UK leads the way in Global job growth survey

By: David Hunt, business development & operations director- EMEA at Antal

There has been much positive news this week with regard to jobs and growth. Firstly the IMF raised their economic growth forecast for the UK in 2014 to 2.7%, an increase of almost .5%.  This was swiftly followed by the news that unemployment has fallen by a record level to 7.1%, down 167,000 on the previous quarter.

We have been seeing for some time an increase in recruitment particularly in manufacturing, chemical engineering and other technical markets. Whilst Jaguar has made all the headlines, their growth is of course dependant on the companies in their supply chain being able to cope with demand. As a result we’ve done a considerable amount of recruiting not just for the automotive OEMS, but for their Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers.

Whilst anecdotal feedback of growth has been consistent in the last six months, it is great to receive some hard data to support it.  Antal conduct a global recruitment survey (AGS) of over 10,500 international businesses, and the latest data shows confidence and employment growth among many sectors is strong. The great news is that the UK is leading the way with over 56% of HR and Hiring Managers currently recruiting. This is expected to remain stable with 49% expecting to hire at senior and management level in the coming months.
  

Positive news comes too with the number of companies looking at letting staff go stabilised at 41% but with that forecast to drop to 28%.

Whilst there is of course still cause for caution, one negative from the drop in unemployment could mean that the Bank of England could now raise interest rates. Banks despite their protestations are still exceptionally cautious with lending, particularly to the SME market. On the upside though, with a budget on the horizon, and on the back of good growth and unemployment, we could see the government look to capitalise with further business incentives.

Full details of the Antal Global Snaphot can be found here 

http://ags.antal.com/download/ags_15/AGS15_English.pdf

Now it’s important that businesses, large and small, make plans to attract the talent they need to fuel their growth plans. An improvement in demand means the supply of required talent and skills is decreased. In some areas such as engineering and manufacturing the supply of suitable candidates is already slim.

It may not sound as heroic as the SAS motto, but in the recruitment market, he/she who plans wins!

If you’d like to discuss the survey, your market sector, or your recruitment plans please get in touch: dhunt@antal.com