What You Need to Know About the North-East Job Market

As the UK continues to move towards a sense of normalcy outside of lockdowns, there still remains an understandable concern around the state of the job market across the UK.

In the North East, unemployment remained the highest in the UK outside of London in April of this year, with the headline rate for unemployment in the region being 5.7% in the three months to the end of February. 

The pandemic has affected young people significantly, with more than three-quarters of those losing their jobs being under the age of 35, and with an end to furlough on the horizon, many are asking the question: What is the state of the job market in the North East? 

We’ve put together insights, tactical advice and information to help you, whether you’re a candidate looking for a role or a business in need of support. Whilst the region may be facing uncertainty, there are certainly green shoots that you can take advantage of.

The Government’s Job Support Scheme saw the region’s employment rate grow for a time, with unemployment falling somewhat over the quarter.

However, furlough is now skewing the perception of the jobs market in the North East, meaning that the true impact of the pandemic on the job market for the region will only be clear once furlough is wound down. Once this happens, the Government will be faced with a rush to avoid spikes in regional unemployment, particularly in the North East.

To put the situation into perspective, though there was brief stability after the initial shock of the pandemic last year, the number of people on payroll fell slightly in March after a small period of growth.

With over 800,000 fewer employees than before the pandemic, and 5 million people furloughed, a close eye will be kept on both London and the North East due to the rise in unemployment and redundancies.

The impact of redundancies

Across the North East, firms are making cuts as a result of the pandemic, with more than 1,730 roles at significant risk.

Nissan, Swissport, Tyneside Cinema, and Debenhams are just some of the firms considering job cuts, yet these are just the large, well-known firms. 

Nissan has confirmed redundancies of up to 160 office-based roles in Sunderland, in addition to not renewing the contracts for nearly 250 temporary workers as a result of reduced worldwide demand for its cars.

This is just one example, yet the pattern seems to be emerging that in the approach to the Government’s Job Support Scheme slowly winding down, businesses are taking steps to account for the damage done by the pandemic.

Though some of these proposed cuts aren’t by any means definite, they are reliant on the outlook through the coming weeks.

What businesses need to know

As employees begin to return from furlough leave and lockdown restrictions are relaxed, many businesses will need to begin navigating through the uncertainty.

Many businesses will be looking to fill vacancies. Even though there are redundancies on the horizon in the North East, the Government’s promise to ‘level up’ the North East combined with specific skills gaps across industries means that vacancies are equally likely to rise (not just in the hospitality sector, either).

This is evident by the range of vacancies that will be actively recruited for at North Tyneside’s jobs fair at Quorum Park, with advertised vacancies across finance, sales, IT, social care, customer service, and public sector roles.

At such a critical time, though, you won’t just be looking to fill vacancies – you’re looking for top talent.

Getting through a period of economic uncertainty requires talented, adaptable candidates who can drive innovation and productivity in order to boost your business when you need it most.

Our advice? Consider the value of ex-forces candidates. You can benefit from candidates with a range of vital and transferable skills in areas where organisations across industries are facing gaps.

As an example, around a third of the medium and large organisations surveyed by Deloitte cited skills gaps in strategic management, managing and motivating staff, team-working, positive attitude and listening skills – areas where veterans are seen as performing well by around 90% of the organisations that have employed them.

What candidates need to know

We might be in a tumultuous time at the moment, yet businesses will be looking to make strong recoveries as we ease into the next phase of re-opening, particularly in regions like the North East that have been hit hard by the pandemic.

Though transferable skills have been on the rise in recent years as a key area of focus during recruitment, now more than ever, transferable skills are desirable for the flexibility they can provide for employers.

Soft skills are also likely to make an appearance during the recovery phase, as organisations have a heightened need for dependability, flexibility, collaborative skills, and problem-solving/critical thinking.

The hope from CBI Director of people and skills Matthew Percival is that “The urgent priority must be creating inclusive jobs today, by turbo charging the sustainable industries of tomorrow.”

The uncertainty due to the pandemic is likely to affect the needs of businesses, which is why transferable and soft skills are expected to be of an equal, if not greater, priority to traditional academic backgrounds.

In the long-term, the approach to recovery in the North East is likely to involve an emphasis on flexibility and an attempt to coordinate a response based on opportunities that have arisen as a result of the pandemic.

Many may have looked at their processes and development during the pandemic and decided to shift in an alternate direction – one that benefits business growth and increases security. This is another reason why transferable skills are likely to be a trending aspect of the job market in the North East.

News around redundancies, unemployment, and furlough winding down may be concerning to those in the North East of the UK who have been hit hard by the pandemic.

However, for businesses and candidates alike, these changes may result in opportunities in the long-term as stability arrives on the horizon.

Get in touch with OWOA to find out how we can help open your talent pool to a more diverse candidate base.