The Spending Review - What It Means for Us

Amidst the latest Brexit bedlam, it would have been easy to miss the government’s spending review yesterday. This was seen by many as an initial run-through of pre-election pledges. Here’s a few thoughts on some of the areas that matter most to industry leaders and recruitment professionals. 

• On immigration: It was good to hear the Chancellor recognise the contribution of overseas workers and confirming that arbitrary immigration targets are very 'last administration'. However, we will need to continue highlighting that this this isn't just about 'brightest and the best'. Our monthly Report on Jobs data shows that we need workers across a range of sectors and job roles.
• On health and education: Investment in health, social care and education is much needed. Will this address current workforce challenges? We will continue to make the case that harnessing flexible working arrangements and the expertise of specialist recruitment professionals must be part of the solution for addressing staffing shortages and boosting front line services. On that note, do any REC members specialise in recruiting police officers? We need 20,000 apparently…
• On infrastructure: Boosting UK infrastructure was a big theme. This is potentially good news for specialist recruiters in sectors like construction and engineering. Once again, the challenge will be to ensure that we have the staff and skills needed to deliver, at a time when our Report on Jobs shows candidate availability declining month on month in many sectors and our latest JobsOutlook shows that nearly 50 per cent of employers are concerned over future availability of staff for key roles.
• On productivity: The Chancellor's speech included a specific focus on the need to ramp up UK productivity levels. Our core message here is that skills and better people management are part of the solution and that brilliant recruitment is at the heart of economic growth and improved productivity. Our industry can also play a pivotal role by taking a lead on the future of jobs and helping to pre-empt future skills needs.
• On Brexit prep: An extra £2bn was announced for Brexit planning, with a specific focus on helping businesses prepare for a no-deal scenario. The feedback from REC members is that a significant number of businesses still feel totally unprepared and that the real challenge is knowing what to prepare for. We will be taking stock during our next Brexit webinar and will continue to provide updates via our Brexit hub.

The main takeaways for us? Announced plans for health and social care, education and infrastructure are all contingent on having the right staff and skills in place to deliver services and projects. We need a twin-track approach involving a radical step change on skills strategy and evidence-based immigration policy. We also need our vibrant recruitment sector to help deliver the right staff at the right time.

Looking ahead to a possible General Election – which is what the Chancellor was really up to yesterday! – we will ensure that the importance of maintaining a strong and dynamic labour market is front and centre and that the collective voice of the UK’s £35.7 billion recruitment industry remains at the forefront of the jobs agenda.