The data shows that key sectors across the UK saw an impressive rise in application rates last month when comparing month-on-month data. Some of the top industries to witness an increase include manufacturing, recruitment, construction and automotive. In addition, many major cities across the nation saw an impressive increase in applications, further confirming the rise in candidate appetite.
Furthermore, the UK saw standout job growth in January, with jobs increasing by a staggering 38 per cent month-on-month and 5.1 per cent year-on-year. Some of the UK’s key cities saw above-average increase in vacancies, as outlined in the table below:
| Top cities for application growth (January 2017 vs. December 2016) | Top cities for job growth (January 2017 vs. December 2016) |
| 1. Bristol – 70.9% | 1. Birmingham – 50.4% |
| 2. Birmingham – 68.9% | 2. Manchester – 47.7% |
| 3. Liverpool – 68.3% | 3. Leeds – 47.5% |
| 4. Manchester – 66% | 4. Brighton – 45.3% |
| 5. Cardiff – 62% | 5. Cardiff – 44% |
| 6. Southampton – 60.6% | 6. Liverpool – 43.1% |
| 7. Portsmouth – 59.2% | 7. Southampton – 41% |
| 8. Sheffield – 52.2% | 8. Portsmouth – 39.1% |
| 9. Brighton – 48.9% | 9. Edinburgh – 37.1% |
| 10. Edinburgh – 47.3% | 10. London – 35.8% |
Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library comments: “It’s great to see that both business and candidate appetite is strong across many key UK cities and sectors. January is always a busy time for recruitment, as businesses get back into the swing of things and many candidates look for their next opportunity to kick-start the New Year. With application rates soaring, competition amongst candidates is fierce, but as business confidence is so high, now is the best time for job hunters to make the most of the abundance of opportunities available to them.”
According to the data, salaries across the UK were also up last month, witnessing an impressive 5.6 per cent increase when comparing data from January 2017, with January 2016. Key cities for salary growth included Brighton, Liverpool and Hull, all of which saw above-average hikes in pay, and were also significantly higher than the national inflation rate of 0.6 per cent. Not only this, but the manufacturing, legal and accounting sectors were some of the top industries to witness an increase in salaries year-on-year.
Biggins continues: “We’ve not seen average salaries increase by such a large amount for a while now, so it’s extremely positive to see that businesses are recognising the need to offer competitive pay packages in order to attract talented candidates. This is a strategy that is clearly paying off as application rates have sky rocketed since December, though this surge in candidate appetite comes as no surprise at this time of year. We hope that this data is a good sign of things to come, and that we will see both business and candidate confidence remain as the year progresses.”
