Although job seeker traffic typically slows down as we head into the Christmas period, it’s important to be on top of the latest trends in the job market if you’re continuing hiring activity. This infographic breaks down the key job market trends for the public sector during September to November of 2022. These statistics are based on the activity of both employers and candidates who use our jobs board, jobsgopublic.com.
Key takeaways
Overall, traffic on Jobs Go Public doubled September-November, compared to the previous 3 months, as hiring activity picked up from the summer holidays. This is unsurprising considering the economic pressures the British public is currently facing due to the cost of living crisis.
As we noted in September, salary has shifted to become more of a priority over flexible working as people feel the pinch of increased energy and food costs.
With this uptick in activity we’ve seen the following trends:
Candidates
- Candidates have been twice as active in Scotland this autumn, with applications for roles based in Scotland doubling from the previous 3 months.
- Roles at the Manager level are most sought after, with just under a third of profiles seeking jobs at this experience level.
- Candidates looking for Director and Head of Service level roles are the rarest, with just 8% of candidates seeking alerts for these jobs. This demonstrates that vacancies for such senior roles require an approach tailored to reaching passive candidates.
- The five most popular job areas among public sector job seekers this autumn were administration, management, customer service, care work and teaching.
- The following counties/boroughs are seeing the highest amount of application activity from candidates:
- Merseyside
- Kent
- Cheshire
- Waltham Forest
- Berkshire
Employers
- Roles in the education sector are particularly high in demand among employers, with a 41% increase in teaching roles posted this autumn.
- Employers are currently competing the least for Apprenticeship candidates, with vacancies at this experience level decreasing by half.
- In spite of the rarity of candidates actively seeking Director level jobs, employers have posted 88% more vacancies at this seniority in the last 3 months. If you’re struggling to recruit in this passive demographic, see how our team can help you reach the best talent.
- The employees most in demand for local government were care workers, administrative staff, support staff, social workers and housing directorate staff.
- The following counties are currently the most competitive for candidates in terms of the volume of job advertising activity:
- East Sussex
- Merseyside
- Berkshire
- Cheshire
- Surrey
For more information on how you can tap into these trends this winter and attract the best talent, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Jobs Go Public team!