Latest jobs data - April 2022

"The rising cost of living is prompting ever more workers to review their current position. When faced with the prospect of an annual pay rise far below inflation levels, more and more people are looking for new opportunities. We have seen a significant increase in enquiries from candidates seeking to work self-employed over the past two months. The most common reasons cited by candidates for wanting to go self-employed is to break the downwards earning trap of below inflation pay rises and avoid the commute to a city office and face year after year of above inflation ticket price rises on the train, or fuel for cars. As inflation impacts more and more families, we anticipate seeing an increase in people looking to move role. The main employers who will struggle during this period will be those paying at, or just above, minimum wage. With an existing shortage of available labour driven by Brexit, these businesses will increasingly struggle to attract and retain staff. Equally impacted will be city firms that rigidly insist on office attendance where it is not strictly necessary as the job can be done remotely."

"Recruitment is exceptionally tough right now. Candidates are in short supply and, when they are found, they are looking for more from employers than ever before. They're demanding increased flexibility in the form of working from home or hybrid arrangements and higher salaries to compensate for the ridiculous hike in the cost of living. Employers are in a really tight spot, particularly those that have taken a battering during the pandemic and are trying to recover. It's an uphill struggle because they need new staff to enable their businesses to function, grow, and scale up, but many are unable to afford the increased salaries that candidates are looking for. It's the ultimate Catch 22 and I fear it will be a huge challenge for many SMEs in the next year or so."

"Many business owners are telling us it's never been as hard to recruit and have realised that they need to offer remote or hybrid working in order to attract and retain the best staff. There are still some concerns over WFH productivity and maintaining company culture, but new technology can solve these problems and help build a connected, motivated and happy workforce. The second half of 2022 will see those companies demanding a full-time return to the office face record resignations, while those embracing change will thrive and poach their competitors' best talent. From an employment perspective, the pandemic has fundamentally changed the rules of the game."

"The Great Resignation is an acknowledgement that what employees are seeking from their work has changed. Working with the over-50s running Startup School for Seniors, we encounter many who want to work but require more flexibility due to having to care for elderly parents or because they are struggling with their own health and mobility issues. The modern workplace has yet to acknowledge or accommodate their needs and, as a result, older people are having to resign not retire."

"With 1 in 4 workers concerned about finding a job that will support the increased cost of living, making ends meet is top of mind for many candidates. Data from Glassdoor employee reviews shows that discussion of inflation has soared in 2022 with mentions up 330% from a year ago. All of this is worrying at a time when the job market is showing signs of cooling - despite record-high job vacancies - as the UK economy struggles to recover from a persistent worker shortage and supply chain disruption thanks to COVID-19."

"The Great Resignation is still rampant in certain sectors such as health and social care and there doesn’t seem to be any let up, as big organisations like Amazon are luring people away with the promise of higher wages and better working hours. We're seeing a challenging time for many within the health and social care sector and unless something is done to support this over the next few months, it will only deepen, creating all manner of societal issues. Although the government promised more investment in training, this isn’t a sustainable solution due to the time lag of many more people leaving the industry than those coming through. The health sector has never been in such poor health from a recruitment perspective."