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Recruitment of permanent staff stopped falling in July for the first time in nearly four years, according to the report on jobs from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG, published on Monday. The survey’s index of permanent staff placements reached 50 points, the level that separates growth from contraction. It had been below that mark every month since the autumn of 2022, the longest run of decline in the index’s history. Maxine Bligh, the REC’s chief membership and innovation officer, said: “Rays of light are beginning to break through for the job market as employers revive hiring plans. “Remarkably, this is the first month without a decline in permanent placements since Liz Truss resigned as prime minister in 2022, underlining just how prolonged the downturn in permanent hiring has been.” Businesses in London took on new full-time staff at the quickest pace in nearly four years, the report showed. Permanent placements continued to decline in the north of England. Callum Licence, group head of...

Gen Z is often derided as a lazy, unambitious generation of workers uninterested in climbing the corporate ladder. But contrary to popular belief, they’re just as determined as millennials or Gen Xers to get their careers off the ground, despite the odds seemingly stacked against them. From AI agents taking over entry-level roles to employers padding their reputations with “ghost” jobs, the labor market has become the Wild West. Even educators are waving the red flag.  “There are many graduates now that are coming out of universities, which means that there are more people that are graduating necessarily for the jobs that are there,” Rob Breare, CEO of independent U.K. school system Malvern College International, recently said onstage at the Fortune Global Forum conference.  “I saw a rather shocking statistic in the U.K. earlier this week,” Breare continued, referencing an Institute of Student Employers (ISE) statistic that 1.2 million applications were submitted for just 17,000 U.K. graduate roles in 2023/2024. The depressing...

The UK is losing more jobs than it is creating because of artificial intelligence and is being hit harder than rival large economies, new research suggests.British companies reported that AI had resulted in net job losses over the past 12 months, down 8% – the highest rate among other leading economies including the US, Japan, Germany and Australia, according to a study by the investment bank Morgan Stanley.The research, which was shared with Bloomberg, surveyed companies using AI for at least a year across five industries: consumer staples and retail, real estate, transport, healthcare equipment and cars.It found that British businesses reported an average 11.5% increase in productivity aided by AI. US businesses reported similar gains, but created more jobs than they cut.It suggests UK workers are being hit particularly hard by the rise of AI, as higher costs and taxes also weigh on the job market.Unemployment is at a four-year high, as rises in the minimum wage and employer...

Young people are bearing the brunt of the UK's weak labour market, according to new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).Some 16.1% of people aged 16 to 24 are not able to find work, compared to a national unemployment figure of 5.1%.That does not include young people who are out of work but not looking for a job, due to ill health or who are still studying.Businesses, particularly in sectors that traditionally gave young people their first jobs, like retail and hospitality, say higher costs are leading them to cut staff or not take on new hires, which often hits young workers the hardest.But graduate-level roles are also proving harder to land.Lucy Gabb is currently working in a cafe in London while trying to break into the publishing industry. She graduated from Cambridge University in July 2025."Entry-level jobs are just so competitive and they're asking for experience that is just impossible to get whilst you're also studying," she...

More than half of retail jobs could be affected by reform to guaranteed working hours, making it harder for shops to employ people – particularly young workers – in part-time roles, the industry’s lobby group has warned.From April, the Employment Rights Act will introduce new protections for workers on sick pay, sexual harassment, parental leave and trade union recognition.Further rights to guaranteed hours for those currently on zero or “low hours” contracts, flexible working, payment for short-notice cancellation of shifts and barring fire-and-rehire practices in most circumstances are due next year.However, the government has yet to decide the maximum number of hours in a low-hours contract and the period of weeks over which regular working patterns can be assessed in order to decide guaranteed hours.The British Retail Consortium (BRC), which represents most big UK retailers, says guaranteed hours protections should only apply to contracts of eight hours a week or fewer, and the reference period to be at least 26...

Around 1,200 jobs are at risk, as well as the future of its UK store estate, including its flagship Knightsbridge location and branches in Manchester, Leeds and Edinburgh. The warning follows newly filed accounts for Harvey Nichols Group, covering the year to March 29, 2025, and prepared on a non-going-concern basis due to uncertainty over its future. Harvey Nichols warns it could collapse with 1,200 jobs at risk Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group has emerged as the leading candidate to take over the troubled retailer. The takeover would be through a pre-pack administration, which could see the business briefly enter administration before being sold, according to Sky News. Mike Ashley recently described Harvey Nichols as being in a “death spiral”. Next had also expressed interest in a takeover, but reports suggest that a competing offer is now unlikely to...

BAE Systems has secured a £135 million contract to maintain and repair Royal Navy torpedoes through June 2029, sustaining 315 skilled jobs across the UK. The agreement covers the Spearfish and Sting Ray weapons used by submarines, surface warships and maritime patrol aircraft.The three-year Torpedo Repair and Maintenance contract runs from July 2026 to June 2029. It will bridge the Royal Navy’s existing support arrangements to Whitehead Mark 2, which will provide a modernised torpedo support solution from 2029 onwards.BAE Systems will directly support 150 engineering and technician jobs under the contract, including 100 in Portsmouth. Another 50 jobs are supported across Edinburgh, Chelmsford and near Glasgow, while a further 165 are sustained through the company’s UK supply chain.The Ministry of Defence said the contract will help ensure Royal Navy personnel have reliable and battle-ready torpedo weapons when required. The weapons support the protection of UK waters and trade routes, anti-submarine warfare operations and Britain’s nuclear deterrent.“Since 2019 we have...

Investment will support over 1,800 high-value manufacturing jobs, delivering on the Prime Minister’s mission for good growth in every postcode. Almost £65m of government funding, matched by industry, will drive cutting-edge zero-emission projects, from self-driving cars to more affordable EVs. Modern Industrial Strategy is bringing business and science together to drive British innovation, boost reindustrialisation and cement the UK’s leading role in advanced manufacturing. Britain’s automotive sector is set to benefit from nearly £130 million of investment to ramp up cutting-edge new zero emission vehicle technologies and support skilled jobs nationwide as the government focuses on delivering good growth in every postcode. Delivered through the UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy, the funding will support over 1,800 jobs - and thousands more in the supply chain - across the UK, helping to put more money in people’s pockets and ensure Britain is better...

Luxury department store Harvey Nichols has warned its future is in jeopardy without a rescue deal.Around 1,200 jobs are at risk, as well as the future of its UK store estate, including its flagship Knightsbridge location and branches in Leeds and Edinburgh.The warning follows newly filed accounts for Harvey Nichols Group, covering the year to March 29, 2025, and prepared on a non-going-concern basis due to uncertainty over its future.Harvey Nichols warns it could collapse with 1,200 jobs at riskMike Ashley's Frasers Group has emerged as the leading candidate to take over the troubled retailer.The takeover would be through a pre-pack administration, which could see the business briefly enter administration before being sold, according to Sky News.Mike Ashley recently described Harvey Nichols as being in a "death spiral".Next had also expressed interest in a takeover, but reports suggest that a competing offer is now unlikely to succeed.The group would acquire Harvey Nichols from long-time owner Sir Dickson Poon.If completed, the...

A meaningful new development has emerged for UK retail workers, with H&M proposing a restructuring that could affect approximately 250 employees across its UK operations.The development was first reported on 6 August 2026, but further reporting over the weekend has provided greater clarity about the scale and locations potentially affected. An HR1 redundancy notification reportedly states that 250 employees are affected, with proposed job losses expected between 2 October and 31 December 2026.The locations identified include Oxford Street, Regent Street and Stratford City in London, as well as Manchester, Cardiff, Glasgow and Birmingham. Oxford Street could be particularly affected, with around 40 positions potentially being removed, although the final number has not yet been confirmed.Importantly, these should currently be described as jobs at risk rather than 250 confirmed redundancies. Employees have entered a consultation process and H&M has said the final outcome has not yet been determined.Why H&M says it is restructuringThe explanation being given to workers is noteworthy.According to...