There has been a surge in the number of people applying for jobs in the South West as companies make redundancies during the coronavirus crisis, a new report says.
The latest KPMG and REC, UK Report on Jobs: South of England survey, which covers the West Country, highlighted a slight reduction in permanent staff appointments during November, while the number of people taking temporary jobs remained marked.
At the same time, data showed a further drop in permanent vacancies across the region, while temporary job vacancies rose only modestly.
The Covid-19 pandemic also drove a further marked increase in the availability of both permanent and temporary candidates as companies shed staff.
Higher staff supply and muted demand for workers led to further falls in starting pay, with salaries declining at the quickest rate for four months.
Ian Brokenshire, senior partner for KPMG in Plymouth, said there would be challenges ahead for the region’s jobs market despite the roll-out of the first anti-virus vaccine.
He said: “The latest report makes for concerning reading; there’s no doubt this Christmas will be a challenging one for the region’s businesses and our residents, even with the extension of the furlough scheme. The latest findings are softened only by the slowing fall in permanent placements.
“The vaccine provides real hope that normality may soon return, but businesses and job seekers will be looking for more support from the government to reskill and retrain to give that much-needed boost to the economy.”
The KPMG and REC, UK Report on Jobs: South of England is compiled by IHS Markit from responses to questionnaires sent to around 150 recruitment and employment consultancies in the South of England.
The latest survey revealed that the number of people placed into permanent jobs in the South West fell for the second successive month in November.
That said, the rate of reduction softened from October’s solid pace and was marginal. The decline was also weaker than the UK average.
Where lower permanent staff appointments were reported, this was generally attributed to uncertainty stemming from coronavirus and the imposition of the second national lockdown in November.
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At the regional level, the fall was broad-based and led by London, while the South West saw the slowest reduction in permanent staff appointments.
Lingering market uncertainty and stronger demand for short-term staff helped to lift temp billings in the South West for the fourth month in a row.
The rate of expansion accelerated slightly since October and was sharp overall. The latest upturn was also broadly in line with that seen across the UK as a whole.
Demand for permanent staff across the South West fell again in November. But the rate of reduction remained modest and was slower than the UK-wide trend.
Temporary vacancies rose for the third consecutive month across the region during November. But the rate of growth was the softest seen over this period and only mild. The upturn was also slower than that seen at the national level.
The seasonally adjusted Permanent Staff Availability Index signalled a further rise in permanent staff supply in the South West. The rate of growth remained historically sharp, despite easing further from August's recent peak.
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Recruiters frequently linked higher candidate numbers to redundancies and employees seeking new roles due to worries about further job cuts. Data broken down by region revealed the South West recorded the quickest upturn in permanent worker supply.
November survey data revealed a softer increase in the availability of staff for short-term roles across the region, however. The rate of growth was the slowest seen since April, but remained marked overall. Company layoffs were again cited as the key driver of greater temp staff supply midway through the fourth quarter.
Recruitment consultancies signalled a further decline in starting salaries for permanent workers in the South West, thereby stretching the current sequence of reduction to eight months.
Notably, the latest drop in salaries was the most marked since July and sharper than the national average. According to anecdotal evidence, the pandemic and rising staff supply had placed downward pressure on pay.
Hourly rates of pay for short-term workers in the South West fell further. But the rate of reduction softened since October and was only slight.
The decline in wages was also slower than that across the UK as a whole. As was the case with starting salaries, recruiters indicated the pandemic and subdued demand for workers had led to lower wages during the latest survey period.
Neil Carberry, chief executive of the REC (Recruitment and Employment Confederation), said: “With lockdown measures in place in England last month, the slowdown in both demand for and placements of permanent staff is unsurprising – although the scale of it is much smaller than earlier in the year.
“Feedback from REC members indicates that employers are still looking to hire, with a lot of demand for permanent staff displaced to January as firms hope the Covid crisis is easing. For now though, temporary work continues to help businesses operate and people find jobs – some positive news as we head towards Christmas.
“With the vaccine on the way, we must remember not to get complacent – many firms will still need support in the coming months as the economy gradually recovers.
“This goes for workers too and, as recruiters are the jobs experts, an even closer partnership with the industry will help Government bring people back into work through JobCentres and the Restart scheme.”
