Reed.co.uk Announces Job Opportunities Rose Sharply in January

LONDON, ENGLAND, February 04, 2011 (Press-News.org) Job opportunities across the country rose sharply in January, up 9 Index points compared to December according to the report from Britain's largest recruitment website, reed.co.uk. Employer demand rebounded from pre-Christmas lows to give a Reed Job Index reading of 113, the highest since the Index began.

Employer demand has risen 13 per cent since December 2009, when the Index's baseline was set at 100. Private sector growth is responsible for this increase, as new public sector jobs remain less than half their level of a year ago.

Seventeen different job sectors from across all areas of the private sector recorded their highest levels since the Index started. High-points were reached in industrial sectors such as Engineering, Construction, Manufacturing and Scientific, financial and service sectors such as Banking, Accountancy, IT, Administration and Transport, and in growth-support sectors such as Sales, Marketing and HR. In contrast while the Reed Public job sector Index rose one per cent compared to prior month it remained close to pre-Christmas lows to read 43.

The demand for jobs rose across the UK, with the regional Reed Job Index above 100 in every area of Britain for the first time since the Index began. Previously struggling regions such as North East England and the West Midlands have more than 20 per cent more jobs on offer now than when the Index started in December 2009.

Yet salaries for new jobs stayed flat to give a Reed Salary Index reading of 99. New salaries on offer are down 1% in real terms since December 2009, lagging further behind rising inflation. Real-term salary increases appear in just 10 out of the 35 job sectors analysed, with the job sector Salary Indexes only edging above 100 in areas such as Retail, Training, Banking, Hospitality, Marketing and Accountancy.

Martin Warnes, Managing Director of reed.co.uk, commented on the Reed Job Index for January saying "UK employers seem to be in job-creation mode, according to the latest Reed Jobs Index, with 13 per cent more jobs on offer now than 13 months ago. Employers right across the private sector are showing their confidence by recruiting new staff. While there may be economic challenges ahead, this is encouraging news for the UK economy."

For further information (including exclusive quotes, in-depth statistics and trend data) please contact Katy Nicholson for Reed at katynicholson88@googlemail.com or call 07712 873780 or visit http://www.reed.co.uk.