The number of people applying for jobs in the South West has hit a record high with experts saying it is due to redundant and furloughed workers seeking new opportunities.
The latest KPMG and REC, 海角视频 Report on Jobs: South of England survey, which covers the West Country, showed that though the decline in the number of permanent and temporary jobs fell at the slowest rate for five months in July, recruiters reported the steepest increase in the number of people looking for those jobs on record.
This was due to redundancies and furloughed workers looking for new jobs, and the substantial rise in candidate numbers, and weak demand for workers, meant pay rates went down too.
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Ian Brokenshire, senior partner for KPMG in Plymouth, said: “It’s quite shocking that the number of people looking for jobs in the South has grown at the fastest rate for 23 years.
“Many businesses in and around Plymouth are facing the sad reality that they can’t return to the ‘old normal’ just yet, and both permanent and temporary job hunters are competing for fewer jobs with lower salaries.
“While permanent and temporary vacancies are far from abundant, the fact that the fall in vacancies is slowing can give job hunters some slim hope that things will start to look up.”
In the South West, recruiters frequently mentioned that the pandemic and greater economic uncertainty had led clients to maintain a cautious approach to staff hiring.
As for temporary jobs, recruiters also often blamed the fall on uncertainty stemming from the COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent decline in economic activity.
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The availability of permanent workers was the steepest recorded since the survey began nearly 23 years ago and was quicker than the 海角视频 average. According to survey respondents, candidate availability increased due to redundancies and furloughed staff looking for new roles, and there was a substantial rise in the number of available temporary workers, also a new survey record.
Salaries awarded to new permanent joiners fell in July. The rate of reduction remained historically sharp, despite easing further from the record drop seen in May.
Reports from recruiters widely linked the latest fall to rising candidate supply and weak demand for workers. Adjusted for seasonal variation, the Temporary Wages Index signalled a further drop in hourly pay rates for short-term staff.
The KPMG and REC, 海角视频 Report on Jobs: South of England is compiled by IHS Markit from responses to questionnaires sent to around 150 recruitment and employment consultancies in the South of England.
Neil Carberry, chief executive of the REC, said: “While permanent placements and temp billings still decreased last month across most areas of the country, the pace of decline has slowed hugely as the tide turned on lockdown.
“With the economy opening up through June and July, we would expect an improving trend in the coming months as firms recover from the worst of the crisis. The fact that demand is now increasing for temporary blue collar and construction workers is also a good sign.
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“There are far fewer vacancies in the market than before March, and more people looking for jobs. Recruiters will be key to helping people build confidence and find work – but the reality is that Government needs to help kickstart hiring.
“Reducing employers’ National Insurance rates would cut the cost of hiring, and a good Brexit trade deal will also support stronger business confidence and investment.”