Demand For IT Staff Slows Down

A new jobs report published by KPMG and the Recruitment Employment Confederation (REC) has revealed that the demand for permanent and temporary IT workers has slowed, although the rate of expansion remained historically strong throughout November.

The seasonally adjusted index for permanent IT staff dropped to a 16-month low in November of 64.5, down from 67.8 in October.

Despite the drop, this figure remained in line with the average UK level of 64.4 and IT & Computing professionals placed fourth among the nine monitored sub-categories in the demand for staff ‘league table’.

The index for temporary vacancies also experienced a November drop  from 65.1 to 63.3 which was the lowest figure in six months and below the 2014 average to date.

This figure is, however, greater than the national average which stands at 61.7 and is strong in the context of historical data.

Furthermore, growth of demand for short-term IT staff was the fastest among the nine surveyed sub-sectors for the first time since December 2013.

Heath Jackson, partner in the CIO Advisory practice at KPMG, said: “No sign of a happy Christmas in the job market as the rate at which permanent contracts are being signed are now at a 16 month low.

“With a number of employers applying compulsory holiday for contractors at the end of the year and yearly job contracts coming to an end, could we see a flood of people out of jobs in December and the New Year?”

KPMG is a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax, and Advisory services and the REC is the professional body that represents the UK’s £24.6 billion private recruitment and staffing industry.