30th Sep 2024 10:19
(Alliance News) - Competition for jobs in the UK is at a three-year high with more than two jobseekers for every vacancy, according to new research.
The increase follows a 0.5% fall in advertised vacancies to 857,000 last month compared to July, said jobs site Adzuna.
Its report suggested that the UK jobs market is entering a period of stagnation.
The slight fall in vacancies was coupled with more redundancies and ongoing long term sickness, said Adzuna.
Average advertised salaries increased slightly to GBP38,800, although up by more than 3% on a year ago, the firm added.
The average time a job advert remains unfilled has increased to 35 days, which Adzuna says shows that companies may be becoming more cautious about hiring staff.
Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna, said: "The increase in advertised vacancies in July sadly didn't hold in August when a reduction in roles combined with a slight increase in redundancies and ongoing long-term sickness meant claimant numbers have spiked and competition for roles was at the highest level we've seen for three years.
"The stasis in the market, with vacancies almost constant, suggests companies are hiring only for specific roles and instead waiting to see if the economy picks up into autumn before embarking on growth and expansion.
"One bright spot is that graduate roles increased for the fourth month in a row, which may lead to vacancy growth down the line."
Tony Wilson, director at the Institute for Employment Studies, commented: "For those who might have been hoping to see some greener shoots over the summer, today's vacancy figures from Adzuna are a bit disappointing.
"Nonetheless it does look like vacancies are levelling off at around 850,000, competition for jobs is returning to more normal levels and employers are filling their jobs pretty quickly.
"All of this should give the Bank of England a bit more confidence on future interest rate cuts."
By Alan Jones, PA Industrial Correspondent
Press Association: Finance
source: PA
Copyright 2024 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.