Partner Article

Temporary vacancies in the West Midlands rise 9%

Demand for temporary professionals in the West Midlands has risen by 9% year on year to December 2016 according to research from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo).

The data, provided by recruitment software company, Innovantage, revealed that despite an uplift in temporary vacancies, permanent job availability dipped by 6% year on year. Demand for temporary professionals rose across a number of sectors, including construction and IT, which recorded respective uplifts of 42% and 41%.

Commenting on the data, Julie Selby, Membership Relations Manager at APSCo said:

“After a number of months of improved hiring sentiment across the West Midlands, professional job availability in the temporary sector has continued to rise. Despite commentators predicting instability in the employment market following the UK’s decision to exit the European Union, hiring sentiment has remained broadly stable in the six months since the referendum. APSCo’s findings sit above the national average, with recent figures from the Office for National Statistics revealing that overall employment dipped slightly to 74.4% in the three months to October 2016.”

“Demand for temporary professionals in the construction sector soared 42% year on year to December, as the Midlands successfully campaigned for an individual economic strategy for the Midlands Engine which will no doubt help improve investment into the region. Future job growth will also be bolstered by the construction of HS2, which is also likely to increase investment into the West Midlands. Demand also rose in the IT sector, as Birmingham continues to establish itself as a regional tech hub. Intouch games, one of the main recruiters and influencers in Birmingham’s tech sector, has already expanded its headcount by over 200% in the last eighteen months.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by The Association of Professional Staffing Companies .