Salaries are rising, but the UK job market slows down

In a turbulent time for the UK, job vacancies and applications have declined in the last quarter

Salaries have been a big talking point in the last quarter, with the ONS recently reporting that UK pay packets saw the biggest rise in a decade.

What’s more, the latest job market report from independent job site CV-Library found that advertised salaries increased by 12.1 per cent in Q4 2018.

The report, which compared data from Q4 2018 with Q3 2018 and the same period in 2017, found that average pay for new roles was also up year-on-year, rising by a staggering 13.9 per cent.

Other key findings from the report include:

■ Despite businesses offering higher salaries, advertised jobs actually saw a dip in Q4, falling by 7.7 per cent quarter-on-quarter

■ That said, vacancies were up by 9.5 per cent when looking at yearon-year statistics

■ But, applications weren’t keeping pace, decreasing by 3.5 per cent in Q4, when compared with data from Q3 2018

“It’s a turbulent time for the UK right now,” says Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library.

“Following last month’s failed Brexit vote and Theresa May narrowly holding on to her leadership, there’s still a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the future of the nation’s economy.

“This has had a knock on effect on the recruitment space, with candidates feeling nervous to move around the job market and businesses temporarily slowing down their hiring efforts until an outcome is reached.

“That said, those whose are hiring are pulling out all the stops, offering some of the most competitive salaries the nation has seen in a decade.”

The report also revealed that despite applications being down, the amount of people registering their CVs to the job site rose by 3.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter.

This suggests that candidate appetite was picking up as we approached the New Year.

“Despite this uncertainty, it’s positive to see that professionals are preparing for their job search,” adds Biggins.

“This is something that often happens nearing the end of the year, with many looking to land a new role in the New Year.

“As such, we expect to see job vacancies and application rates picking back up next quarter.”

“Following last month’s failed Brexit vote and Theresa May narrowly holding on to her leadership, there’s still a great deal of uncertainty surrounding the future of the nation’s economy”

Lee Biggins Founder and CEO of CV-Library