Achi news desk-
“The Scottish labor market continued to show weakness which has now existed for most of the last year and a half,” said the Royal Bank’s chief economist, Sebastian Burnside. looking to cut costs was hindering hiring activity.”
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Permanent staff appointments fell for the fourth consecutive month in March. The rate of contraction eased slightly from the peak on 15 February but remained rapid overall.
Provisional bills rose above the neutral mark of 50.0 for the first time since last December, but the rate of expansion was moderate.
The number of applicants available to fill permanent roles fell, as did permanent vacancies. The drop in the former extended the streak of declines to 38 months, while the latter was down for the eighth consecutive month.
Demand for permanent staff worsened across all eight sectors monitored, with hotels and catering recording the fastest decline.
There was a sixth consecutive monthly increase in the number of candidates available to fill temporary roles. Recruiters linked the progress to projects that were coming to an end, which helped free up labour.
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In line with the trend for permanent roles, the number of temporary vacancies also fell, extending the current contraction period to eight months. The executive and professional sector recorded the fastest decline in demand for short-term staff, followed by hotel and catering.
Average starting wages for permanent new carpenters rose during March, with labor shortages and competition to secure suitably skilled candidates putting increasing pressure on wages. However, the rate of inflation moderated “exceptionally” to the weakest in more than three years.
The first quarter of the year ended with a further rise in temporary wages across Scotland, thereby extending the current run of inflation which started in December 2020. Although Scotland’s rate of growth tends to be higher than the average UK as a whole, the increase was the weakest. in six months and historically quiet.
