How Coronavirus has impacted the UK jobs market: 2019 vs 2020

22 Jul 2020

It’s no secret the last few months have put a strain on businesses, and as a result, there have been many candidates looking for new job opportunities, with a whopping increase of 32% of people applying for jobs in June alone. In their latest report, CV-Library, the UK’s leading independent job board, have revealed their latest findings in the jobs market over the last 3 months, and how June 2020 compares to that of 2019.

Take a look at our infographic below to see which sectors have seen a boom in job applications, and the locations where candidates are seeing the highest competition for jobs.

As you can see, there are a number of locations, including Bristol, Brighton, Portsmouth, Edinburgh and Southampton where competition is fiercer than ever. It also seems there are a few particular hotspots where applications have soared for each vacancy that comes to market, particularly the southern cities of Brighton and Southampton, where applications have rocketed by 43.6% and 38.6%!

When it comes to sectors that have been affected most by Covid-19, it seems those in Sales, Marketing/Design and Administration roles have been hit the hardest and have found themselves looking for new opportunities.

The positive twist to the current situation is that many of those who have found themselves no longer in work have decided to take the plunge and go solo, starting up their own businesses, even if it is just for the short term. It’s encouraging to see so many people taking the self-employment route.

Lee Biggins, founder and CEO of CV-Library had this to say on the results, “The rise in applications will be welcome news to organisations that have struggled to source top talent in recent years. However, the sad reality is that hundreds of thousands of people have been forced to look for a new role because of the pandemic.”

He goes on the give some valuable advice to businesses, saying, “Competition for these jobs is intensifying and businesses need to be sensitive of the situation and remember that employer branding is still important. Try to give constructive feedback, communicate your hiring timeline and be as honest and open as possible with candidates.”

Are you looking for a new job in any of the above sectors? Here at First, we cover a large variety of sectors and locations. Send your CV to recruit@firstrg.com and one of our team will be happy to help!

Have you decided to go solo and start up your own business but are in need of help on the payroll front? We can help with that too with our latest innovation, MyPay+. A simple and secure solution to your payroll needs. Find out more about MyPay+ here.