A new report from the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) showcases how recruiters have “stepped up through the pandemic to keep the wheels of our economy turning” and urges employers to treat recruitment as “a priority issue”.

‘Recruitment and recovery: How we can create a more productive and inclusive labour market’ outlines the economic and social impact of recruitment in the UK, with a headline finding that getting recruitment right boosts UK productivity by £7.7bn each year.

Neil Carberry, REC CEO, said: “Employers that treat recruitment as a priority issue because of the value it adds unlock competitive advantage. Bringing in the best talent boosts productivity – especially where organisations work with recruitment experts. Companies wouldn’t go to court without the best lawyers – they shouldn’t hire without the best recruitment and staffing service.”

Research for the study was commissioned by the REC in January and conducted by Public First. The work involved running new surveys of workers, business and the industry to understand their experiences with recruitment, an REC statement said. The research included:

• Consumer poll – a nationally representative poll of 2,000 adults in Britain, weighted by interlocking age and gender, region and social grade.
• Business poll – an in-depth economically representative poll of 500 businesses, weighted by business size, sector and region.
• Industry survey – a short survey of 114 REC members, examining their financial performance over the last two years.
• Also, Public First ran two follow-up short polls, one focusing on 4,000 adults in Britain weighted by interlocking age and gender, region and social grade, and the other of 1,000 businesses, weighted by business size, sector and region.

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