News
Increase in permanent appointments for first time in four months
Published on 8th February 2012 by Lucy Payne
Permanent staff appointments have risen for the first time since October 2011, according to the latest Report on Jobs.
The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG’s report shows that while permanent appointments have risen modestly, temporary/contract staff billings have fallen slightly for the second month running.
Kevin Green, chief executive, REC, says: “This month’s Report on Jobs highlights that there are glimmers of hope for the UK jobs market with permanent placements increasing for the first time in four months. This is the first positive indicator for some time that employers are looking to hire staff despite the ongoing weakness of the economy.”
The report also showed that demand for staff continued to grow, however the rate of growth eased to the weakest for over two years (27 months). However, Engineering/Construction workers we most sought-after.
Bernard Brown, Partner and Head of Business Services, KPMG, says: “At least there are signs within some industries that things are looking up. Amongst the engineering, construction and IT sectors demand for permanent staff has increased since the turn of the year. With so much attention being paid to these sectors at the moment, close attention should be paid to see if this is a trend set to continue as the year progresses.”