Back to the future: REC Trends suggests pre-recession high in sight
6 November 2013
A third consecutive year of growth for the UK recruitment industry means the sector is on course to exceed pre-recession turnover levels next year, finds the Recruitment Industry Trends Survey 2012/13 from trade body the REC.
Wed, 6 Nov 2013A third consecutive year of growth for the UK recruitment industry means the sector is on course to exceed pre-recession turnover levels next year, finds the Recruitment Industry Trends Survey 2012/13 from trade body the REC.
And it also shows that recovery in the permanent market is slower and more labour-intensive than the temporary and contract market – although both did show growth, unlike last year when perm business declined.
The Recruitment & Employment Confederation’s annual report is compiled based upon 585 responses to a survey from Market Shaper and Cordoba Services, alongside other sources including the Office for National Statistics and Kingston Business School.
Total recruitment industry turnover of £26.5bn is up 3.1% on last year’s figure, the third year of growth after two substantial years of decline between 2007 and 2009.
An infographic displaying some of the trends unearthed by the report is available on Recruiter magazine's tumblr channel.
Permanent market
Permanent recruitment volumes rose 12.1% to 617,314 in the year, the report finds, but this only resulted in a 2.2% rise in permanent turnover.
REC chief executive officer Kevin Green tells recruiter.co.uk that “we would anticipate, in the professional parts of the market, margins to come back [up], because there is a growing skills shortage”, meaning the industry can achieve a return on what the report calls “its productivity investment”.
Temporary market
The temporary market also saw a 2% rise in volume, with an average 1.13m workers supplied daily, matched by a 3.2% rise in revenues.
According to the report, the “industry has been both self-selecting to work on fewer, higher-value roles and has been adapting to scenarios of delivering on introduction fee/margin-only contracts where required, notably within a rising number of NHS Trusts”.
Consultants
While the industry comes back toward 2007 volumes, it now employs 64,669 consultants, down nearly 15% on the 2007-08 level.
Within this, consultants working solely on permanent have declined from making up 46% of the consultant workforce, to just under 30% today. Meanwhile, consultants working solely on temp/contract have grown by 11% to 24,672, and those working both sides by 12% to 18,900.
“I think what has happened is people are have become more efficient,” Green says. “I think what it means is people are beginning to look at efficiencies across organisations.”
“While there is business in the market, are we working hard for it,” he adds.
Forecast
The REC’s Medium Term Forecast contained in the report, looking at the next three years, suggest the industry should be larger than the pre-recessionary total of just over £27bn, growing between 5.6% and 9% depending on optimistic of pessimistic scenarios are achieved.
The REC’s forecasts suggest total industry growth of over 25% between now and 2015-16 is realistic.
And it also shows that recovery in the permanent market is slower and more labour-intensive than the temporary and contract market – although both did show growth, unlike last year when perm business declined.
The Recruitment & Employment Confederation’s annual report is compiled based upon 585 responses to a survey from Market Shaper and Cordoba Services, alongside other sources including the Office for National Statistics and Kingston Business School.
Total recruitment industry turnover of £26.5bn is up 3.1% on last year’s figure, the third year of growth after two substantial years of decline between 2007 and 2009.
An infographic displaying some of the trends unearthed by the report is available on Recruiter magazine's tumblr channel.
Permanent market
Permanent recruitment volumes rose 12.1% to 617,314 in the year, the report finds, but this only resulted in a 2.2% rise in permanent turnover.
REC chief executive officer Kevin Green tells recruiter.co.uk that “we would anticipate, in the professional parts of the market, margins to come back [up], because there is a growing skills shortage”, meaning the industry can achieve a return on what the report calls “its productivity investment”.
Temporary market
The temporary market also saw a 2% rise in volume, with an average 1.13m workers supplied daily, matched by a 3.2% rise in revenues.
According to the report, the “industry has been both self-selecting to work on fewer, higher-value roles and has been adapting to scenarios of delivering on introduction fee/margin-only contracts where required, notably within a rising number of NHS Trusts”.
Consultants
While the industry comes back toward 2007 volumes, it now employs 64,669 consultants, down nearly 15% on the 2007-08 level.
Within this, consultants working solely on permanent have declined from making up 46% of the consultant workforce, to just under 30% today. Meanwhile, consultants working solely on temp/contract have grown by 11% to 24,672, and those working both sides by 12% to 18,900.
“I think what has happened is people are have become more efficient,” Green says. “I think what it means is people are beginning to look at efficiencies across organisations.”
“While there is business in the market, are we working hard for it,” he adds.
Forecast
The REC’s Medium Term Forecast contained in the report, looking at the next three years, suggest the industry should be larger than the pre-recessionary total of just over £27bn, growing between 5.6% and 9% depending on optimistic of pessimistic scenarios are achieved.
The REC’s forecasts suggest total industry growth of over 25% between now and 2015-16 is realistic.
