again in August
• Strong growth of staff availability signalled

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Staff Appointments

For the second successive month, there was a marginal decline in temp billings. A lack of demand for temp workers was cited, wth clients reportedly cutting costs of not renewing contracts. Whereas there was growth in temp billings in the Midlands and North, declines were seen in London and the South.

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Vacancies

Staff demand down slightly in August

Permanent vacancies decreased in August, falling for a twelth consecutive month. The pace of contraction was gain marginal, being unchanged since July. Temp staff demand also declined slightly in August. It was the first time in four months that a reduction in temp vacancies has been registered.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics showed a decline in vacnacy numbers of 25,000 in the there months to July, when compared to the three months to April. Relative to 12 months’ ago, vacancy numbers were 140,000 lower. The overall number of vacancies was 884,000 in July – the lowest level for just over three year, but still well above the pre-pandemic level of 796,000 set in the three months to March 2020.

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Staff Availability

Strong growth of staff availability signalled

For the eighteenth month in a row, an increase in permanent staff availability was recorded in August. The rate of growth was again steep, despite easing to its lowest level in half-a-year. A higher number of redundancies and a reduction in placements led to the rise in staff availability, anecdotal evidence showed.

Temp availability rose again in August, extending the current trend of growth that began in March 2023. The degree to which availability increased was also the steepest in four months. A lack of vacancies, linked to reduced workplace activity, plus increased search activity for new roles boosted candidate supply.

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Pay Pressures

Extending the current period of inflation to three-and-a-half years, typical permanent salaries rose again in August – albeit at the slowest rate since March. Clients remained willing to pay higher salaties to attract suitable staff, especially in areas wher ethe supply of candidates remained low. The strongest uplift in starting salaries was in the North of England.

Source: KPMG and REC UK Report on Jobs 9th September 2024