Employers worldwide continue to find it hard to fill vacancies, and the United Kingdom is no different, with Bloomberg noting that nearly one in five U.K. workers expect to move jobs within the next 12 months — largely driven by demands for higher pay, flexible working arrangements and better job satisfaction.
This appetite for remote and flexible work is reshaping the labour market, making it tougher for employers to both attract and keep top performers unless they adapt to this model.
We want to help U.K. employers better comprehend the shifts affecting the labour market, so we surveyed over 500 British employers to identify which sectors and localities are most affected by The Great Resignation, the hardest skills to source, and the tactics companies are deploying to tackle hiring obstacles.
Eighty-two percent of employers were affected by The Great Resignation over the past year
Our analysis shows which UK cities report the highest share of firms impacted by the “great resignation”; Sheffield in Yorkshire comes out top. Ninety-two percent of the Sheffield employers we polled said The Great Resignation directly affected their organisation.
Plymouth and London follow closely, recording 89% and 87% respectively.
Although those three cities top the ranking for employer disruption from The Great Resignation, the effect is widespread across the country, from Edinburgh in Scotland down to Plymouth in England’s southwest.
The table below lists the top 10 UK cities with the largest share of employers reporting an impact from The Great Resignation.
Cities with the highest % of companies impacted by The Great Resignation
Rank | City | % that said The Great Resignation has impacted their company* |
|---|---|---|
1 | Sheffield | 92% |
2 | Plymouth | 89% |
3 | London | 87% |
4 | Birmingham | 87% |
5 | Brighton | 87% |
6 | Southampton | 86% |
7 | Glasgow | 85% |
8 | Newcastle | 84% |
9 | Bristol | 80% |
10 | Edinburgh | 80% |
*Figures rounded to the nearest %.
Ninety-two percent of employers found it difficult to fill roles over the past year
Partly driven by The Great Resignation, recruiting to address internal skills shortages has become tougher. With demand high, candidates have greater leverage and can be more selective about which roles they accept.
Our study shows 92% of UK employers struggled to fill vacancies in the last year and on average used nine recruiters to try to close skills gaps within their organisations.
The areas UK employers find hardest to hire for are software engineering, HR and data analytics.
Firms struggling to attract candidates with these specialist skills should rethink how they add value via employee benefit schemes and tailor existing packages to match the expectations of the candidates they want to attract.
The table below shows the business areas or skills employers struggled to fill in the past year, ordered from highest to lowest percentage.
The top 12 skills UK companies struggle to recruit for
Rank | Business areas/skills | % of employers that have struggled to fill roles within these areas in the past year* |
|---|---|---|
1 | Software engineering | 27% |
2 | HR | 26% |
3 | Data analytics | 24% |
4 | Customer experience | 23% |
5 | Business operations | 23% |
6 | Executive leadership | 23% |
7 | Marketing | 20% |
8 | Sales | 19% |
9 | Product management | 18% |
10 | Finance | 17% |
11 | Design | 17% |
12 | Legal | 12% |
*Figures rounded to the nearest %.
The survey also examined which roles specific sectors struggle to fill most. Nearly every employer we polled in the U.K. logistics sector (96%) reported difficulty filling at least one role in the past year; fintech firms reported HR vacancies most often (42%) and healthcare firms cited customer experience roles as a problem (25%).
Industry | % that have struggled to fill any job role (past year) | Business area | % that have struggled to hire for business area |
|---|---|---|---|
Fintech | 92% | HR | 42% |
Healthcare | 90% | Customer experience | 25% |
Logistics | 96% | Data analytics | 50% |
Marketing & Advertising | 91% | Marketing | 45% |
Technology | 94% | Software engineering | 58% |
*Figures rounded to the nearest %.
Half of employers provide new training to current staff to manage recruitment difficulties
Securing and retaining top talent remains vital for any scaling business. Historically, companies recruit within countries where they already have a legal entity. Today, a global employment partner such as Remote speeds up, simplifies and secures international hiring with employer of record services.
U.K. employers are finding inventive ways to get around hiring obstacles. Half of those we surveyed (50%) are upskilling existing staff, and more than a third run referral schemes.
Only a third of respondents are actively recruiting beyond their city base. That means over 60% are not taking advantage of a much larger global candidate pool available if they widen their search.
The table below ranks the methods employers have used to tackle recruitment challenges, from most to least adopted.
Ways employers have tried to overcome recruitment struggles | % that said The Great Resignation has impacted their company |
|---|---|
Offering training to existing employees | 50% |
Offering a referral scheme to current employees | 35% |
Recruiting outside of the city where you are based | 33% |
Offering an apprentice program | 33% |
Hiring external recruitment resource | 33% |
Recruiting internationally | 33% |
Proactively sourcing more diverse candidates | 33% |
Outsourcing work to freelancers and contractors | 29% |
Offering bursaries and scholarships in the underskilled areas | 26% |
*Figures rounded to the nearest %.
Hiring internationally can resolve recruitment problems
Hiring internationally to address recruitment shortfalls is a tactic adopted by 33% of the employers we surveyed.
Thirty-three percent of employers recruit internationally to resolve hiring challenges.
The growing popularity of remote work and supporting technologies means employers can now source strong candidates from around the globe. Employers in Britain are no longer limited to professionals based only in the UK.
Large pools of skilled professionals are available and willing to work remotely in time zones close to the UK across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Asynchronous work practices make it feasible for UK employers to open recruitment to Asia, the Americas and the Pacific – a serious strategic advantage for organisations seeking 24–hour sales or customer support coverage.
You may also like
United Kingdom — 5 min
Guide on hiring in the UK
United Kingdom — 1 min
Benefits to offer employees in the UK
United Kingdom — 3 min
How to pay remote workers in the UK
United Kingdom — 6 min
What are labour laws like in the UK?
United Kingdom — 4 min
What is IR35 and what does it mean for your business?
That said, not every employer is choosing international hires to ease The Great Resignation; 8% said it is because they do not sponsor work permits, and another 8% want staff to be able to travel into the office when required.
Keep in mind, U.K. employers can still hire internationally and permit employees to work legally abroad with the support of an employer of record like Remote.
If your operations are compatible with remote work, you do not need to provide relocation packages or arrange visas to onboard overseas talent. Provided candidates have the legal right to work in their home country, Remote helps you hire and pay these team members in line with applicable labour laws through our fully owned local entities.
When recruiting, does your company consider international candidates? | % |
|---|---|
Yes, because we have a remote working policy | 40% |
Yes, because we work with international clients | 36% |
Yes, but they are offered a wage representative of where they live | 22% |
Yes, but only if they have the right to work where we are based | 20% |
No, because we don't sponsor work permits | 8% |
No, because we want to ensure employees can come into the office when needed | 8% |
No, but it is something we are considering | 6% |
No, because we do not have a remote working policy | 5% |
*Figures rounded to the nearest %.
Almost half of employers (46%) are now willing to negotiate salaries due to recruitment pressures
To stay competitive and close skills gaps, nearly half of the UK employers we surveyed reported becoming more open to salary negotiation since The Great Resignation began.
Employers are also more willing to negotiate over areas such as health benefits and annual leave.
This increased readiness to offer a fuller total rewards compensation package can also help retain staff and reduce further churn.
The table below shows the areas where employers have become more open to negotiation since The Great Resignation.
Area of negotiation | % that said they have been more open to negotiating in the last year |
|---|---|
Flexible working policy | 49% |
Salary | 46% |
Remote working policy | 46% |
Annual leave | 43% |
Training benefits | 43% |
Health benefits | 42% |
Home office allowance | 40% |
*Figures rounded to the nearest %.
It is unsurprising that remote working policy is a key negotiable area, given how much remote work increased after the COVID-19 pandemic. For many sectors and firms, flexible hours have become part of standard policy.
How can employers attract top-quality talent to close skills gaps?
Sourcing experienced hires and holding on to current staff is challenging in any market, and becomes even tougher as competition intensifies.
So, where should employers begin when attempting to attract the talent they require?
Be explicit in job advert specifications
Clarity matters for everyone involved in recruitment, especially applicants. Vague or hard-to-access listings cause uncertainty and put candidates off applying.
Set out the role’s responsibilities plainly, including required experience, specific skills and reporting lines. Rather than describing pay as ‘competitive’, we recommend stating a salary band.
Our research found 41% of employers do not always include salary details in job descriptions and almost 50% omit progression opportunities for roles.
Additionally, employers can make job adverts more appealing by listing key benefits and perks. Even values-based benefits such as flexible hours, remote work options and mental health support can make your proposition stand out.
Employers lack transparency in job adverts
41% of employers don’t always put salary information on job descriptions for every role
47% of employers don’t mention progression opportunities for each role
Inaccessible language can create confusion and deter applicants
Review existing benefits offerings
A benefits package is a major factor for candidates when weighing new roles and the value it adds to their lives. If you recruit internationally, ensure benefits are appropriate for the country where the employee lives.
We advise crafting tailored benefits packages that reflect the needs of your workforce, taking into account geography, demographic differences and other local factors.
Beyond benefits, employers should benchmark salaries regularly to ensure pay remains fair and competitive. Our survey found 17% of UK employers do no salary benchmarking, while the 80% who do review pay on average every five months.
Download your Global Benefits Guide and attract top global talent
Remote's global HR experts offer practical guidance for creating a locally relevant, globally compliant benefits programme to help you attract and retain the world's best talent.
Download your 2028Global benefits guide to attract top global talent
Download your 2028Global benefits guide and draw top talent from around the world
Practical guidance from Remote's global HR specialists on designing a locally relevant, globally compliant benefits programme that helps you attract and retain top international talent.
Reconsider return-to-office requirements
Employers insisting on frequent office attendance may want to rethink this position. Since remote work is now standard for many, employees who value that flexibility are unlikely to surrender it — particularly when competitors allow indefinite remote working with few or no conditions.
Adopt inclusive hiring practices
Not only are inclusive hiring practices the right ethical choice, they also prevent firms from unintentionally excluding talent from diverse backgrounds.
As an initial step, train your recruitment team on how explicit and implicit bias can affect hiring, and review live job adverts to ensure they use inclusive language.
Our findings indicate that to address skills shortages, employers must adopt an employee-focused recruitment strategy for 2022 and beyond, adjusting hiring and retention approaches to show the value they bring to current and prospective staff. This could include tailored training for current employees, hiring internationally to broaden the talent pool, or offering flexible working policies to accommodate applicants with caregiving responsibilities.
To help employers fill vacancies, we have gathered specialist advice from Remote’s experts and employment professionals covering every stage of the remote hiring journey — from assessing remote readiness to extending offers and scaling global teams. Our guide to hiring remote employees includes pragmatic tactics and strategies to help employers fill skills gaps with talent sourced internationally.