Analysis
By Gavin Mochan
WHILE the pandemic’s full impact on the jobs market is still unclear, one thing is evident: workers who are nervous about changing employers are potentially missing out on inflation-busting pay increases.
Nearly 72,000 job ads were recorded in Scotland in June, with the demand for permanent staff rising at the fastest pace seen since 2003. IT, computing, construction and engineering are leading the charge as the economy rebounds from the depths of the pandemic.
According to the RBS Business Activity Index, last month saw the second-quickest rise in output since 1998. One side-effect of these rapid increases in growth and job adverts has been a surge in starting salaries fuelled by a sharp fall in the pool of permanent candidates in the market.
Meanwhile, the record fall in the availability of temporary staff in Scotland is even more pronounced, with the number of candidates hitting an all-time low in June.
As a result, starting salaries in Scotland increased for the seventh month in a row, with June showing one of the steepest rises. Average monthly pay now stands at £2,014, up 7.7 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels. The unwinding of the furlough scheme – which is currently supporting about 7% of the Scottish workforce – should help to ease shortages but, for now, much of the employment landscape is a seller’s market.
Gavin Mochan is commercial director at s1jobs.
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