Report shows increase in demand for permanent finance workers

The latest IHS Markit jobs report has shown that there was an increase in job vacancies for permanent staff across the UK last month, with accounting and finance being among the sectors to see a rise in demand.

The report, which is sponsored by the Recruitment & Employment Federation (REC), analysed data from the Office for National Statistics and showed that job vacancies hit a record high of 824,000, with a year-on-year rise of 50% in the three months leading up to June.

Highest

While permanent placements increased last month, it was at the lowest recorded rate since October last year. However, finance and accounting saw a strong increase in demand, with the sectors having the fourth-highest rise in demand for permanent workers out of the ten sectors that were analysed in the report.

The study highlighted the issue of candidate shortages, with the number of candidates for permanent and temporary roles continuing to fall last month. Pay for candidates starting in new roles has increased, a sign that businesses are offering higher pay in order to attract talent.

Positive 

The report also showed that private sector businesses in the UK are feeling positive about recruiting new staff, despite a no-deal Brexit and trade wars being listed as factors that could contribute to a drop in confidence when it comes to firms’ hiring plans.