Ryan FowlerLondon and the South East, the UK’s economic hub, typically lead in employer demand and job creation. However, new data from ManpowerGroup UK shows a strong demand for entry-level and younger workers in areas outside these traditional recruitment strongholds for the upcoming business quarter.
The latest ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey reveals that demand for younger workers is particularly high in the Southwest (50%), East Midlands (49%), and Yorkshire and the Humber (48%). This demand is significantly higher than in the South East (34%) and marginally ahead of London (47%).
Petra Tagg, spokesperson for ManpowerGroup UK, said: “We strongly suspect that this regional hiring demand is due to high business adoption rates for new innovative technologies such as generative AI, machine learning, and virtual reality. We think the next quarter is going to be a test and learn phase for employers who are keen to dip their toes into the water but without making a long-term commitment to significant investment into new technologies.”
The North East has the highest proportion of UK businesses actively using AI technologies in their business processes heading into Q3 (43%), spanning the call centre, manufacturing, transport, and logistics sectors. The South West has the largest number of machine learning users (38%), highlighting Bristol’s growing prominence as an R&D hub for data storage, analytics, biotechnology, and Intelligence Processing Unit (IPU) work. The North West leads nationally in VR usage (31%) associated with the region’s expanding bioscience and health technology sectors.
This trend suggests that younger workers are being sought for more opportunities and career growth across multiple regional tech and R&D hubs across the UK. The news may fuel the debate on addressing regional inequalities, which is heating up in the build-up to next month’s General Election.
Tagg adds: “For the past 18 months or so we’ve been seeing a gradual change in the typical ‘London-centric’ hiring dynamic, with a much more nuanced pattern of workforce demand emerging throughout the country.
“For this coming business quarter, it’s employers in the Midlands and South West who are indicating a much greater intent to hire when compared with those based in the capital and surrounding areas. And when we look at where businesses are using new technologies, it’s clear that it’s not just those based in London and the South East that are taking a lead. Demand is also notably higher for entry-level positions and younger workers across many UK regions.
“While overall hiring intent remains very robust in London, it appears there is something of a shift underway when it comes to the traditional ‘south-first’ view of many UK employers.”
