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HIGHLIGHTS
- A new research has revealed that despite denting the economy, the pandemic failed to make drastic changes to Britain's labour market.
- For about a year till February 2022, the country had 20% more job vacancies in contrast with the pre-pandemic period, the research claimed.
In March 2020, millions of people were forced to stay at home as governments across the world rushed to impose lockdowns to contain the spread of coronavirus. This forced several businesses to close completely, while others were forced to cut costs and let go of their employees as they couldn't generate enough income to pay them. As a result, a huge number of people either lost their jobs or a part of their wages.
The situation in the UK
In the UK, the situation improved with the gradual reopening of the economy, but the emergence of new variants of COVID-19 and subsequent restrictions kept the economic growth in check. However, new research has revealed that despite denting the economy, the pandemic failed to make drastic changes to Britain's labour market.
For about a year till February 2022, the country had 20% more job vacancies in contrast with the pre-pandemic period, the research conducted by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) claimed. It added that the overall change in the mix of job openings since the start of the pandemic doesn't exceed what would be expected over a two-year period in the normal situation.
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Image description: The UK had 20% more job vacancies than in the pre-coronavirus pandemic period
Government data shows a fall in unemployment
Employment data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) earlier this month said that the estimates for December 2021 to February 2022 show a fall in the unemployment rate as compared to the previous three months. During the period, UK's unemployment rate was estimated at 3.8%, which is 0.1% below the pre-pandemic levels. On the other hand, the employment rate stood at an estimated 75.5%, 1.1% less in comparison to the same months in the pre-coronavirus period (December 2019-February 2019).
Related video: https://youtu.be/qfweGXCAOXE
Here we take a look at some trending FTSE staffing/recruitment stocks and their performance.
Hays Plc (LON: HAS)
Hays Plc is an FTSE 250 constituent and provides recruitment services in 33 countries. The company reported an overall growth of 29% in net fees for the quarter ended 31 March 2022.
In UK and Ireland, the private sector saw a 40% growth in fees, compared to 9% in the public sector.
The company's shares were trading lower by 1.28% at GBX 123.5 at 12:39 pm GMT+1 as of 25 April 2022. Hays' stock price has depreciated by 26.30% in the last one year.
PageGroup Plc (LON: PAGE)
PageGroup Plc is a UK-based recruitment consultancy that offers services in the UK as well as other European countries. The group revenues for the first quarter of 2022 climbed to £258.2 million, up 42.6% from the first quarter of 2021. In the UK market, the company reported a gross profit of £36.9 million, compared to £25.7 million in Q1 2021.
On Monday, the company's shares traded at GBX 479.60, down 0.95% at 12:54 pm GMT+1. PageGroup has given a negative return of 13.72% to its shareholders in the last one year as of 25 April 2022.
SThree Plc (LON: STEM)
The UK-based company offers staffing services with specialization in the fields of science and technology. The group saw a strong net fee performance during the three-month period ending 28 February 2022. At £93.8 million, the group reported a 29% rise in net fees year-on-year, including £10.2 million in the UK market.
Shares of the FTSE All-share constituent were trading at GBX 364.50, down by 3.32% on 25 April 2022 at 10:30 am GMT+1. Its market cap stood at £503.79 million as of 25 April 2022. SThree's shares have given a return of -8.75% to investors in the last one year.
Note: The above content constitutes a very preliminary observation or view based on market trends and is of limited scope without any in-depth fundamental valuation or technical analysis. Any interest in stocks or sectors should be thoroughly evaluated taking into consideration the associated risks.
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Tags: Recruitment stocks, Hays, PageGroup, SThree
