Despite the British economy growing by 0.1% in the fourth quarter (beating analysts’ expectations), things are not okay with the European country. According to a new survey, vacancies for permanent jobs in the nation declined at their fastest pace for four years in December 2024.
David Hoghton-Carter, a 46-year-old Leeds-based corporate strategy professional, says the current job market is the worst he has ever encountered, even worse than the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, which also left him temporarily jobless, and the pandemic.
Hoghton-Carter is still looking for work after almost two years, joining the 1.57 million people in the United Kingdom looking for work between September and November 2024. This group accounts for a small portion of the nearly 11 million working-age people who are deemed “economically inactive” due to a variety of factors, including illness, and do not receive an income, even though they make up the majority of Britain’s “unemployment” statistics.
“The job market is nightmarish. Competition is extreme, it’s slim pickings for good roles that suit my skill set, and employer expectations are through the roof,” he said.
Hoghton-Carter was one of several people nationwide who told The Guardian that they had never had such a difficult time finding employment. According to their responses, hundreds of applicants competed for each position, highly skilled graduates had difficulty finding well-paying jobs, and candidates were frequently turned down for positions for which they were qualified and those for which they were overqualified.
A published research revealed that job vacancies in January 2025 fell to their lowest level since August 2020, during the height of the pandemic. In a study conducted by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG, employers’ demand for permanent employees has decreased over the past 17 months.
Hoghton-Carter shared the opinions of many other respondents, believing that British employers were unwilling to invest in training and were demanding more for less money.
“Salaries rarely meet current living costs. It’s a race to the bottom by organisations and businesses, either desperate to save money or prioritising their profit margins,” he added.
Additionally, many job seekers observed a significant decline in job postings and application responses since last summer, especially for positions in design, entertainment, marketing, human resources, and information technology. Many attributed the decline in opportunities to economic unpredictability and higher employer expenses since Rachel Reeves’ budget was announced last October. They added that several jobs that previously required professional expertise were now worth less due to AI.
Graphic designer Owen Winn, who hails from Slough, Berkshire, previously held senior in-house design roles at organisations like O2. He claimed that many companies seem to have replaced his prior roles with AI, which has resulted in a sharp drop in open positions.
“It has been very difficult to find stable employment as a creative. I have applied for hundreds of jobs. I have a body of work that spans 20 years for some of the most well-known brands in the world, and yet it’s still not enough. It feels like being on the scrap heap at 44,” he added.
In his search for long-term roles that match his seniority, Winn has mostly come across poorly defined freelance positions and far lower-level job offers. He recalled one recent freelance opportunity from a company whose website featured AI-generated graphic design for all its content.
Despite the expectation that earning a degree would result in lucrative employment, many graduates reported being compelled to accept part-time or low-paying jobs.
The 29-year-old Manchester resident, Lufty, was one of many highly qualified individuals who contacted us who were underemployed, meaning they were doing low-paying, frequently part-time jobs for which they were far too qualified. He has a master’s degree with distinction in medical microbiology and a first in biology from Russell Group universities, but he has been earning around £24,000 annually working in pubs.
“I’ve been applying for entry-level jobs in science and healthcare, especially for lab assistant positions with the NHS, since I was 23. I’m lucky if I get one interview a year. These are band 2 entry-level positions, offering less money than I make at the pub. They only require GCSEs or A-levels to apply, and I have two degrees. I tick absolutely every box on the job descriptions. You have to assume it is so competitive that they’re automatically filtering out many applications because of the sheer volume. Or is there some rubbish AI sifting through these applications that keeps spitting mine out?” he said.
Lufty, who borrowed £60,000 to earn his degrees, was one of many people who thought that, despite government and employer messaging that more graduates with STEM degrees were needed in the economy, opportunities in STEM fields were becoming scarcer.
Danielle, 36, a London resident who previously held senior HR positions, was among several seasoned mid-career professionals who experienced underemployment like recent graduates.
These respondents stated that the UK labour market was overflowing with top talent during a period of reduced hiring budgets, and that the number of open positions had significantly decreased due to demand for workers following the initial job cuts caused by the pandemic.
“The market has been absolutely abysmal. A couple of years back, I was inundated with offers. This time, I’ve been actively looking for a new role for almost four months, and there are barely any openings. For every job, there are 500-1,600 applicants you need to compete with. There just aren’t enough roles to go around,” Danielle, who has only managed to find part-time work, said.
Additionally, workers claimed that their hours had been reduced as managers tried to lower labour expenses without reducing the number of employees.
Violeta Munteanu, a product assistant from the West Midlands, said, “My working hours were reduced due to current budget constraints. Many of my friends had their working hours cut to reduce costs.”
A significant number of participants stated that they could not even locate low-skilled jobs in industries like retail and hospitality to support themselves.
“I haven’t had a job in four years. I’ve applied for about 1,500 jobs. I’m qualified in various things. I’ve applied for everything from being a cleaner in a factory to things associated with my degree. I’m worried about my future. I should be able to support myself financially, but I’m stuck in a village and live with my parents, so I have to claim universal credit. It feels impossible to get a job,” a 25-year-old woman from Yorkshire said, who was made redundant when a shop closed.
Many job seekers stated that they were only considering fully remote, hybrid, or more flexible positions, pointing to a mismatch between employer needs and worker expectations.
These individuals stated that it was challenging to attend an office full-time due to several factors, including the high cost of living in neighbourhoods near places of employment and the difficulty in finding appropriate and reasonably priced childcare.
Numerous individuals with years of experience and university degrees described their struggles as “demoralising,” “humiliating,” “ridiculous,” and “exhausting.” Young people and school dropouts without additional credentials also expressed a sense of complete helplessness.
“It’s miserable. No replies on any online job applications despite tailoring CV to the job requirements – for instance, for my Subway application, I put forward my previous McDonald’s work as qualifications instead of my A-levels,” said 20-year-old Sam from Brighton, East Sussex.
Marina, a 26-year-old from Wanstead, east London, claimed that she had been unable to find a permanent job for the last six months. She saw an increase in the pay offered for temporary administrative or hospitality jobs, frequently for ad hoc shifts, but she still felt that it was insufficient to cover her expenses.
“There’s pressure to upskill or gain additional qualifications and experience, but then there are no permanent jobs offered, only temporary contracts. I wonder whether what employers are looking for in people has changed…the economy certainly has,” she said.
While the economy shows some growth, the UK job market remains tough, with many struggling to find stable, well-paying jobs. Britons will hope for a positive shift in this trend in the months ahead.