KPMG & REC Report on Jobs November 2024

The headline figures evidence:

  • Steepest decline in permanent staff placements since March
  • Weakest rise in permanent starting pay since early 2021
  • Vacancy numbers fall again in October

With businesses waiting for the first Labour government budget in 14 years, and the media full of leaks about what to expect, it was inevitable that businesses held off hiring again in October.

With fewer vacancies, comes less demand for people so those jobseekers who did move experienced a cooler marketplace for salary rises than we've seen.

What was expected, when this report landed in my inbox last week, was that the budget would be announced, we'd take time to understand the consequences in our businesses and then hiring would start again.

It's early days, of course, but we're hearing hiring freezes remain and redundancies are now planned. The double whammy of a hike in the National Minimum Wage and Employers National Insurance mean that businesses remain cautious.

And with a lack of consumer confidence, we expect to see those people in jobs choosing to stay put and the market flooded with those being made redundant.

It's important to remember if you're a hiring manager that it's roles which are made redundant, not individuals, and those applying in the coming months who are immediately available following a redundancy consultation are very worthy applicants.

At Clarity we'll be doing everything within our power to support those out of work.

But we need job vacancies from good firms to be able to offer them. So, if you're hiring now or in the New Year, contact me for a no-obligation chat.



Contact Clare here.



Clare Wight is the founder and Managing Director of Clarity Appointments, an independent recruitment specialist. She served as a Regional Director for The Employment Agents Movement, supporting other independent recruiters.

She remains an active member of Recconnect (formerly Members Only), a recruitment leadership network promoting high ethical standards, collaboration, diversity, equity and inclusion.

She believes business owners are more fulfilled and higher-performing when they provide emotional and professional business support to other business owners, even those they deem to be competitors. She does this actively, whilst challenging and updating her skills and knowledge of the recruitment sector, enabling her to offer the best advice to firms looking to make their next hire.

GB Jobs ENG 2411 PANEL [598.26 KB]

GB London Jobs ENG 2411 [380.89 KB]

GB Midlands Jobs ENG 2411 [382.74 KB]


loading