Job vacancies fall faster in UK than elsewhere, Indeed says

By David Milliken

LONDON (Reuters) - Job vacancies have dried up faster in the United Kingdom than in other similar countries over the past year, recruitment platform Indeed said on Tuesday, adding to signs of a loss of momentum in the British economy in the second half of this year.

Indeed's data showed that as of Nov. 29 there were 23% fewer jobs advertised on its platform in Britain compared with a year earlier - a sharper decline than the 14% drop shown in official data which covers the August to October period.

Job vacancies were 12% lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The balance of power has certainly swung towards employers as the labour market has softened, as evidenced by the fall in job postings, decline in signing bonuses, easing wage growth and rising zero hours contract postings," Indeed economist Jack Kennedy said.

While France did only slightly better with a 22% annual decline, other comparable countries including the United States, Germany, Ireland, Canada and Australia had falls in a range of 5% to 15%.

Indeed's data shows a steady fall in vacancies through 2024 but businesses' concerns about hiring have become sharper since finance minister Rachel Reeves announced a 25 billion pound ($32 billion) rise in employer payroll taxes in her Oct. 30 budget.

"Employers will likely continue with caution when it comes to hiring in 2025," Indeed said.

On Monday the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, which represents recruitment agencies, said demand for workers in Britain collapsed last month after the new Labour government's first budget.

Tuesday's figures showed that advertised starting salaries in Britain were 6.7% higher than a year earlier - a faster rise than the 4.8% shown for average earnings excluding bonuses in official data for the third quarter.

High wage growth has been a key reason behind the Bank of England's decision to cut interest rates more slowly than the European Central Bank of the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Indeed said pay growth was fastest in low-paid roles - where pay in October was up 7.6% year on year, reflecting a higher minimum wage - while high-wage jobs had a 6.0% rise.

In less good news for low earners, zero-hours contracts - which offer no minimum hours for staff, and which the government has pledged to curb - rose to 1.9% of job postings, up from 1.1% in April 2022.

Indeed, which is owned by Japan's Recruit Holdings, says it operates the world's most visited job site, with 580 million job seeker profiles across more than 60 countries.

($1 = 0.7851 pounds)

(Reporting by David Milliken, editing by Andy Bruce)