Job vacancy numbers beginning to slow

Vacancies were continuing to grow at the start of the year, however, recent data shows that job numbers were down 55% between March and April.

The Broadbean Technology findings suggested that the lack of resources across the UK is impacting job market growth.

The data also shows a 37% decline in the number of vacancies year-on-year between April 2021 and April 2022 – this could be down to the spike in hiring reported last year as UK businesses prepared for Freedom Day in 2021. Applications decreased 75% month-on-month and 75% year-on-year.

Alex Fourlis, Managing Director at Broadbean Technology commented, “The UK’s skills crisis is continuing to be a focal issue, and for good reason as our data shows that these shortages are impacting almost every business, across every sector. While the sudden rise in recruitment activity received a warm welcome at the beginning of 2021, we are beginning to see signs of vacancy numbers slowing down over a year later.”

Fourlis added, “Given the dearth of available resources, there’s a high chance that this drop in new vacancies is simply a sign that businesses cannot fill roles they’ve had open for some time and are unlikely to add any more roles if they cannot meet the current operational needs.”

“For employers and recruiters, now is a critical time. Businesses need to rebuild and nurture dwindling talent pools, utilise innovative technology and maximise partnerships with external talent suppliers in order to find the resources that are needed. Difficult times are ahead for the UK economy, and we need a recruitment market that can best support economic growth.”

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