Jobs, Pay, Bonuses Rise As UK Economy Recovers

Stephen Little

17 December 2013

Despite a slight dip of 2.6 per cent in the number of City of London jobs in November to 7,056 vacancies, year-on-year growth in city hiring levels is up 30 per cent, according to London Employment Monitor research conducted by recruiter .

Although the firm did not break down how this data affects wealth management, the statistics are broadly indicative of the financial jobs market in the City.

Hakan Enver, operations director at Morgan McKinley Financial Services, said that despite a slight pre-Christmas dip in job availability, year-on-year there has been growth in city hiring levels of 30 per cent, which he attributed to increased business optimism within the financial services sector as the UK economy continues its recovery.

"The month-on-month decrease we have seen is indicative of organisations waiting until the New Year to begin the recruitment process, in particular for infrastructure and support functions, where we expect there to be an increase in hiring from January onwards," said Enver.

Meanwhile, the number of job seekers entering the hiring market decreased by 7.5 per cent from October to November. The number of professionals actively seeking new jobs increased 122 per cent compared with the same time last year.

“Despite this demand, however, the challenge we are facing is sourcing candidates that are willing to move jobs in the run up to Christmas. This trend is illustrated in the month-on-month reduction in jobs seekers entering the market during November,” said Enver.

The average salary increase for those securing new jobs in November was 15 per cent compared to 12 cent the previous month.

Pay rises

Average salary in the City far outstripped inflation, rising by 6 per cent in 2013 to £85,921 ($140,149), according to financial services recruiter .

The number of city workers that received an increase in pay was 47 per cent, compared to 44 per cent two years ago.

Astbury Marsden said that bonuses for the most senior City workers are expected to increase by 44 per cent in 2013, despite pressure from shareholders and the public to scale back large City payouts.

The firm said that the average bonus for managing directors is predicted to increase to £166,955 in 2013, up from £115,618 in 2012. This is expected to amount to 115 per cent of their average salary, up from 88 per cent in 2012.

"Despite pressure to keep a lid on bonuses, as the economy recovers and bank profits start to return, it’s not unreasonable that bonus expectations also rise. Although prospects have improved, some may find themselves disappointed this year," said Mark Cameron, chief operating officer at Astbury Marsden.