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Confidence improves for temp hires, says REC
Amid what is undeniably a gloomy overall outlook, temp recruiters and contractors can take some hope from the latest Jobs Outlook report from the Recruitment & Employment Confederation.
The report surveyed UK employers on their hiring patterns and sentiment for the quarter from May – July 2020. Let’s look at some of the stand out points of the report in terms of temporary recruitment:
Jobs Outlook Report – key findings
Increased hiring confidence
Employers’ intentions to hire temporary agency workers have increased over the past few months. From May to July, hiring intentions for agency workers in the short term rose 4 percentage points from the previous quarter, the highest increase since October – December 2019.
The medium term outlook is even more positive, with anticipated demand for temporary agency workers remaining stronger than in the short term. In fact, more than ¼ of employers surveyed said that they thought the number of temporary workers in their organisation would increase over the next 4-12 months.
Skills shortages
Despite the rising forecast demand for agency workers, just 18% of UK employers surveyed in May – July anticipated a shortage of temporary agency workers.
Where skills shortages were envisaged, most concern lay in Health & Social Care, Technology and Sales & Retail; presenting in itself an opportunity for skilled workers in these sectors.
Importance of agency workers to employers
Across May – July, 54% of employers who hire temporary agency workers highlighted their importance for keeping costs down.
This figure was up from 34% in January to March. 67% of employers also stressed that agency workers are important for short-term access to key skills, up from 53% in January – March.
Time to shake up your PSL?
It’s heartening to read that confidence is evidently on the rise among hirers, especially in the medium term of 4 to 12 months.
For recruiters, harnessing this trend means focusing on your business, without having to worry about how candidates are paid, or dealing with contractor queries.
Maybe your Umbrella or CIS preferred suppliers are not delivering 100%? If that rings true, maybe it’s time to revisit your PSL.
Every member of the Liquid Friday team is totally committed to supporting our agency partners and giving our contractors the best possible assignment experience.