Monster Employment Index UK Declines in April, as White-collar Workers See Fewer Opportunities

Online recruitment activity and related employment opportunities across the United Kingdom declined by nine points in April, reflecting a similar slowdown in hiring from the first quarter of 2006. Despite the drop, the Index still stands at a higher level than the first two months of this year, reaching 141 points in April. Year-on-year growth stands at 26 points or 23 percent. The Index is based on a real-time review of millions of employer job opportunities culled from Web sites across Europe, including Monster.

Most UK industry sectors saw a decline in hiring throughout April, while several occupations did experience increases in demand, including healthcare, social work and personal care and environment, architecture and urbanism.

The Indexís decline was driven partly by lower demand for white-collar employees in April. The greatest drop was seen in service, shop and market sales workers as well as professionals and technicians and associate professionals. In contrast, blue-collar occupations increased over the last month.

All regions saw slight-to-moderate decreases in hiring, apart from the South West, which saw a rise in recruitment activity for the third consecutive month.

The April Monster Employment Index still shows a high level of recruitment activity, despite the monthly decrease,î commented Alan Townsend, COO, Monster UK and Europe. ìWe are now observing an increase for skilled occupations, such as teaching and healthcare, which often go through periods of staff shortages,î concluded Townsend.

Online opportunities in education, training and library increased to their highest level to date in April, following fairly stable demand over the past three months. Demand for staff in the sector increased mostly in the Midlands, East Anglia and South West.

The construction and extraction sector remained flat in April with demand for blue-collar roles helping to keep recruitment steady in this sector. In contrast, job opportunities declined for professionals and associate professionals. The greatest regional demand for staff was seen in the Midlands, North of England and South West.

The accounting, auditing and taxes sector saw a 23-point decline in April after five consecutive months of growth. Legislators, senior officials and managers; and technicians and associate professionals saw the biggest drops. Amongst the regions, a recruitment slowdown was reported in the Midlands, South East and London with growth in the South West.

Banking, finance and insurance also saw a 15 point decrease after two months of growth. This was caused by fewer opportunities for professionals, technicians and associate professionals. Although there was an overall decline in this sector, demand increased in Wales and East Anglia, with a strong yearly growth of 49 points.

Despite a decline in banking and financial services roles, we have seen strong growth for both over the past few months, so itís not surprising to observe this kind of cyclical recruitment trend, commented Townsend. We are already seeing indications that demand in the financial sector may be picking up as the big four accountancy firms are starting to lead a recruitment drive to hire more graduates in response to anticipated staff shortages.

Strong Growth for Craft and Related Workers Opportunities

Online offers for craft and related workers increased by 12 points over the last month to reach a maximum for this category. The increase was fuelled by a higher number of vacancies in the construction and extraction sector. The greatest demand was in London and the Midlands while there was a decline in Scotland. Yearly growth stands at 87 points.

A slowdown in opportunities for professionals contributed to the April Index decrease. After two consecutive months of increase, this category fell by ten points, driven partly by demand for fewer staff in the banking, finance and insurance and construction and extraction sectors.

Technicians and associate professionals also saw a decline in recruiting activity after two consecutive months of growth. Again, this was due to less demand for staff in the banking, finance and insurance and also construction and extraction sectors. Demand in accounting, audit and taxes also fell for the ninth consecutive month. Wales was the only region that saw an increase in hiring this month.

The South West Region Shows Highest UK Recruitment Activity in April

The South West was the only region that saw an increase in hiring for a third consecutive month. This rise was fuelled by greater job opportunities for clerks and legislators, senior officials and managers. Demand for professionals and technicians and associate professionals remained fairly stable while a decrease was reported for blue-collar workers. Job offers in this region increased for the transport, post and logistics and healthcare, social work and personal care sectors.

After two months of dramatic increase, recruitment activity slowed in East Anglia yet remained strong. Opportunities for white collar occupations fell, while blue-collar roles such as skilled agricultural and fishery workers saw an increase in hiring. Demand declined for public sector, defence and community and rose for automotive and banking, finance and insurance roles.

Overall demand for staff in London also fell following a rise in March. This was caused by fewer roles for professionals and technicians and associate professionals. Demand for craft and related workers continued to rise. Increased job opportunities were seen in environment, architecture and urbanism for the second consecutive month. Public sector, defence and community job offers contributed to the decrease in jobs available in London.

Although we have seen a decline in employment across all regions apart from the South West, these have been slight-to- moderate, and the Index still shows overall healthy recruitment levels across the UK,î noted Townsend. ìYear-on-year growth has been reported for all regions this month and the strongest regions have shown the smallest decreases.

Monster Employment Index Europe Shows Third Consecutive Month of Growth

The Monster Employment Index Europe grew three points to a new high of 133 in April, registering a third consecutive month of growth. Online job demand grew strongly in Germany, following seven months of little or no change. France, the Netherlands and Sweden also showed strong rises, as the United Kingdom declined to just about its pre-March level. Year-on-year, the Index is up 17 points, or 15%.

Heavy industries including production, manufacturing, maintenance and repair; and transport, post and logistics were among the sectors showing the most gains in April. Other major sectors saw only small movements, as both IT and Telecommunications saw declines in online hiring.

Blue-collar occupational groups traditionally hired by heavy industries saw the highest increases in online opportunities in April. Demand for white-collar workers declined, in part, due to the decrease in IT jobs.