–KPMG/REC: UK Apr Permanent Placements 51.9 vs 52.4 In Mar

LONDON – The rate of permanent UK job creation slowed
slightly in April and temporary placements contracted, according to the
latest survey of the labour market for KPMG/REC and compiled by Markit.

The most recent Bank of England Agents Report said private sector
hiring plans “suggested that employment was likely to be broadly flat
over the next six months” and this KPMG/REC survey is broadly supportive
of that view, showing tepid jobs growth in the permanent sector and
declining temporary work.

The survey’s permanent jobs indicator slipped to 51.9 in April, its
lowest level since January and down from the 52.4 hit in March, still
above the 50 contraction/expansion level but showing the full-time
employment sector only eeking out growth.

The number of new temporary jobs fell during the month with the
temporary jobs index dropping to 48.2 from 48.5, the sharpest rate of
contraction since July 2009.

In terms of pay, permanent staff salaries continued to show a
broadly flat trend in April, posting a fractional fall on the month,
with the permanent salaries index falling to 49.6 from March’s 50.2.

Hourly rates of pay for temporary/contract staff increased
modestly, with the index at 51.3 in April, down from 52.1 in March and
the lowest reading since the 48.8 recorded in December, the survey
shows.

In the minutes of its April meeting, the Bank of England Monetary
Policy Committee noted that “labour market slack was acting to restrain
nominal wage growth” but low productivity growth had prevented this
feeding through into lower unit labour costs. The KPMG/REC survey shows
nominal wage growth remains subdued.

One upbeat part of the KPMG/REC report was it signalled a further
increase in demand for staff. At 54.3, the Report on Jobs Vacancy Index
remained unchanged from March, showing a solid rate of expansion.

Commenting on the data, Bernard Brown, head of Business Services at
KPMG said that recent economic data show the jobs market is unlikely to
see a signficant improvement in conditions over the coming months.

“Unemployment rates are likely to continue to rise in the short
term. The question, now, is whether we start to push the 3 million
mark,” he added.

The latest official data showed the unemployment rate for the three
months to February was 8.3%, with the total number of unemployed
actually falling by 35,000 over the quarter to 2.65 million.

–London newsroom: 4420 7862 7491; email wwilkes@marketnews.com

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