Job postings have started to increase month-on-month just as the UK begins to wind down its furlough scheme in August, according to the new Keep Britain Working Job Index.
The figures, which are taken from job site reed.co.uk, show that July job postings showed a month-on-month increase in 30 of 36 sectors analysed with job creation stabilising across the board.
Despite this positive news, job postings are down 58% in comparison to last year and applications per job roughly doubled when compared to January 2020, indicating that there remains a dark shadow of unemployment in the economy following Covid-19 restrictions.
Commenting on these figures James Reed, co-founder of Keep Britain Working and chairman of Reed, said:
“We know that coronavirus has hit the UK hard. It has hit the world hard. But it is all about recovery now and that recovery is underway. Hopes of a V-shaped recovery were dashed earlier by disappointing GDP figures. Now ONS unemployment statistics suggest the UK’s economic trajectory could look more like a game of snakes and ladders. It’s clear that the road to recovery will be long and that there’ll be lots more ups and downs along the way.
“With a 13 percentage point increase in construction roles, a 5 percentage point increase in administration roles, and a 7 percentage point increase in engineering roles in the last month there are encouraging signs that we are starting to see the glimmer at the end of the gloom.
“Government and business will need to work constructively and creatively to help support the jobs market – our Keep Britain Working campaign is doing exactly this. By bringing together business leaders and workers we’re now developing ideas such as reforming National Insurance, improving employment law and expanding research and development that will support the jobs market and help us recover from this economic upheaval. We must do all that we can to ensure that jobs, jobs, jobs does not become dole, dole, dole”
Ged Mason OBE, CEO of the Morson Group, said:
“The shakeup to our economy in the last six months has been like nothing we have seen before and are likely to ever see again. Though, while headlines about the jobs market have tended to be negative during this period, there are positives to report on.
“Although job counts are down overall compared to January, roles in sectors such as health and medicine have surged. There are regional differences across the UK but it truly is an employer’s market, with average applications per job doubling in the last six months. This puts the onus on the applicant to sell themselves and ensure their experience and compatibility shines through.
“Industries we expect to thrive in coming months include construction and engineering, largely as a reaction to the Chancellor’s Summer Economic Update. The Prime Minister’s promise to ‘build, build, build’ was reflected in Sunak’s announcement; initiatives such as apprenticeship bonuses, cuts to stamp duty and investment into wider infrastructure should see the creation of hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs, while vital projects like HS2 will be accelerated further.”
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