Job figures show October increase in recruitment

October was an encouraging month for recruitment, with the number of jobs posted by UK employers up 4% month on month, and 8% on last year, according to the latest Job Index figures from jobs board reed.co.uk.

The Reed Job Index reported that in October, two employment sectors in three were in better health than they were in September, with jobs in education, customer service and sales reporting growth of more than 10% in the past month. Eleven out of 12 regions across the UK also reported greater numbers of vacancies compared with the previous month, with only Wales showing a slight decrease in jobs advertised, of 3%. Monthly opportunities in London were up by more than 5%, but it was the North-East and the North-West that enjoyed the strongest gains – each enjoying month-on-month growth of more than 6%.

The Index stands at 139, compared with 134 last month and 129 in October last year (the baseline is 100). Its highest point was in March this year, when it reached 142. Data for the index is compiled from jobs posted on reed.co.uk.

There has been a slight increase in salaries overall, with Reed’s Salary Index standing at 97, compared with 96 last month. However, the Salary Index is down 3% compared with December 2009, when it started. The banking sector enjoyed a healthy rise in pay, with average salaries on offer up eight points between September and October, reaching an index score of 120.

James Reed, chairman of Reed Global, reed.co.uk’s parent company, said: “While turbulence in the eurozone continues to be the order of the day, employers will rightly continue to be cautious – but our figures point towards a buoyant pre-Christmas period for the jobs market, with seasonal industries such as sales and customer service already recruiting new roles in encouraging numbers.”

He added that the state of the jobs market “continues to be one of steady, sustained growth, as it has been for the year as a whole so far”.

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