The global pandemic has led to a 22% drop in vacancy numbers across the UK this year. That’s according to the latest real-time statistics from the world’s largest network of job boards, Broadbean Technology.

Covid’s impact on hiring revealed, with London taking a hit

Broadbean’s data revealed that vacancy numbers across the UK are down 22% for 2020 when compared to 2019’s overall figures, with London reporting a 32% decline in jobs this year as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak. Across the sectors, the true impact on the hospitality sector can be noted in the annual comparison, with the number of vacancies throughout 2020 dropping 46% when compared to last year’s statistics.

According to Broadbean Technology, despite ICT jobs seeing an uptick in demand at various points this year as organisations moved wider activity online, the profession also noted an overall dip in vacancy numbers. In 2020, ICT jobs dropped 24% when compared to 2019’s figures, highlighting that every sector has been impacted in some way this year.

Week on week data shows positivity

Broadbean’s data also revealed that at a time when hiring would normally see a seasonal drop, the year-on-year weekly comparisons showed some promising signs. Vacancy numbers for the week ending 20th December were up 4% for the whole of the UK when compared to the same period in 2019. This is perhaps an indication that the pandemic has had a positive impact on the seasonal lull in some sectors, with employers less concerned about the impact of the holidays on recruitment activity. This is particularly notable in the ICT profession, with these roles seeing a 27% increase in numbers last week when compared to 2019, which is indicative of the continued demand for these experts as remote working remains in place for many businesses.

According to the statistics, other sectors which would usually see a spike in recruitment reported a significant drop. Hospitality jobs were down 55% last week compared to 2019 figures, with sales and trading roles also dropping 7% in the same period as the prolonged closure of shops and hospitality venues continues.

Alex Fourlis, Managing Director at Broadbean Technology commented: “With the country under some form of restrictions for the majority of 2020 we absolutely expected there to be an impact on hiring numbers, however, in the circumstances, a 22% decline overall suggests that the UK can weather this storm relatively well. The slight uptick in overall hiring last week when compared to the same time last year certainly paints a picture of the times we are operating in now. It would appear that many employers are focusing on hiring as and when needed – and feasible depending on tiered restrictions – meaning that the lull we’d normally expect in the lead up to Christmas hasn’t become a reality this year. However, there are sectors which we’d normally see an uptick in hiring that have been hard hit. The significant drop across hospitality at a time when we’d expect seasonal peaks in recruitment activity will naturally be a concern for those working in what has undoubtedly been one of the hardest hit sectors during the Covid-19 outbreak. And with large sections of the UK now in Tier 4 restrictions, it’s likely that these numbers will remain low for hospitality in particular over the holiday period.”