Surprise, employers are still looking to hire as skills shortages bite

A survey put hiring intentions at a net positive. While that was down on the previous quarter, skills shortages are widespread and that is making employers reluctant to launch redundancy programmes, writes James Moore

Britain’s rate of unemployment remains very low by historic standards as a survey showed more employers planning to hire than fire (PA)

While big tech indulges in slash and burn after its pandemic-era hiring spree, the UK labour market remains remarkably calm for a country that the OECD expects to have the worst-performing economy outside of Russia among its members.

Manpower, a recruiter, releases a survey of hiring intentions at this time of year. Its most recent missive, which emerged at the tail end of last week, showed a positive outlook of plus 19 per cent over the coming quarter (January – March).

Despite all the government’s talk of levelling up, London remained in the strongest position (plus 24) while IT was the strongest sector (plus 34). There is still strong demand for those with IT skills, which remain in desperately short supply.