Recruitment prospects remain bouyant for public sector

Public sector employers are still looking to take on more staff this year, despite Gordon Brown’s plans for massive cuts.

According to recruitment company Manpower’s Employment Outlook Survey, the balance of employers looking to recruit in the public sector is +17 per cent, compared with a UK average of +18 per cent.

This represents a quarter-on-quarter increase of four percentage points and a year-on-year increase of three percentage points.

Emma Barnes, Manpower group business manager, said that across the public sector, departments had become increasingly cost-conscious, and now only look to recruit if there is a real need. 

“The good news is that hiring is still taking place, although this is something of a mixed picture with many government departments only taking on temporary staff rather than offering permanent placements,” she said.

“Although Gordon Brown claimed this summer that he could eliminate 100,000 civil service posts, the market continues to be buoyant.”

Across the UK, eight of the nine industry sectors surveyed by Manpower are planning to take on staff next quarter. Employers in transport and communications, finance and business services and manufacturing, all reported figures above the national average. 

Agriculture is the only sector expecting cutbacks with an outlook of -8 per cent – a decline of nine percentage points over the past quarter, and a year-on-year fall of four percentage points.