Construction and engineering show strong growth in vacancies

Jo Faragher

The construction and engineering sector led the charge in an upswing in the professional jobs market, according to the latest vacancy data from professional recruiter body APSCo.

APSCO’s data shows that the recent rise in GDP – last week showing 0.6% – is fuelling the beginnings of a real recovery in the professional jobs market. 

According to APSCo, there was a 59% increase in vacancies advertised in the property and construction sectors, and a 69% surge in contractor vacancies. These tie in with a recent survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), which reported new construction projects in almost every part of the country.  

An increase in engineering projects led to a 17% month on month increase in permanent roles, and a 22% increase in contract roles, APSCo found.

Ann Swain, APSCo’s chief executive, said: “The ongoing resilience of the engineering sector is obviously being driven by the huge increase in activity in the upstream oil and gas arena but as this is a global industry, the UK does have to compete heavily for talent with other locations – all of which need the same skill sets.”

In the marketing sector, by contrast, there was a 21% decrease in placements compared with last year, but a similar level of vacancies, suggesting a shortage of talent, particularly where organisations are looking for staff for digital projects.