UK employers have strongest hiring plans in over 8 years, survey shows

UK employers are planning for the biggest budget hike in more than eight years for next month, with few planning to lay off staff when government support expires next month, Britain's Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) quarterly poll showed on Monday.

The quarterly survey by the British Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) has amplified evidence of labor market shortages because the economy has fallen behind the coronavirus pandemic, although it showed little evidence of wage or inflationary pressures.

Earlier this month, the Bank of England predicted that the unemployment rate would not rise to above its current 4.8%, far below the peak of about 7.5% it had seen before.

"Employers are very optimistic, indicating strong recruitment intentions, and redundancy expectations appear much lower than originally predicted during the pandemic," told Jonathan Boys, Labor Market Economist at the CIPD.

Just 13% of employers plan to lay off workers, up from 33% a year ago, when it was much more feared that a premature end to state aid would cause a sharp rise in unemployment.