UK pay being pushed higher by slide in worker availability

A marked decline in the availability of workers across the UK helped push up pay last month, according to IHS Markit and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.

Recruiters’ struggle to meet rising demand for staff in both temporary and permanent roles is boosting wages, especially starting salaries, the groups said in a report published on Wednesday.

They added that it shows the need to clarify the rights of overseas workers as part of Brexit negotiations.

Full-time workers in the accounting and financial industries were most in demand, followed by IT and computing, and engineering, while employers were seeking nursing, medical and care workers for part-time roles.

"We simply do not have enough people for all the roles that are out there," said Kevin Green, REC chief executive officer. "We already know that EU workers are leaving because of the uncertainties they are facing right now.

We therefore need clarity around what future immigration systems will look like. Otherwise, the situation will get worse."

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