UK Permanent Hiring Shows First Growth Since 2022

Britain's jobs market showed signs of improvement in August, with permanent staff placements increasing for the first time since September 2022.

The monthly index tracking permanent job placements, compiled by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG, increased to 50.5 from 50.0 in July. A reading above 50 indicates growth.

The survey also reported stronger temporary hiring activity, with temporary billings rising at their second-fastest rate in more than three years.

However, overall vacancies continued to decline, indicating that the wider jobs market remained under pressure. The pace of decline was the second-weakest recorded in nearly two years.

Candidate availability also increased at its fastest pace in three months, partly linked to redundancies. At the same time, starting salaries for permanent positions recorded their strongest growth since January.