Strong Growth in UK Online Recruitment in February according to the Monster Employment Index

Strong Growth in UK Online Recruitment in February according to the Monster Employment Index


Online Hiring Rebounds From Seasonal Dip in January with significant increases in Healthcare, Social Work; and Management and Consulting Sectors

London – Online recruitment in the UK rose significantly in February as the Monster Employment Index grew by 32 points, rebounding strongly from a seasonal dip in January. 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 reached a level of 192 points in February, partly due to strong growth in online job availability in the healthcare, social work; and management and consulting sectors. The Index also showed significant increases in demand for the majority of occupational groups, with online opportunities for clerks rising the most. Overall, the Index is up 52 points, or 37 percent, compared to February 2007.

"The sharp rise in online hiring in February indicates that the demand for workers across the UK remains elevated despite signs of a slowing economy,” said Julian Acquari, managing director of Monster UK and Ireland. "While recruitment has clearly moderated in the financial sector, opportunities in most other industries have continued to expand. The Index seems to show a positive outlook for the UK employment market.”

Significant Growth in Online Demand in the Healthcare and Social Work; and Management and Consulting Sectors in February

A significant increase in online job demand in the healthcare and social work sector, following two months of decline, was a key contributing factor to the Index’s strong growth in February. Opportunities for legislators, senior officials and managers grew significantly in this sector, as did hiring of professionals; and technicians and associate professionals. Growth was registered in all regions of the UK, with the South West showing the highest rate of increase. There were also notable rises in Scotland and the Midlands.

Opportunities in management and consulting increased in February for the fourth consecutive month. The most significant upturn was seen among legislators, senior officials and managers, which showed a decline in January. All regions saw an increase in demand. The South West recorded the highest rise in job availability whilst North England grew for the fourth month in a row.

Job availability in the engineering sector also bounced back from a dip in January, led by an increase in hiring of legislators, senior officials and managers. Demand also grew significantly for professionals. There was an upturn in hiring in this sector across all regions in the UK.

In contrast, the legal sector was the only industry to see a dip in online job demand. Hiring decreased for the second consecutive month, led by a decline in hiring of professionals. The most significant declines were in the South East and London.

The banking, finance, insurance sector made a partial recovery from the significant dip in January, adding 16 points. Nonetheless, this sector registered a year-on-year decrease for the first time on record, illustrating the impact of the global credit market turmoil on hiring in this industry.

Significant Growth in Online Demand in the Healthcare and Social Work; and Management and Consulting Sectors in February

A significant increase in online job demand in the healthcare and social work sector, following two months of decline, was a key contributing factor to the Index’s strong growth in February. Opportunities for legislators, senior officials and managers grew significantly in this sector, as did hiring of professionals; and technicians and associate professionals. Growth was registered in all regions of the UK, with the South West showing the highest rate of increase. There were also notable rises in Scotland and the Midlands.

Opportunities in management and consulting increased in February for the fourth consecutive month. The most significant upturn was seen among legislators, senior officials and managers, which showed a decline in January. All regions saw an increase in demand. The South West recorded the highest rise in job availability whilst North England grew for the fourth month in a row.

Job availability in the engineering sector also bounced back from a dip in January, led by an increase in hiring of legislators, senior officials and managers. Demand also grew significantly for professionals. There was an upturn in hiring in this sector across all regions in the UK.

In contrast, the legal sector was the only industry to see a dip in online job demand. Hiring decreased for the second consecutive month, led by a decline in hiring of professionals. The most significant declines were in the South East and London.

The banking, finance, insurance sector made a partial recovery from the significant dip in January, adding 16 points. Nonetheless, this sector registered a year-on-year decrease for the first time on record, illustrating the impact of the global credit market turmoil on hiring in this industry.

Notable Rises in Online Demand for Clerks; and Professionals in February

Online job availability for clerks grew by 31 Index points, reversing two consecutive months of decline. Growth was mainly due to high demand in the administrative, organisation; sales; and IT sectors. Demand increased in all regions, with the South East and Scotland showing the biggest increases.

Demand for professionals also rose sharply in February, largely due to growth in the healthcare, social work sector. Hiring also increased in the arts, entertainment, sports, leisure; and research and development sectors. Demand grew in all regions with Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Midlands showing the strongest growth.

The legislators, senior officials and managers category increased by 28 points in February, following two months of decline. Demand in marketing, PR and media rose for the fourth month in succession.

Elementary occupations declined for the second month in a row, mainly due to a decline in hiring in the construction and extraction sector. Demand fell in the majority of UK regions, with the sharpest decreases experienced in the South East, the Midlands and London.

Online Recruitment Increases in All UK Regions

Online hiring increased across all regions in the UK in February. In contrast to January, the South West experienced the biggest upturn in job demand, principally caused by an increase in the healthcare, social work sector. Online hiring grew in the IT; and research and development sectors for the fourth consecutive month. Among occupations, the strongest increase was in service workers and shop and market sales workers. Year-on-year growth was the highest of all UK regions at 145 Index points, or 89%.

Wales increased considerably following a dip in January, due in part to growth in the healthcare, social work sector. There were also increases in the accounting, audit, taxes; and engineering sectors. Demand for plant and machine operators and assemblers continued to grow for the second successive month.

Online hiring also increased significantly in North England, despite a second consecutive dip in opportunities in the legal sector. There was also significant growth in the Midlands, largely due to increases in the healthcare, social work; and accounting, audit, taxes sectors.

Monster Employment Index UK data for March will be released on April 8, 2008.