Regional & Sector Reports

Over the last decade, the transformation in the North West has been seismic, with Manchester becoming the jewel of the region. ‘The northern powerhouse’ initiative whilst not delivering on all its promises, has acted as a welcome boost for the region with both state aid and direct foreign investment increasing as a result.

While job numbers in the pharmaceutical industry followed a largely downward trend in the last year, we’ve seen significant spikes in application numbers, suggesting that more professionals are seeking a change of employer. This sector, like many others, suffers from major skills shortages, and employers have reacted to the dearth of talent by boosting salaries significantly in recent months.

The construction sector is often seen as a bellwether of the economy and a downturn in this market usually represents a challenging economic climate, which is what we saw over the course of 2023.

The financial services sector has faced some notable challenges over the past 12 months with major regulatory overhauls impacting many organisations’ hiring activities. We saw the impact of these shifts in the second half of 2023 with permanent and contract job numbers both declining. However, the beginning of this year has given cause for optimism and it will be interesting to see how the market evolves in the next few months.

The ongoing skills shortages within education have been well publicised and have impacted the market for some time. Data from last year shows that employers and the industry as a whole need to do more to boost the pipeline of incoming skills. While the public sector pay rise announced last year will go some way to improve retention, our latest report suggests that recruitment is still a struggle.

A challenging financial climate and geopolitical issues have resulted in a notable downturn in vacancies across the United Kingdom in 2023. Labour markets are often the first to reflect wider economic conditions. Consequently, many businesses were cautious about increasing headcount last year and it is no surprise to see the vacancy volumes fall dramatically compared to 2022.

We’ve already heard rumours of further tech layoffs at some of the big players including Amazon, so the downward trend in vacancies reported towards the end of last year is unsurprising. However, this data isn’t reflective of a recruitment market that is in dire states. Demand for IT professionals is still being influenced by skills shortages, which makes the decline in applications we’re seeing a concern.

While we expect to see vacancies and, subsequently applications, decline towards the end of the year, the falls reported in engineering are concerning. The UK has battled skills shortages in the sector for some time and while a slowdown in recruitment eases some of the pressures on talent pools, the drop in applications – particularly in contract roles – suggests there is a tightening of the labour market.

London remains a crucial hub for professional opportunities and is anticipated to contribute 34% of the UK’s professional vacancies in 2023. However, London’s recruitment patterns through the year so far, suggest that vacancies are set to be 39% down on 2022, dipping below the 200,000 mark for the first time since 2020.

The Information Technology (IT) sector has witnessed a substantial downturn. The United Kingdom has borne witness to a steep decline in permanent IT vacancies, plummeting from over 160,000 in 2022 to fewer than 90,000 in the present year.

Month-on-month permanent life sciences and pharmaceuticals vacancies fell by 35% in November 2023, the largest monthly fall of the past 12 months (volumes were also at a yearly low). Indeed, nine months of 2023 have recorded falls with March the best performer (9% increase) after January (55%).

Permanent legal jobs recorded their lowest volume – just over 4,100 – in November 2023, representing the most sizeable month-on-month fall of the past 12 months. We did, however, see a rally of demand in August, up 20%, the second highest month-on-month increase after January.

This report delves into the labour market dynamics of the Midlands, focusing on key challenges and opportunities in the context of the region’s productivity landscape. Accounting for 15% of total employment but contributing only 13% to the UK’s Gross Value Added (GVA), the Midlands grapples with a productivity gap that demands national and local government attention.

We’re entering the seasonal period where we expect to see demand for healthcare professionals increase, however, the continued fall in permanent job applications is a significant concern. The skills shortages across healthcare are widespread and the NHS is being brought to its knees by a lack of staff, low morale and burnout. And while contract professionals are usually relied on to fill seasonal fluctuations and existing gaps, we are also seeing a decline in applications from the flexible labour market which paints an even more worrisome picture.

The shortage of engineering talent in the UK is of growing concern. While it’s perhaps too soon to see the impact of the HS2 announcement on hiring, the fact that applications fell in October suggests that the engineering skills shortage is continuing to pick up pace. We’re unlikely to see this issue resolved anytime soon unless the UK is better able to tap into global resources, particularly contract and temporary professionals.

South East England, a long-established employment hub, is set to maintain its prominence, despite a slight decrease in its share of job vacancies compared to the previous year. Notably, it accounts for 44.1% of all vacancies in the region, indicating its resilience in the face of changing economic conditions. While South East England is experiencing a notable year-on-year decrease, it remains a formidable presence. It is closely followed by the East of England, which anticipates a substantial decrease.

London, a legal hub renowned for its thriving legal sector, is experiencing a decrease in legal vacancies for the second year in a row. There is a substantial year-on-year dip of -22.3% in legal vacancies. In 2022, London accounted for 28.3% of law vacancies for England and Wales, which has now fallen to 27.3% in 2023.

Permanent IT vacancies fell to their lowest level in September 2023 (down 11% month on month), with numbers below the 10,000 threshold for the first time in the past 12 months. There has been a steady decline in jobs since April 2023, which recorded the biggest month-on-month fall (20%) of the period (January posted the largest monthly gain of 24%, though this is indicative of seasonal trends).

Following an expected summer lull, September’s permanent education vacancies picked up considerably as schools returned for the new academic year, registering the largest month-on-month change (35%) of the past 12 months. By contrast, July recorded the most pronounced monthly fall (26%).

The approval of the East Midlands Freeport with a £25 million government investment has been a significant milestone, potentially fostering growth in the manufacturing and hi-tech industries. However, the job market in the Midlands faces challenges in 2023, with a substantial -22.4% decrease in job vacancies compared to the previous year, resulting in over 13,960 fewer opportunities.

It’s been a difficult year so far for the finance sector with vacancies showing a steady decline. However, the salary data does suggest that where firms are recruiting, it is on the more junior level, with average salaries falling in recent months. While hiring activity is largely in line with the wider recruitment levels in the UK, we are seeing signs of more positive trends as we approach Q4, and we expect to see demand pick up once again.

After a turbulent phase in 2022, marked by record vacancies, the recruitment market is showing signs of stabilising, resembling pre-pandemic levels. Economic factors, including rising interest rates and inflation, have impacted consumer spending, but government efforts to curb inflation seem to be yielding more positive economic growth.

Following a record year in recruiting for marketeers in 2022, this year has seen a significant fall in activity. Overall we have seen a fall of 41.8% in the first half of this year, compared to last. Hiring activity started to fall a year ago and looking at the 2023 forecast we are expecting a year-on-year decrease of 35.5%.

Following an uptick in vacancies at the end of the first half of 2023, monthly vacancy numbers have since dropped significantly in July to below the 12,000 level. This fall could be an indicator of the current economic climate, with companies reducing hiring volumes. It is unlikely that this decline is a result of seasonal dips ahead of the summer holidays, given the uptick noted between June and July 2022 (5%).

Healthcare vacancies in 2023 so far are down on 2022 volumes, with numbers in Q2 2023 also falling compared to Q1 2023. While in normal circumstances a fall in vacancies would suggest that employers are having greater success filling roles, the opposite is likely the case for the sector, given the skills shortages that are prevalent across the NHS.

The sluggish growth of the British economy is becoming evident. London has been hit harder than the rest of the country, with a significant decrease in industry vacancies compared to last year.

HR has gone through profound changes over the last three years, as the sector first grappled with Covid, remote working and associated issues. The subsequent surge in recruitment meant that departments were under pressure once again, in a way not seen before.

The number of IT vacancies in Q2 2023 is not only significantly down on Q1, but has also dropped when compared to 2022 volumes. While there is still demand for specialist IT professionals, particularly in areas such as cybersecurity and digital, the economic slowdown is having a major impact on hiring, with many tech companies forced into making thousands of layoffs.

Following a dip at the start of Q2 2023, vacancy numbers across the education sector have since risen significantly, reaching levels reported during the hiring peaks in Q1. This indicates that there is strong demand for teachers and education professionals as schools and trusts continue to struggle to hit their recruitment targets...

The Welsh economy performed solidly in 2022, with professional vacancies in key sectors and business functions showing significant growth compared to the previous year. The outlook for 2023 is one of cautious optimism.

While some specialist legal areas will inevitably fall victim to the UK’s economic slowdown, others such as litigation, distressed asset sales, restructuring and insolvencies will see an increase in revenues. Recruitment and retention will nonetheless remain a priority as firms vie for top talent.

Although there has been a slight pickup in vacancies during May 2023, we have seen a sharp fall in vacancy numbers since the beginning of the year, particularly between March and April.

Following an exceptionally strong start to 2023, monthly vacancy numbers in engineering have fluctuated in the first five months of the year. May’s numbers, however, are back up, which would indicate improved business conditions and market sentiment.

“The data shows that the current economic instability in the US market is having an impact on hiring activity, with vacancies declining across the board. This is broadly in line with reports from the Bureau of Labor Statistics which has begun to show a slowdown in hiring."

Job vacancies have continued on a downward trajectory, with the latest April numbers revealing a significant drop. While year-on year totals are down for the fourth consecutive month (January-April), talent shortages for nurses, carers and other medical staff persist.

"Like almost every other region in the UK – there does appear to be signs of a slowdown, the market is still producing new job roles, with a number of sectors driving much of this growth."

Across England and Wales (E&W), the HR jobs market saw its highest demand for talent in May 2022, with over 3,700 new vacancies posted, representing an 8.1% increase compared to the previous month.

“The shortage of engineering staff is continuing to impact businesses across the sector and the rise in vacancies noted for the first quarter of this year alongside a sustained fall in applications is cause for concern."

“With news of layoffs in Big Tech companies, the fall in IT vacancies that we have seen in the first quarter of the year is understandable, though it should be noted that the slight rise in March when the Chancellor’s technology skills focused Budget was announced could be a sign of positivity returning."

The data reveals that vacancies peaked at almost 20,000 in November 2022, which was followed by the biggest drop in December.

The number of job vacancies in the legal sector rose noticeably during the second half of 2022, peaking at almost 6,500 in November.

An analysis of annual performance indicates that 2022 was a buoyant year overall for professional vacancies, with over 100,000 job postings across the different Banking related sectors in England and Wales

After a strong start to 2022, jobs in IT started to fall, noticeably during the second half of the year– a reflection of the difficult economic conditions which have impacted hiring activity.

The volume of engineering jobs rose considerably in 2022 when compared to 2021, maintaining a consistently high level throughout the year.

Vacancies were consistently higher throughout 2022 in the construction sector than in 2021. The most notable change, though, was the significant jump in numbers during December 2022, which saw jobs more than double November’s tally.

Unlike other sectors, healthcare vacancies were down in 2022, with the monthly average lower by over 1,000 vacancies per month.

The report below is based on an analysis of the number of jobs posted on Broadbean’s database and the number of applications per vacancy over a set period.

The healthcare sector has experienced unprecedented levels of turbulence since the pandemic first hit and looks like it will continue on this trajectory for months to come.

With 40% more marketing vacancies in the first half of 2022 as opposed to H1 2021, this year has certainly been a busy time for recruiters in this remit.

The education sector is facing unprecedented challenges at the moment. With the possibility of strikes and resignations in the air, it’s perhaps no surprise that the quarterly vacancy rate has really ramped up this quarter, with figures higher than they have been since Q1 2021.

Across the engineering sector, we see a considerable drop of 44.1% in the number of applications in June 2022 when compared to the same month last year, which may not come as a surprise, given the widely reported skill shortages impacting this sector. Interestingly, vacancies have seen a similar decline during the same period, taking a significant tumble of 39.9%.

IT continues to surge across the UK with May proving to be the busiest month so far. When comparing IT vacancies in May 2022 to May 2021, we see that volumes are up by 55%. Analysed by year, a similar story emerges, in that the monthly average for 2022 is 30% up on 2021.

While manufacturing and engineering are a key part of the mix and what the region is best known for, there has also been a push to diversify. Among others, IT is becoming ever important to the region and in recent data provided by Innovate UK, we can see that AI and Data companies are the fifth largest in terms of receiving funding in the region, across all sectors.

Job figures in Northern Ireland fell considerably in June and were down by over 50% compared to March, reflecting a marked fall in GDP growth. Numbers decreased across all major industry sectors and locations. Average salaries for permanent roles did, however, rise in the main, no doubt positive news amid reports of the exorbitant increases in the cost of living. Application per vacancy rates held firm in some sectors such as IT, but decreased in others including manufacturing and production.

The number of jobs in Scotland decreased significantly by 45% in June compared to March with the decreases felt across all key sectors. Application per vacancy numbers remained steady but fell in the majority of cases with the notable exceptions of logistics, distribution & supply chain and sales. Average permanent salaries did, however, rise in most industry sectors to help meet the rising cost of living. Pay increases will struggle to mitigate inflation, though, which hit a record 40 year high in May.

If we look at the overall picture of the education sector for the period April 2021-April 2022, the standout trend is a considerable drop in the number of applications