At last some good news for people in the ICT sector and in ICT roles. There has been a reported growth in the number of people employed in this sector and this growth is greater than that recorded for the economy as a whole, with the largest gains being seen in London and the South East.
Analysis of employment trends by company size shows growth levels to have been the same for SMEs and large organisations and the demand for contractors has continued to rise for the 2nd consecutive quarter, (up by 2%).
“Our data shows that the growth in consumer and business confidence we have seen over the past few months has given employers the green light to press ahead with plans to take on more staff in permanent roles.
It’s also clear that as business picks up employers continue to appreciate the value of agency workers. Temporary agency workers are a vital part of the UK’s labour market, allowing employers to flex their workforce in response to fluctuating demand. Temp work is also a great way for people to get their foot in the door if they are after a permanent position. Nine out of ten employers tell us they have offered a permanent role to someone who started out at their business as an agency worker.” Kevin Green, CEO – REC (Recruitment and Employment Confederation)
The results of a hiring intention survey of 600 public, private and non-profit sector employers by JobsOutlook reports that:
- In the next three months, 58 percent of bosses plan to increase their permanent workforce, (up seven points from the previous month).
- Looking further ahead over the next year, 50 per cent of employers plan to increase their permanent workforce. (Also up seven points from September’s figures).
- In the next three months over a third, (36 percent) plan to increase their use of agency workers, (up two points since last month).
- 30 percent of employers plan to increase their use of agency workers over the next 4-12 months.
“Unless unemployed ICT specialists can up skill sufficiently, or employers are prepared to increase their offer, reports of shortages likely to continue within the market.” Taken from a report produced by e-skills UK on behalf of the REC Technology sector Group.
The Top 10 Technical Specialisms most often cited in adverts for staff in Q2 were:
Permanent Sector:
SQL, .Net, SQL Server, C#, Windows, Java, JavaScript, HTML, CSS and ASP.Net
SQL, Windows, Oracle, .Net, SQL Server, Java, Project Management, C#, JavaScript and CSS.
