Hospitality industry reports rising salary pressure for temporary workers in “absence of EU applicants”

Salaries for temporary workers across the UK rose at the fastest pace in six months in March, according to a widely followed survey to be published today, as vacancies for staff continues to rise.

Hourly pay rates for short-term staff rose for the 62nd consecutive month, according to a poll of recruiters by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC).

Rising salary pressure has come particularly in sectors experiencing shortages in staff, with the South East of England the region most exposed for permanent workers and London for temporary staff.

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Shortages in available staff were particularly acute in the hotel and catering sector and blue-collar professions, with the REC linking the pressure to declining applications from EU nationals.

REC director of policy Tom Hadley said: “In hospitality, demand for temporary staff is really high, but businesses have had fewer applicants from the EU since the Brexit vote.”

However, signs of increasing pay pressure for staff in permanent roles have diminished since hitting an almost three-year high in January.

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Pay increases for permanent placements in London were the weakest among all the regions of the UK, the REC said.

Wage inflation has increased notably in the last year, from a 1.9 per cent annual rate in May 2017 to 2.8 per cent in January, according to the latest available data from the Office for National Statistics.

February wage data, published next week, may mark the point when pay packets finally overtake inflation after an extended period of real-terms wage reductions. However, signs of a more dramatic uptick in wage growth for workers remaining in their jobs are still not widespread.

Hadley said: “Candidates planning to move jobs have a strong chance of getting a pay rise. With inflation outstripping pay growth for over a year now, high pay offers will be tempting, as the pressure on starting salaries still isn’t translating into pay rises for staff who stay put.”

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