The downturn in the economy over the last few years has affected many things, from house prices to salary rises, but it seems that the job market is now showing promising signs of improvement. Up until as recently as the beginning of 2013, the job market in general was continuing to struggle. From a Recruitment agency standpoint there less candidates on the market for some specialisms as no one felt confident enough to make a move.
A recent global survey shows that the UK job market has improved considerably over the last few months, especially compared to other markets around the world. The data shows clearly that hiring rates in the UK have increased, with up to 50% of companies admitting to taking on new employees. And these opportunities seem to be available across a range of levels, including managerial positions. This upturn is predicted to continue too, with over 53% of employers having plans to hire new people over the next year.
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Looking more closely at the UK market, another recent survey of HR professionals found that for the first time since 2008, many firms are now expecting a boost in recruitment, rather than just retaining talent. Businesses seem to be looking forward to more positive futures, meaning they will need to hire additional talent to keep abreast of growing production levels.
Data has shown that the job markets within certain areas of the UK seemed to be faring better than others, with the North still suffering from a lack of job opportunities and greater competition for positions. For example, in Hull or on the Wirral you are likely to find from 45 to 50 job seekers applying for each position, while in the South the numbers are very different. As any recruitment agency in Cambridge, Essex or London itself will have noticed, the average number of job seekers per vacancy is often as low as 2.08. London and the South East are currently dominating the growing job market, with nine out of the ten best places in which to find a job all being in the South.
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Certain sectors within the job market are proving to be stronger than others too, as IT, engineering, accounting and finance are leading the way with the best career opportunities. Creative jobs and those in nursing and healthcare are also seeing a boost. Salaries are showing a small improvement too, with sectors such as IT seeing an average increase of around 8% compared to previous years.
These results are proving good news for job seekers and with more jobs to choose from, at a variety of levels and with less competition for each opportunity, the future is looking bright. Now is a good time to polish your CV and get out there to find your perfect job.
Gill, a co-founder and Director of Pure Resourcing Solutions graduated from Glasgow University with an MA. She has over 20 year’s recruitment expertise. Her experience is diverse and includes working for an international specialist accountancy recruitment firm in Cambridge and Sydney, Australia. Gill continues to be actively involved with a variety of clients as well as continuing the development of Pure Resourcing Solutions both internally and externally.
