Thursday, May 23, 2013

Number of jobseekers per vacancy rises by 6%

Aberdeen is the best city to find a job with the lowest number of jobseekers per vacancy in the UK, research finds.

Figures from the UK employment market report May 2013 from Adzuna suggest the number of jobseekers per vacancy has increased by 6% over the past six months, with 3.4 job hunters currently available for each empty position.

While there are on average 0.38 jobseekers per vacancy in Aberdeen, figures suggest that there is a widening North South divide in terms of job opportunities. Named the worst city to find a job, Salford has over 55 jobseekers per vacancy.

There are on average 54.90 jobseekers per vacancy in The Wirral, 55.33 in Hull, 38.73 in Sunderland, and 35.68 people seeking work for each available role in Rochdale.

In contrast, Cambridge has 0.67 jobseekers per vacancy, while the number of jobseekers for each available job in Guildford has fallen by 4% and now stands at 0.71.

London has seen the number of jobseekers per vacancy rise by 8% since last autumn. Exeter has seen a 5% increase in jobseekers per vacancy over the last six months, while Chichester has seen a 4% rise.

Adzuna research also reports that average advertised wages have increased by 0.1% over the last six months, now standing at £33,693 per annum.

According to the Office of National Statistics, unemployment in the UK was up by 15,000 from January to March.

Head of research at Adzuna, Flora Lowther, said: ‘The number of advertised jobs has increased steadily from Q1 to Q2. While this is encouraging, long-term unemployment remains a major problem.

‘Cities such as Hull and Chester remain in trouble with job stock dwindling and average wages falling.

‘One of the few bright spots in this month’s figures is that youth unemployment has fallen by 0.1%. However, Adzuna data reveals that there are still 20 applicants for every entry level vacancy, so it’s still fiercely competitive for 18 to 24 year olds.’

Local Gov