Monster Employment Index UK Declines in March

Online job recruitment activity and related employment opportunities across the United Kingdom decreased in March 2006, as the Monster Employment Index UK revealed a deceleration in online hiring activity following the dramatic upswing in February. The Index fell eight points to 120 last month, reverting back to the second highest value since its inception. The decrease in March was not as strong as in January, suggesting a slowing down of online hiring activity following an irregular trend over the past two quarters.

The March Index findings include current and historical data for industry sectors and regions across the UK. The Monster Employment Index UK now demonstrates developments in online recruitment activity across a number of industry sectors that have a high impact on the economy as a whole. The monthly report now also tracks online recruitment activity in eight regions across the UK. These include; London, Wales, Scotland, the South East, East Anglia, Midlands, North England and the South West. The baseline for these Indices is December 2004 ñ November 2005, which is consistent with the overall Index for the UK.

During March, the majority of industry sectors tracked by the Index experienced varying degrees of decline. The accounting, audit and taxes sector dropped dramatically, falling 14 points, indicating a curtailing of the industry recruitment cycle. The administrative and organization sector also declined significantly, falling 10 points, most noticeably in offers for clerks. Despite this, year-on-year growth within this sector was up 25 points, showing overall a strong demand for workers with administrative skills. Meanwhile, the environment, architecture and urbanism sector was one of the few to experience a significant upswing in online job opportunities. Interestingly, engineering also saw a strong increase in online demand, most notable in Wales. In addition, online job availability in the construction and extraction industry also rose slightly.

To download the full index, please click link below