Stay tuned to the NWM blog for our latest company news, in-depth industry commentary and insights as well as useful guides on finance and compliance for contractors.
Mon 16th Nov 2015
October results show that the number of contracts awarded during the month in the UK has risen, following a number of months of declining growth. The news offers contractors reason to increase confidence in the continued development of the industry. Giving more job security and allowing workers to choose contracts most suitable to them.
The Report on Jobs published by the Recruitment and employment Confederation showed that demand for IT contractors now stands at 60.3 compared to 58.6 in September (on the REC index)
Taken with REC’s other figures (July 59.2; August 58.7 and Sep 58.6), the data suggest that the recent relaxation in the growth of IT contractor demand has ended, as hirers enter the final quarter. REC Jobs Outlook for October 2015 has also reported that 38% of clients are planning to increase their contractor headcounts before the end of the year. Giving contractors more reason to believe the medium to long term outlook is good.
Currently there are five skills sets that are scarce within IT contracts - Digital Marketing, Java, Oracle, PHP, Testers. These areas of skill shortage are due to be addressed in the Autumn statement.
This month’s Contractor Calculator Market Report highlighted that
• Clients increasing head counts should fuel contractor demand as improved confidence in the economy continues
• Contractor shortfall in Scotland is blamed for slowing economic growth in the region.
• REC warns infrastructure projects may slow down due to acute skills shortages.
• Morgan McKinley’s London Employment Monitor for September 2015 reports a significant year-on-year increase in demand for contractors in the finance and IT sectors.
• The manufacturing industry shows significant opportunity for increasing the base of contractor workers.
