The Recruitment and Employment Confederation's (REC) latest jobs outlook survey has found that there has been a modest improvement in the jobs outlook of employers.
Jobs Outlook Improves
The latest jobs outlook survey from the REC, in which it interviewed 200 employers, has found that there has been a modest improvement in the jobs outlook of employers. In its survey, the REC found that:-
- The number of employers who are planning to hire staff over the next 3 months is 14% higher than those who are not. This +14% figure for July 2020, is an increase of +8 on the figure for June 2020 (which stood at +6). The figure for taking on new staff in the next 4-12 months is +12%
- Those employers who are confident about their ability to make hiring and investments decisions over the next year is now +4%, compared with -9% back in June 2020. This is the first positive figure since February 2020.
- Confidence in the overall economy remains in the doldrums, given the ongoing problems with the coronavirus pandemic, despite recent improvements. 60% of employers anticipate that economic conditions will deteriorate, compared with 21% who believe that they will improve (i.e. -39%). However, that is up from June 2020, when the level stood at -46%
- 17% of employers reported that they had made redundancies in the year to July 2020, compared with 9% in the year to June 2020.
- In its Jobs Recovery Tracker, the REC report that in tandem with the slightly improved jobs outlook that the number of active job postings has increased to 1.05 million in the week of the 6th - 12th July 2020, from 990,000 during the week of the 22nd - 28th of June 2020
Coronavirus Business Impact Tracker
Whilst their has been a modest improvement in the jobs outlook, the British Chambers of Commerce found in its latest coronavirus business impact tracker, a poll of 750 businesses, that companies are operating at just 53% of their pre-coronavirus lockdown levels. It also reported that the two biggest obstacles to a return to normal, were a lack of customer demand (cited by 54% of businesses) and the fear of further national or local lockdowns (reported by 52% of businesses).
Jobs Outlook Improvement: Reaction
Commenting on the improved jobs outlook, the REC's chief executive, Neil Carberry, stated: "It’s good to see employer confidence rising as the lockdown measures ease – at this stage we would expect things to be getting better month-by-month. Even at times like these, there are always opportunities out there for jobseekers. But businesses are still very worried about the overall outlook for the economy, and while some are hiring, many are having to make tough decisions around laying people off. It’s too early to tell how quickly the economy will recover, but there are steps the government can take to keep firms hiring and boost growth – including a more flexible skills system and a reduction in the government’s payroll tax, National Insurance, to reduce the cost of hiring. Equally, it’s vital that we secure a good Brexit trade deal and deliver a workable immigration system on time to build up confidence and business investment here in the UK.”
The senior labour market adviser of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), Gerwyn Davies, also commenting on the jobs outlook improvement, added that: "The number of vacancies is continuing to lag substantially behind pre-Covid levels, especially in sectors such as hospitality and tourism, which are still suffering from the ripple effects of the pandemic shock. It is therefore inevitable that the overall jobs market will continue to shrink in the short term as the number of employers planning to make redundancies will continue to exceed the number of employers planning to hire."
