Job appointments tumble
The rate of permanent employment appointments fell in August at the sharpest rate for almost seven years according to a report from KPMG published today.
Shrinking demand for staff has led to the lowest number of permanent places since November 2001; the fifth consecutive month of employment cutbacks.
Kevin Green, chief executive, of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), blamed the deteriorating economy for the downturn. “It is now having the expected negative impact on the labour market. The demand for both permanent and temporary workers is weakening, although it must be remembered that this follows a period of unprecedented high demand for staff,” he said.
The executive and professional workforce was particularly hard hit by the drop in permanent appointments with demand for staff plunging from 61.9 last August to 48.5 this year. Temporary vacancies have also contracted at record rates, only the second time since the Jobs report began.
Alan Nolan, director at KPMG warned: “UK employers are continuing to control payroll costs through redundancies. By refusing to take advantage of a growing, but increasingly unused, pool of skilled labour these workers are starting to drift abroad.”
