NI Leads Regional Online Recruitment Growth

Online recruitment activity in all UK regions either grew or remained constant in December, but Northern Ireland reversed a two-month decline, registering the strongest monthly rate of increase.

This was due to expanded opportunities in the IT and arts, entertainment, sports leisure sectors.

Job availability for technicians and associate professionals also rose significantly, while overall year-on-year growth for the Northern Ireland region stands at 42%.

Wales also saw a sizeable increase in online job demand last month, following a three-month downward trend. More opportunities in the IT, education, training and library sectors were key to this increase, and offers for technicians and associate professionals rose sharply.

The South West also registered a significant jump in December, led by strength in the banking, finance, insurance; IT; and education, training and library. Overall, the South West was the Index’s top growth region in the UK during 2007, registering a 91% annual rate of increase.

Overall online recruitment activity in the UK rose sharply in December, with the national 'Monster Employment Index' adding five points, continuing a two-month upward growth trend.

The Monster Employment Index UK is a monthly analysis of millions of online job opportunities culled from a large, representative selection of corporate career sites and job boards across Europe, including Monster.co.uk.

The Index increased to a level of 174 points last month, partly due to greater online job availability in the marketing, PR and media; and banking, finance, insurance sectors – the latter bouncing back from a significant dip in November. The Index also showed notably higher demand for elementary occupations; and technicians and associate professionals. Overall, the Index is up 45 points, or 35 percent, compared to December 2006.

"It is encouraging to see that online job opportunities expanded strongly in the fourth quarter of 2007 despite early signs of a slowing global economy,” said Andrea Bertone, Regional Director, Monster Worldwide Europe.

"The Index’s stepwise growth since October suggests that the majority of UK industries are still recruiting, although a tight labour market is also a key driver of online recruitment. The UK’s low unemployment rate indicates that competition is high for top talent and employers are looking online to source the best candidates.”

A third consecutive increase in online job availability in the marketing, PR and media sector was a key factor in the Index’s expansion in December.

Opportunities for professionals; and legislators, senior officials and managers jumped the most. Regionally, East Anglia and London experienced the strongest increases. Year-on-year growth for the sector stands at 81 points – a record 58% annual growth rate.

Banking, finance, insurance bounced back from a marked decline in November, largely due to increased opportunities for professionals; and technicians and associate professionals.

The Index showed an upturn in hiring across all regions last month, with Northern Ireland reporting the highest growth rate. Year-on-year growth is now 21 points, or 13%.

“Recruiting increased in the majority of industries in the UK in December as employers began preparing for the year ahead, mirroring similar growth in December 2006. However, the Confederation of British Industry has warned that the twin shocks of the credit crunch and high commodity prices will likely slow the UK economy and that the UK job market will undergo a gradual softening next year,” added Bertone.

Construction and extraction also declined following two months of growth, as a result of lower demand for plant and machine operators and assemblers.

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(BMcC)