Increase in financial services jobs available as the City weathers Brexit uncertainty
The number of financial services jobs available in London increased during the third quarter, alongside the number of job seekers, but political uncertainty is still casting a cloud over the capital’s job market, according to new research.
Between July and September, the number of new financial services roles increased 12 per cent on the previous quarter, according to a report by Morgan McKinley. New job seekers also rose 12 per cent during the period.
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But despite this uptick in positions and demand, year-on-year comparisons for City jobs are stark. The third quarter saw a 37 per cent decrease in jobs available, year-on-year, and a 25 per cent decrease in job seekers.
“Pressure remains strong on both businesses and individual job seekers to hunker down and wait for a resolution on Brexit,” said Hakan Enver, Morgan McKinley UK’s managing director.
“As a result, professionals remain reluctant to move, thus failing to generate new positions and growth opportunities for others, and businesses continue to put off all but essential hiring.”
Enver said that although “fear of the unknown is rampant”, causing “employees cling to existing positions”, the preparations that financial services firms have made for a hard Brexit were insulating them.
“Because financial services businesses have been preparing for a hard Brexit for over two years, they are proving remarkably resilient,” he said. “They don’t want a hard Brexit but they’re ready for it”
A survey published last month found that companies in the finance and business services sector were planning to take on new staff at the fastest rate in over a year as they prepare for the UK to leave the European Union on 31 October.
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The study also found that low levels of unemployment and increasing competition for top candidates was leading to ballooning starting salaries, with some law firms offering £140,000 in an attempt to appeal to prospective employees.
“The resilience of the UK’s financial services sector tells me that once the worst of this is behind us, be it a hard Brexit or something more reasonable, the economy is going to come back in full force,” said Enver. “You can’t keep London down.”
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