City of London firms keep hiring levels high

New figures show that London companies are not letting concern over slower growth affect their hiring tendencies.

There may have been some concerns that UK growth may slow as we move into 2015, but it’s clear that London employers aren’t letting such worries affect their hiring practices.

The latest London Employment Monitor from recruitment firm Morgan McKinley shows that job opportunities in the City increased by two per cent year-on-year in October.

That means there were more than 7,400 roles on offer across the month, which both reflects business growth and indicates that an improving economy has encouraged more workers to seek new opportunities.

“The positive trend in hiring across the City paints a rosy picture as the capital carries on strengthening, which is great news considering how hard the City was hit during the global financial crisis,” says Morgan McKinley Financial Services operations director Hakan Enver.

Although the figures are six per cent lower than September, that’s at least partially a seasonal fixture. September usually sees a spike in job moves as people return to work after the summer holiday period.

The time of year also impacts on the number of professionals seeking new opportunities in the City, which edged up by one per cent from September. After the uptick in the previous month, as October comes around many professionals begin to doubt their decision to look for new roles – especially if they could risk walking away from a full year’s bonus, Mr Enver explains.

Encouragingly, salaries are on the rise as well, defying the sluggish wage growth in the UK as a whole.

In fact, people who secured new jobs achieved an average salary increase of 18 per cent in October – and with new regulations coming into effect across the finance sector, it’s unsurprising that compliance was the function with the most substantial pay increases.

“Two major reasons for this increased demand are, the response to heavy fines implemented by regulatory bodies for internal compliance failings, and hiring as a preventative measure against any future potential penalties,” adds Mr Enver.

“Hiring managers are prepared to offer premium salaries to attract professionals with extremely strong technical knowledge.”