Public sector employment levels are expected to fall in the coming months for the first time since the 2004 Gershon Review of efficiency, exclusive research has found.
The Gershon Review recommended public sector efficiency savings of £21bn over four years, including the loss of 80,000 civil service jobs.
The latest findings from the Recruitment Confidence Index (RCI), produced by Cranfield School of Management, in association with Personnel Today, revealed 89% of public sector organisations expect their employment levels to either fall or remain at the same level over the next six months,
This figure compared to only 55% of private sector organisations.
Similarly, 85% of public sector organisations expected their recruitment activity to drop or stay the same, compared with 60% of private sector organisations.
Emma Parry, research fellow at Cranfield School of Management, said: “The recruitment marketplace has appeared positive for some time now with the private sector, and particularly service sector organisations, recruiting workers.
“This quarter we can see a stark contrast between the still buoyant picture in the private sector and the apparent cutbacks in the public sector which may be the first indicator that the implications of the 2004 review are filtering through.
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“A drop in public sector recruitment activity and employment levels now being predicted is an inevitable consequence of such policies.”
