You may have seen in the press and even on the 10 O’clock news about the current challenges recruiting staff.

A surge in demand in the economy has resulted in fierce competition for talent. I remember during May 2020 there being only 1 “Landscape Architect” role being advertised in the whole country. There are now over 100.

So why is it much harder to find staff now than even just a few months ago? Let’s address this first and then look at how we can get the best possible outcome from your recruitment campaign

Reasons Why You May Not Be Getting As Many Job Applications In July 2021 Compared To 2019

1. Job Security

People who are in-work, are cautious about changing jobs due to uncertain times ahead, even if they are unhappy in their current role.

2. Furlough

Convincing people to move whilst they have the protection of the furlough scheme makes matters even harder. In most cases they won’t be eligible for furlough payments in their new role. This has of course been present for over a year, other factors however are now playing a part.

3. 78% Drop On Immigration

There were 668,979 visas granted in the year ending March 2021, 78% fewer than the previous year. This has left a huge shortage of labour in industries such as hospitality.

4. Unemployment Rate In 2021

Unemployment actually dropped in Q1 to 4.8%, whilst this was only a small drop, there are less people out of work looking for work across a wider selection of positions.

5. 122% Increase In Available Jobs

With the increase in the number of available vacancies and relatively few candidates in the market, those who are looking have more choice and are spread more thinly across the wide selection of vacancies. I expect this percentage to be much higher within the private sector.

6. Emigration

It has been widely reported that there has been a large increase with foreign nationals returning to their home countries during COVID leaving a shortage of available workers.

There is a general trend of companies receiving fewer applications than normal which we believe are largely due to the above factors; there are some early signs we may have reached an inflection point, meaning the number may start to increase again, BUT our expectation is that until at least the furlough scheme has come to an end, the shortage of labour in the market will remain to some extent.

Apart From Waiting For The furlough Scheme To End, what Else Can You Do To Give Yourself The Best Chance Of Finding Someone?

Job Advert Content

1. Make Sure You Use The Clearest Job Title Possible.

What is your ideal job seeker searching for? Keep the job title as close to this as possible as it is more likely to be found.

2. Advertise A Salary (Benchmark Your Salary)

62% of job seekers say that transparency on salary was a leading factor as to whether they apply. A job advert with a salary attracts on average 20% more applications.

3. Include Information About Any Company Benefits (Make Sure Your Company Benefits Are Market Leading).

48% of job seekers will filter their job search on employee benefits such as career progression, training, health insurance, etc.

Candidate Experience

Act fast! With lots of options available, be sure to get back to candidates quickly and in a professional manner. Otherwise, someone else will snap them up.

Keep the application process simple. During times when companies are inundated with applications, it is understandable why you may want them to jump through a few hoops. In most cases, we would suggest keeping the application process simple. Once you are engaged with the individuals, then you may want them to undertake certain tasks, but not before direct engagement.

Try Everything!

We encourage companies to advertise the roles across multiple job sites. Also be sure to leverage social media, employee referrals schemes and any other channels you have at your disposal.

Read How To Advertise A Job On Social Media and Introducing An Employee Referral Scheme.

Also, read Should I advertise My Job On More Than One Site? and How To Advertise A Job.