UK Summer Jobs Rebound as Sports and Music Events Boost Hospitality Hiring

The UK’s seasonal jobs market is showing signs of recovery, with hospitality and tourism employers increasing hiring as a busy summer calendar of sporting, music and cultural events drives demand for workers.

According to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), hospitality and tourism job advertisements recorded a double-digit increase during the summer compared with the same period last year. The improvement comes after concerns in 2025 that employers were scaling back seasonal recruitment.

The combination of unusually warm weather and major events, including the men’s football World Cup, has helped businesses attract more seasonal workers across hospitality, tourism and other event-driven sectors.

Despite the improvement, the wider UK jobs market remains mixed. The country had just under 1.67 million active job postings in July 2026, representing a 7.7% increase from a year earlier, but active postings fell 2.6% compared with June.

The REC said opportunities for young people are improving, although entry-level hiring has not recovered as strongly as hoped. Hospitality, tourism and construction are currently offering more opportunities than they did last year.