Employers ‘Resilient’ Despite Economy Fears

Posted on: 26 Sep 2017

Employers are showing resilience in the face of a potentially declining economy and staff shortages in areas like health and construction, a recruitment expert has said.

A third of employers are concerned that economic conditions in the UK are getting worse, according to the results of the latest JobsOutlook survey by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC), however, many bosses don’t agree.

The monthly study found that while more employers have negative feelings about the country’s economy this month than last, just over a quarter of employers said they felt that economic conditions were improving.

Almost a fifth of employers indicated that they intend to hire more workers in the next quarter, with a number of sectors set to experience staff shortages. In particular, the construction industry is expected to face a shortage of skilled workers for building services jobs, while the health and social care sector is likely to struggle to find staff for permanent roles.

Kevin Green, REC chief executive, said: “Employers are showing a great deal of resilience as they continue to hire despite a growing number losing faith in the direction the economy is heading.”

He added that the political climate isn’t helping – businesses need to be able to make plans and thus far, Brexit negotiations have not resolved any core issues.

According to the recruitment expert, there are 1.9 unemployed people for every vacancy and migration from the EU is falling, which means the pool of potential workers employers have to choose from is shrinking. He urged politicians to “heed the warning signs” and give businesses the clarity they need.