KPMG and REC have recently released August’s edition of the UK Report on Jobs: National. This report looks at both the positive and negative trends in recruitment for all sectors, including Social Care, and how this relates to the current climate.

Please find below some of the key highlights from the report:

• Supply of workers plummets, driving a stronger increase in starting pay
• Permanent placements and temporary billings both rise rapidly
• Vacancies expand at a record pace
• Permanent Placement Index decreases only slightly from 71.2 in June to 69.3 in July
• Whereas, temporary Billings Index continues to increase from 63.4 in June to 64.6 in July

Commenting on the latest survey results, Claire Warnes, Partner and Head of Education, Skills and Productivity at KPMG: “With salaries for new hires increasing at their quickest rate in 24 years and a sharp rise in permanent placements in July, job seekers should be taking advantage of the buoyant market to land their dream role. But while companies want to invest in their business now restrictions are lifting, demand for new staff still outstrips supply due to low candidate availability. We know that reskilling and upskilling is needed to help people move between sectors, and there’s no doubt the ‘pingdemic’ has added an extra dimension to the recruitment challenge. Plus, with furlough due to end soon, there may be a downward pressure on pay to come. That’s why after a tough 18 months, businesses are now hoping for some much-needed stability in the labour market so they can focus on recovery and growth.”

Also commenting is Kate Shoesmith, Deputy Chief Exec of the REC: “This month’s data confirms that it is a good time to be looking for a new job. Employers are desperate to find good candidates for the many jobs on offer and this is reflected in starting salaries rising at the sharpest rate since the survey began in 1997. This will likely motivate more people to be on the lookout for new opportunities. The same goes for those on temporary contracts which are also seeing increased pay. Recruiters are working hard to fill places for employers eager to build back and recover but their job is made more difficult by worker shortages across all sectors. Pay increases alone, however, won’t solve the demand that has been building up over recent months. We need an immigration system that flexes to meet demand as was promised, and business and government need a long-term plan for skilling up workers. Skills shortages have been with us for a while and as our data shows are getting worse.”

Andrew Brindley, Director of AJ Recruitment, said: “After another month of near record demand across the temporary and permanent job markets, demand in the economy for roles is pushing up salaries which could concern the bank of England later down the line. Social Care has continued to also see a rise in demand for workers across the sector with front line workers being the most acute as reported widely across the media.”

This report allows you to benchmark your business against the backdrop of the wider economy. I hope you find it useful to help you measure and understand where Social Care as a sector sits against the wider picture.

If you would like to discuss the findings in the above report, or about how we can collaborate, please let us know. To get in touch, email recruitment@ajrecruitment.com or call us on 03305 552233.

As a specialist, family-run recruitment business, we provide a proactive and consultative approach to recruitment within Social Care. We help organisations to target issues such as continuity of staffing, reducing spend where you have a high volume of agency usage and supporting those who have specific talent requirements or are in hard to fill locations. We can help with any immediate staffing requirements or longer-term recruitment projects to ultimately save you time and money on agency spend.

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