Businesses more positive over staffing requirements

The majority of employers (56%) continue to report that they will hire more permanent employees in the next quarter, according to the Recruitment & Employment Confederation’s (REC) latest JobsOutlook survey.

The survey also reveals an increase in the percentage of bosses who foresee headcounts will “stay the same”, especially in relation to agency staff.

“Businesses are more optimistic about the future than they were 12 months ago and the fact that more than half intend to make additional permanent hires over the next few months reflects that,” explained REC director of policy, Tom Hadley.

“Employers use agency staff to meet fluctuations in demand and run their businesses efficiently and our latest data shows businesses have no intentions of reducing their use of agency staff for the foreseeable future.

"This is encouraging news about the health of the temporary labour market in the UK as we approach the second anniversary of the introduction of the Agency Worker Regulations. It's reassuring to see that the legislation didn't have the negative impact on the temporary labour market that many expected,” he added.

The survey also found that almost half (49%) of employers plan to increase their permanent headcount over the next four to 12 months, with another 49% predicting no change and only 2% predicting a reduction.

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