Full Breakdown
August Hiring Trends Reveal Diverging Regional Patterns
9/8/2026, 12:34:18 PM
Background: Labor Market Pressures
The UK labour market has been navigating a global energy shock, elevated interest rates, and uncertainty surrounding the upcoming budget. Policymakers have kept interest rates on hold while monitoring inflation risks linked to the war in the Middle East. In this context, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG surveys track permanent and temporary staffing activity to gauge business confidence.
Data Highlights
- Permanent hiring: REC’s index showed a rise in full-time appointments in August, marking the first increase since September 2022. The growth was concentrated in London and the Midlands, while the rest of England recorded continued declines.
- Vacancies: The number of open positions fell for a thirty-fourth consecutive month, even as the pool of available workers expanded due to redundancies and job-security concerns.
- Temporary staffing in the North: The Business Desk reported a fourth straight month of higher billings for temporary workers in the North of England, though the rate of expansion was the weakest since early 2024 and lagged the national average. Temporary vacancies grew for a seventh month, while permanent job openings contracted for the third month in the region.
- Pay trends: Starting salaries and wages rose in August across the North, with permanent starter pay increasing for the ninth month and average hourly wages posting the second-strongest growth in more than two years.
Official Responses
Maxine Bligh, interim chief executive of REC, noted that the surge in temporary placements helps offset the north’s lack of permanent-hiring gains and called for coordinated action by government, business, and trade unions to sustain momentum. Chris Stott, senior partner at KPMG UK’s Manchester office, warned that skill shortages in engineering, technology and finance could limit the translation of temporary activity into longer-term employment.
Verbatim Quote
- “With the budget next month, the government has the opportunity to turn these green shoots into sustained positive momentum,” — Jon Holt, group chief executive at KPMG UK
