Full-time job postings online on the rise as UK economy attempts to recover

The number of full-time jobs posted online is on the rise as the UK economy attempts to gain traction in the midst of the pandemic, a new report suggests.

However, the latest jobs indicator released by Internet Association also highlights the impact of the lockdown on part-time work.

The new data shows that in December 2020, full-time online job postings rose by 2.5 percent, following a 1.5 percent rise in November 2020 and a 0.3 percent rise in October 2020 – pointing to cautious growth in the full-time jobs market. 

However, the impact of the lockdown introduced late last year on part-time work is also revealed by the new data. November 2020 saw a 23 percent decrease in part-time online job postings, following a small increase of 2 percent in October 2020. With the closure of non-essential retail, hospitality and other sectors reliant on part-time work, this decrease highlights the impact on those sectors and their workers. 

The new data, part of IA’s ‘3i Report’ series, presents monthly insights on the UK job market using data from national and internet-based resources. The report tracks month to month trends in the online job market and presents unique information on hiring, openings and an online income tracker that identifies the amount of additional income being made by people online through, for example, selling products on platforms like Etsy or Ebay. The tracker shows that over a fifth of UK adults are using the internet to earn money online, with 11 percent of those earning more than £250 a month online. 

The new report also shows that over the course of 12 months, full-time online job postings have dropped by almost 10% – in line with the redundancies and job losses seen as a result of the pandemic. And despite the sharp fall during Q4, over the year there has been an 86% increase in part-time job postings. This highlights the current uncertainty for business, with owners unable to plan for the long term with repeated lockdowns and restrictions being introduced.