Candidate and Skills Short Market
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Posted 17.11.22
I am sure you have all seen the news over the last few months, talking about a candidate and skills short market. Does this affect your business and what can you do about it?
What do we Mean by Candidate Short Market?
By the end of 2021, businesses were facing probably one of the worst shortages of candidates for a number of years. And not just in the UK but worldwide. Things were looking very different with a number of lessons learned and people questioning everything they had thought important. Lockdown restrictions differed across countries, some workers returned to work, whilst others stayed at home and hybrid working suddenly became the norm.
As things around the world starting emerging into a post-pandemic world, employers expected a surge in available candidates. However as businesses ramped up activity again, many companies found their efforts to hire hitting a brick wall.
The reasons are many and varied, however there are some fundamental reoccurring themes:
Changes to working preferences
The pandemic forced many people to reconsider big decisions; where to live and how to spend your time. Work/life balance was brought starkly into the forefront. Some moved out of cities, some back to family here in the UK or abroad and others preferring to work from home.
A reluctance to move roles
The pandemic made candidates nervous about exploring new opportunities, citing job security with their current role as a reason to stay. That old saying about ‘last in, first out’ is still alive today.
Fewer EU candidates
The end of free movement with the EU had a significant impact on the availability of skilled workers, especially in the UK. Although travel restrictions prompted many candidates to return to home countries, causing this issue to expand across borders. Many companies in the UAE for example prefer candidates with EU/UK experience. These were suddenly in short supply.
Cost of Living
The rising cost of living combined with a candidate shortage is creating a a wave of candidates pushing for higher salaries. Knowing that they are in demand, some candidates are using the opportunity to leverage their position to command higher salaries. This is particularly true of the more senior roles. Employers now find themselves in the position of having to offer higher salaries to attract the best talent. But when higher salaries are on offer, employers need to make sure they are getting value. This means they are all chasing the most skilled candidates,
Skills Short Market
We are also facing the reality that although we might have the workers, we don’t actually have the right skills. Skill shortages coupled with increasingly strict immigration rules are making it more difficult for companies to find the skills they need in the areas they need them. And it goes without saying – the more specialist the skill, the more in demand they are.
Using the services of a specialist recruiter will be key in addressing these issues. Without the right talent, your projects are in trouble. With the contacts, the time and the relationships to find these candidates, the value-add of a specialist recruiter to your business is undeniable.
Further Reading:
- Visit our latest Salary Guides
Find out what the essentials are to tackling the UK’s staff shortage in 2022 from the HR Director Magazine