Marvin OnumonuThe latest Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) Labour Market Tracker showed hiring slowed in November as employers put the brakes on recruitment before the Autumn Budget and as the Employment Rights Bill was being finalised.
New job postings in November dropped by 14.4% to 622,156, matched by an 11.2% fall in active postings to 1,460,051.
Despite the fall, active postings stayed above 1.4 million and were 3.2% higher than November last year.
Wales and Northern Ireland saw the smallest drops, both at 6.5%.
Five of the top 10 hiring hot spots were in Northern Ireland. Fermanagh and Omagh (up 19.2%), Gwynedd (up 13%) and Causeway Coast and Glens (up 8.4%) saw the largest increases in postings.
East Dunbartonshire (down 25.6%), Bedford (down 21.5%) and Central Bedfordshire (down 20.5%) had the sharpest falls.
Hiring for many Christmas-related roles was down compared to last year, likely due to concerns about the economy.
Neil Carberry, CEO at the REC, said: “November was a unique month with businesses’ worries on the upcoming Employment Rights Bill compounded by rampant Budget speculation that worried firms.
“While the Budget was by no means an easy listen for companies, the overall picture was more benign for most sectors than feared.
“We can hope that this, along with the more pragmatic tone the government has struck on the Employment Rights Bill over the past month, will help get the hiring market moving again.”
Carberry added: “With both resolution on the Bill and the Budget coming so late in the year, however, we are looking to January for the real bounce now.”
The tracker showed rises in postings for leisure and theme park attendants (up 97.2%), stock control clerks and assistants (up 24.1%) and public relations and communications directors (up 13.2%).
The biggest drops were seen in rail construction and maintenance operatives (down 32.3%), stonemasons and related trades (down 31.6%) and plasterers (down 30.5%).
In hospitality, job postings were down 10.4% in November.
Travel agency managers and proprietors (up 12.5%) and food, drink and tobacco process operatives (up 11.1%) saw the biggest increases.
Compared to last year, hospitality postings were down 3.2%.
There were fewer postings for cooks (down 10.7%), chefs (down 9.6%) and waiters and waitresses (down 1.6%).
However, postings for bar staff were up 27.7%, bar and catering supervisors up 14% and catering and bar managers up 10.9%.
Retail roles dropped by 14.1% in November after a small 2.3% rise the month before. All occupations in retail saw fewer postings.
The smallest falls were for waste disposal and environmental services managers (down 1.1%), vehicle and parts salespersons and advisers (down 4.3%) and call and contact centre occupations (down 6.6%).
Compared to last year, retail postings were down 6.5%.
Sales and retail assistants (down 16.7%), managers and directors in retail and wholesale (down 16.2%), roundspersons and van salespersons (down 17.4%) and shelf fillers (down 28%) were all less in demand, but retail cashiers and check-out operators were up 64.7%.
Driving and logistics roles fell by 10.9% in November after a 1.8% rise in October. Care escorts (up 7.1%) and air transport operatives (up 1.4%) saw more postings.
Delivery drivers and couriers were down slightly by 1.6%.
Active postings in this sector were 1.7% higher than last year.
Large goods vehicle drivers (up 8.6%) and fork-lift drivers (up 4.7%) saw more demand compared to last November.
Roles expected to be busy for Christmas were down, including delivery drivers and couriers (down 57.4%), postal workers, mail sorters, messengers and couriers (down 55.9%), other drivers and transport operatives (down 35.2%) and warehouse operatives (down 16.2%).
