Brexit uncertainty hits job market in parts of Yorkshire, says survey

MANY areas of the North of England have been hit by stagnating job markets, which is partly due to a 'Brexit-induced hesitation', according to a new survey.
Job hunters faced mixed fortunes across the North of England in SeptemberJob hunters faced mixed fortunes across the North of England in September
Job hunters faced mixed fortunes across the North of England in September

The UK Job Market Report from Adzuna.co.uk found that job seekers in parts of Yorkshire were facing tough conditions, at a time when people seeking work in other parts of the UK were spoilt for choice.

In Yorkshire, there were 55,060 vacancies in September, which was a 7.9 per cent fall when compared with September 2015, the survey found.

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Only four other UK regions boasted fewer vacancies than Yorkshire; Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland and the North East. The average salary in Yorkshire in September was £29,485, which is 1.3 per cent down on September 2015. The average UK advertised salary in September was £32,688, a fall of 1.3 per cent year-on-year.

Hull was the third worst city in the country for anyone looking to find a job in September, with just 1,296 vacancies and 2.29 job seekers per vacancy, according to Adzuna’s survey.

The number of vacancies in Hull fell year-on-year by two per cent. The Adzuna survey also found that Bradford was the fourth worst city in the country for job hunters.

Bradford had 3,144 vacancies in September, which was a fall of one per cent year on year. In Bradford, there were 2.24 job seekers per vacancy. The national average of jobseekers per vacancy is 0.47.

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In Sheffield, there were 8,366 vacancies in September, which was 10 per cent down on September 2015. In Leeds, the number of advertised vacancies was 17,903, which was an 8 per cent drop on September 2015.

Across the UK, the total number of vacancies was 1.13m in September, which was down by 3.8 per cent from the same month last year.

This represented an 0.8 per cent rise on August, which prompted Adzuna to state that, overall, the UK jobs market had “re-ignited” after a pause for breath after the EU referendum.

However, Becky Harkins of Adzuna told The Yorkshire Post: “Many areas of the North have seen stagnating job markets, with ongoing tough conditions for jobseekers in many key regions.

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“A combination of factors could be at play here, with uncertainty of the implications of Brexit giving many employers pause for thought when it comes to staffing up or offering top salaries to attract top talent.

“The introduction of the living wage, as well as Brexit-induced hesitation, has had a heavy impact in many northern regions, and is especially prevalent in areas dependent on manufacturing.”

Commenting on the national picture, Doug Monro, of Adzuna, said: “Jobseekers looking to move into a new role or those that are fresh to the jobs market hold all the aces at present. Many predicted that Brexit would deflate the jobs market, but the opposite in fact has occurred. September’s figures represent a bouncing back from the momentous EU referendum result and renewed consumer and employer confidence.”

Cambridge remains the best city in the UK to find a job, with 0.06 jobseekers per advertised vacancy. Guildford, Oxford, Reading and Winchester make up the rest of the top five, “proving that the South of England is the place to be for those seeking a new opportunity”, the Adzuna report said.

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It added: “The worst city in the UK to secure a job continues to be Belfast despite jobseekers per advertised vacancy falling to 4.18, in comparison to 5.42 in August. Competition for jobs may partly be so high because of the paucity of average advertised vacancies, currently standing at just 5,135. Sunderland follows close behind in second position, with 3.07 jobseekers per vacancy.”