In this article, we look at the main trends within the UK labour market at the beginning of 2023
Labour Market Shortages
One of the features of the UK labour market in 2022 was one of staff shortages, and that has continued into 2023 with a new survey by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reporting that 32% of employers (with 10 or more staff within the private sector) had encountered labour shortages during December 2022.
According to the ONS report, the sector which was most adversely impacted by labour shortages was 'human health and social work activities' (51%).
Job Security
A new survey conducted by insurance brokers, Reassured, has looked at which sectors of the labour market provide workers with the most job security. They found that the most secure jobs were in human health and social work, with a redundancy rate of just 1.43. The next most secure jobs were those in education (1.49) and public admin & defence: social securit (1.77)
In comparison, the labour market sectors which offered the least amount of job security were administrative and support services, with a redundancy rate of 6.73. Other sectors which were amongst the least secure were accommodation and food services (5.89) and manufacturing (5.71).
The area of the country which provides the most job security is Northern Ireland, which has a redundancy rate of 2.55. Second and third most secure were Scotland (2.81) and Wales (3.00). The least secure was the south east of England (4.65), followed by the south west of England (4.59) and London (4.22).
The report also found that job security has increased over the last decade overall, with only real estate, insurance, finance, and 'miscellaneous job roles' witnessing a decline in security.
Flexible Working
A new survey by Work.life has looked into which sectors of the labour market are offering the greatest scope for flexible working. The survey involved conducting an assessment of job adverts on LinkedIn within the hybrid, remote, and onsite categories, which featured the word 'flexible'.
The sector of the labour market which was found to be providing the most scope for flexible working was accountancy (31%), although the sector which has the most jobs which are fully remote is software (28%). The latter finding is hardly surprising, given that the software sector built the technology that facilitates remote working in the first place.
In terms of hybrid working, the sector of the labour market which provides the most opportunities is PR (60%).
The sector of the economy which provides the least amount of flexible working overall is education (16%).
Second Jobs
As we highlighted in a recent article, a new report from Qualtrics found that 34% of workers have looked for second jobs in order to boost their income, due to the cost of living crisis. This finding has been reinforced by a new report from Censuswide (on behalf of Unum), which has found that 16% of workers (which equates to 4.5 million workers) intend to search for a second job.
One of the benefits for existing employers of employees taking second jobs, as opposed to leaving altogether to take up a higher paid role, is that it aids staff retention.
On the issue of staff retention, the managing director of Lodge Court, Ian Moore, states: “We’re going through a cost of living crisis and, by allowing your staff to take on a second job, you’re enabling them to increase their income at a time when you can’t pay them more. This can be beneficial for both parties – the employee gets a much-needed financial boost, and you get to keep a good employee who might otherwise have had to leave.“
