Catering sector sees standout job growth in the run up to Christmas, says research
The catering sector stood strong in November, with job postings increasing by 17.9%.
This jump made the sector one of the best performing industries for job growth across the UK, according to the latest data from independent job site, CV-Library, which compared its data from November 2016 to November 2015, and found that the top 10 sectors for job growth were:
Manufacturing – up 37.7%
Automotive – up 37.3%
Hospitality – up 26.8%
Legal – up 21.7%
Construction – up 19.6%
Public Sector – up 18.4%
Catering – up 17.9%
Marketing – up 17.7%
Leisure/Tourism – up 16.6%
Property – up 14.4%
The sector also saw a 8.2% increase in advertised salaries last month, as catering organisations continue to invest in their current and future workforce. Not only is this good news for job hunters, but suggests that business confidence is remaining strong despite ongoing economic uncertainties.
Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library, said: “It’s great to see that catering organisations are remaining confident as the year draws to a close, and that businesses recognise the need to offer competitive salaries. This is a notoriously busy time of year for workers in the sector, and businesses in catering have plenty of roles to fill over the festive period. It’s also likely that companies are getting their job adverts out there ahead of the January rush in the New Year.”
However, while job postings were up during this time, applications actually fell by 10.3%, which suggests that candidate appetite is not necessarily meeting employer demand. While this could be perceived negatively, it is not unusual for the time of year, and many other major sectors also witnessed drops in application rates during this period.
Biggins said: “Candidate appetite is always lower at this time of year, mainly because workers have other priorities on their mind in terms of Christmas and making it through to the end of the year! We expect to see application rates pick up again in January so businesses in the sector should rest assured that there will be talent filling their vacancies very soon.”
