Starting Salaries at Highest for Seven Years
Entry salaries for permanent jobs in the UK have increased at their fastest rate for seven years, although the same cannot be said for temporary staff, whose pay increased at its slowest rate for five months. This study (conducted by the REC) has suggested that the improving economic climate is finally translating into higher wages. It is thought that these increases are due to companies wanting to attract new talent, as fears about an impending skills shortage refuse to go away.
As well as the increase in starting salaries, the demand for staff continued to rise throughout March too, with the rate of expansion only just short of the 15½ year high in January. But the number of candidates applying for these roles has significantly dropped – permanent staff availability has dropped at its fastest rate since October 2004 and temporary employee availability has dropped at its fastest rate in almost 10 years.
These increases were found to have occurred in each of the four English regions, with the strongest growth indicated in the North and the demand for staff remained stronger within the private sector than in the public sector. The fastest growth was signalled for private sector permanent roles – although private sector temporary vacancies also recorded a strong rise.
The highest demand for staff was within the engineering, construction and IT sectors.
