Majority of employers predict growth in permanent hires - REC

Six out of 10 employers plan to take on more permanent workers in the next three months, according to the latest JobsOutlook survey from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC). Despite slight dips in some indicators since last month, the majority of bosses foresee growth in their permanent workforce over both the short and medium terms. Employers’ plans for use of agency staff in coming months remain stable.

REC chief executive Kevin Green said: “Our monthly survey remains consistent in its predictions of on-going growth in employment this year and into 2014. Employers are sounding more optimistic than last year. Four hundred thousand more people are in employment now than this time twelve months ago, proving the resilience of the UK’s labour market. Recovering from the recession may be taking longer than many would like but progress on jobs continues to outperform the rest of the economy.”

June’s JobsOutlook survey of employers reports that:

• 60 percent plan to increase their permanent workforce over the next three months (four points lower than last month) and only five percent expect to reduce headcounts.

• 53 percent plan to increase their permanent headcount over the next four to 12 months (three points down from May’s report) and only two percent predict a reduction.

• 40 percent plan to increase the use of agency workers in the next three months (one point lower than last month) and just eight percent expect to reduce their use of temps.

• 34 percent plan to increase the use of agency workers in the next four to 12 months, (two points lower than last month) and only seven percent report they plan to reduce their use of agency staff.

JobsOutlook reports the responses of 600 employers questioned about their hiring intentions over the next quarter and the next year. Respondents are drawn from across the public, private and non-profit sector, and from across a range of industries and sizes of organisation.

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