Thank you for joining us this month. It’s a very troubling and disturbing time with uncertainty for many individuals with connections and family in Ukraine, our thoughts are most definitely with them.   What's happening in the news is pretty heavy right now, and perhaps you feel powerless, but there are ways we can all help. We've linked the Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal and Unicef below, there are many local collection centres being set up, with Facebook doing an excellent job of keeping people informed of what, where and when donations are welcome.   https://donate.redcross.org.uk/appeal/ukraine-crisis-appeal https://www.unicef.org.uk/donate/donate-now-to-protect-children-in-ukraine   We’re keeping a watching eye on the situation as it continues to unfold and should we get any advice from the Home Office reference a change in refugee status and employment, we will circulate that to you as soon as possible, in the event that you may be able to help.

Being long-term unemployed is hard enough but there is the double whammy of the stigma attached to the status too. Some employers reject candidates outright who, through no fault of their own, haven’t worked for over a year. However there is a way back to work if you take the right approach according to our panel of experts.

With 2021 behind us, we are now well into 2022 and taking a refreshed look at the current recruitment market. 2022 is set to be another challenging and turbulent year for recruiters, for in-house and external recruiters. At the time of writing this article (February 3rd) there are over 4,164 live vacancies in Dorset on the Reed job board alone.  3,967 of those are fulltime with the rest being part time.  In total Reed have 296,456 vacancies live on their job boards across the UK!  At Aspire, we use 3 different job boards so total that up and suffice to say, it’s a lot!   eBoss reports: “Although the UK jobs market has been dealing with skills gaps for way over a decade, this ‘New Normal’ is different. Staffing droughts are impacting every level of recruitment. It is not so much a skills shortage as a people shortage. The question is whether this has impacted the outcome of the survey.” Avature reports that a survey of 6,000 employees in the UK showed that 24% or people are planning to change their current work position I the next three to six months. Many wanting a change due to burnout and a lack of sense of belonging at work. This is driving Avature’s belief that company culture will take centre stage in 2022, it’s a belief that we also share at Aspire Jobs. With this shift in worker perspective, we are consistently seeing Employee benefits and rewards rising the ranks of “must haves” for candidates.

We’re already a month into 2022 (how did that happen!) and you might be thinking of changing your job, according to research around 25% of employees are looking to switch roles or companies early this year.   You’ll have read about the ongoing recruitment crisis at the moment in the UK, lots of jobs and not enough people, meaning that this is what we call a ‘candidate driven market’. This isn’t likely to change in 2022 and whilst that may ‘put you in the driving seat’ it’s essential that when job hunting and interviewing you remember the fundamentals of seeking a new role…

It's a job rich market our there, here are 4 things candidates should know about...

A recent report on reed.co.uk talks about the UK labour market being on the cusp of, if not in the midst of - The Great Resignation.   It’s an attention-grabbing headline that’s for sure! But what does it actually mean in reality?

What's going to happen in recruitment in 2022? Well if I had a crystal ball that would be an easy question to answer, but here are my thoughts as we start the New Year.

What a year to try and review in a short newsletter.  I can’t believe we are in December – where has that year (well let’s be honest the last 18 months) gone?

What a year to try and review in a short newsletter.  I can’t believe we are in December – where has that year (well let’s be honest the last 18 months) gone? Lockdown 3 We started the year in lockdown and for myself and my husband we started it with Covid which wasn’t pleasant (obviously we weren’t vaccinated at this point).  It really knocked me for 6 energy wise and losing smell and taste towards the end wasn’t any fun at all – particularly when there was little to look forward to in lockdown 3 in winter!  Thankfully we are all OK now.   Farewells to family We then moved house into a massive renovation and extension project and my Stepdaughter emigrated to Australia with our 3½ -year-old Grandson 2 days later – emotions were running high let me tell you!   Bouncing back   Finally, the UK gradually came out of lockdown and the employment market bounced back.  In fact, its bounced back so much its now the most buoyant market I have ever known and that’s saying something since I have been in the industry for over 31 years.  As followers of mine you will know that I am always looking for the positives and therefore it’s what I call a “jobs rich” market rather than candidate shortage.  Furlough ended in the summer and as I predicted there weren’t hundreds more people looking for work!   The status quo   Even now in December I am still taking on new jobs, new clients and more importantly turning away jobs daily.  In fact, November was my best month since I set up the business in January 2011 – it’s tough and hard work but I am filling jobs on a regular basis. I pride myself on my individual service to both clients and candidates and as such will only work with clients that are using my services exclusively, will pay the going market salary and will listen to me and move quickly.  To assist me with my recruitment I have taken on a freelance, part time, remote resourcer called Emma who is helping me with some of the additional workload of late. So, if you are looking to recruit in January (or seriously get the January blues and start thinking about a new job), then reach out to me via my website, phone, email, or social media.  I will do my best to help and provide you with the current local employment statistics.  

Dorset LEP has researched and published Insights into the Dorset Labour Market and Skills for quarter 3 this year. It’s a fascinating report of interest to both clients and to candidates, it never hurts to have knowledge and understanding of the local recruitment market no matter which side of the fence you are on. In particular interest to candidates is the piece in the report about green jobs and how that manifests in our locality - here's a short snippet to whet your appetite...   "The Government unveiled its landmark Net Zero Strategy: Build Back Greener setting out how the UK will secure 440,000 well-paid jobs and unlock £90 billion in investment in 2030 on its path to ending its contribution to climate change by 2050.

Dorset LEP has researched and published Insights into the Dorset Labour Market and Skills for quarter 3 this year.   It’s a fascinating read (not least because I am featured in it!) and provides essential commentary on the local labour market.   It’s true the report focusses on Dorset, but the story is the similar for Hampshire and surrounding counties, so hugely relevant to all my clients and further network.   Key findings of the report: The end of the Furlough scheme Vacancies and opportunities in Dorset: record growth Demand grew on all pre-pandemic levels across all industries Top employers, jobs, and skills Employment holding up, unemployment rising, return to work accelerating Both younger and older workers are more likely to be unemployed Declines in employment are occupation and sector specific Self-employment cautiously back on growing trajectory Increase in pay seen nationally not yet reflected in Dorset Grow your green career in Dorset

Focus on these employability skills during your studies – and talk about them in interviews – to land yourself a great job with prospects. I'm always on the look out for useful articles and information to share with candidates and when I saw this one, I thought it ideal and timely content for our October Newsletter.  The article is taken from www.managers.org.uk, it's aimed at graduates, but when I read it, I thought there was so much here that was relevant to all candidates.