JOBS GALORE
FOR the second month in a row, job vacancies in the UK are at an alltime high and a number of shops, bars, and restaurants in Derby city centre are advertising for staff in their windows.
The Office of National Statistics (ONS) reported in August that the number of jobs in the UK had surpassed one million, as the economy begins to recover from the toll of the Covid pandemic.
This month, ONS figures stated that the number of job vacancies in July to September 2021 was 1.1 million. And ONS analysis from last month says the East Midlands has the second-highest percentage growth in online job adverts between February last year and September this year.
In Derby, many stores around the city are gearing up for Christmas and are looking for seasonal staff whilst others appear to be offering more permanent positions.
However, there are concerns that vacancies may not be filled, as the Derby Telegraph reported last month that the hospitality sector was struggling to recruit staff in Derby.
Analysis from ONS said that in August, 41% of businesses across the UK were struggling to fill vacancies.
We have spoken to businesses in Derby city centre. These included Eden Mobility in St Peter’s Street which is struggling to get to the applicant stage of its recruitment process for a store manager and part-time sales assistant.
Russell Lockwood, store manager, said: “Whether they are suitable or unsuitable, it is just initial interest that we are struggling with at the moment.”
Yards away is Cell Fix, a mobile repair shop which has been looking for part-time staff for “months”. Staff there said that the issue is finding someone who is skilled enough to repair the devices that come into the store. A staff member said: “We recruited one lady who works in the other shop.
“We need a skilled person who can repair the mobiles because sometimes we have recruited someone who doesn’t know how to do it. That is why we are suffering from this problem.”
There are multiple reasons why businesses are struggling to hire across the UK although the ONS did say in a September report that one in four businesses said: “a reduced number of EU applications was a factor.”
Luxury menswear store Brigden’s said its had received a number of applications for a part-time vacancy across its Derby stores.
Paul Dharam, the manager for one of the Brigden’s stores in Iron Gate, said: “We’ve been recruiting probably for the last few weeks, taking CVs. We’ve probably got a couple of positions because we have got numerous different stores.
“To be honest, since the students have come back into Derby and gone back to university, we are getting a lot of CVs through and are gradually working our way through them.”
The Department of Work and Pensions is optimistic about the number of jobs in the area although the latest figures suggest that the number of people in Derbyshire on Universal Credit is increasing.
In Derby, the number of people claiming the benefit increased by 351 between August and September 2021, and across the county, it increased by 668 overall.
When asked about businesses struggling to hire in Derby, a DWP spokesperson said: “If employers feel as though they are struggling to fill vacancies and they are putting a card in the window then they need to contact us and we will be able to assist. We have people who are there, looking for employment so we are more than happy to help.”
Martin Langsdale and Helen Wathall, chairs of both Derby’s Cathedral Quarter and St Peters Quarter Business Improvement Districts agreed that many hospitality and retail businesses across the city centre were experiencing recruitment issues.
They released a statement which said: “The feedback from many businesses is that large numbers of staff had found alternative jobs during periods of lockdown, which has particularly affected the hospitality and retail sectors.
“This seems to be across the board from independent businesses to national operators and it is clear that they are working hard to fill the vacancies in time for the busy Christmas period.”
The government hopes that the difficulties to recruit across the country will force businesses to improve working conditions and increase wages.
Craig Bunting, founder of Derby cafe brand, BEAR said: “The Government needs to quickly work to fix the broken business rates system and the burden that it has on high street businesses, which carry the majority unfairly.
“This would enable the independent businesses that keep our high streets alive to re-invest those savings into improving wages across the sector and create long-term sustainability for local jobs.”