“Monitoring the pulse of the City Jobs Market”

City Hiring maintains upward curve

London Employment Monitor October 2014 highlights:

•  Salaries increased by 18% on average for those securing new jobs in October 2014*
•  Year-on-year figures show a 2% increase in City job opportunities
•  Number of professionals actively seeking a new role remains steady

City recruitment has bounced back from the credit crunch as hiring levels maintain upward curve

The October 2014 London Employment Monitor registered a 2% increase in job availability with 7,410 roles, compared to 7,245 in October 2013. Month-on-month figures show a dip of 6% in October 2014 compared to September 2014 – when 7,905 vacancies were available.

Professionals looking for new career opportunities increased to 8,945 in October 2014 from 8,837 in September 2014, signifying a 1% increase. At the same time, the number of professionals pursuing new roles registered a 4% fall year-on-year, from 9,236 in October 2013 to 8,495 in October 2014.

Hakan Enver, Operations Director, Morgan McKinley Financial Services, commented:

“October has been another positive month with employment in the City continuing to remain strong. In fact, according to a recent survey in City A.M., London employs more workers than ever in finance and professional services. A total of 703,900 are employed and that figure is expected to rise to 714,500 by the end of the year. Similarly reports from the CBI show that Britain’s Financial Services sector is growing at the fastest rate since before the financial crisis. This correlates with the data from this month’s monitor which has continued to register an upward growth curve.”

“The positive trend in hiring across the City paints a rosy picture as the capital carries on strengthening, which is great news considering how hard the City was hit during the global financial crisis.According to a survey of 200,000 people worldwide by Boston Consulting Group, London is officially the most desirable city in the world to work. With the economy outperforming other European member states, this has led to London reaching a new peak in job opportunities within the financial services sector.”

“On the job seeking front, numbers have remained steady, with last month reporting a slight increase of 1% compared to September 2014. October is typically a time when many professionals question their intention to move to another organisation, particularly if they run the risk of walking away from a full year’s bonus. Despite the timing, many businesses will be prepared to offer some form of full year prorated guarantee to entice new talent on board.”

“Despite a generally positive picture, there are, as ever, two sides to the coin, with reports showing the UK pace of economic growth slowing down. This is a result of a sluggish mortgage market, price inflation easing, and the UK being held back by slow demand in the Eurozone.”

Salaries up by 18% with compliance professionals demanding higher salaries due to talent war

The average salary increase for those securing new jobs in October 2014 was 18%, compared to 19% in September 2014.

Enver continued:
“Once again, our data indicates healthy salary increases for those moving to new opportunities. If you are fortunate enough however, to work within Compliance, the increase can be even more substantial. Our recently published 2014/15 salary guide shows that the market is extremely attractive for compliance professionals, with average salaries having increased by 20-30% across most areas. The Compliance market continues to be extremely active across all areas of control room, advisory (all asset classes), AML/KYC and monitoring.”

“Two major reasons for this increased demand are, the response to heavy fines implemented by regulatory bodies for internal compliance failings, and hiring as a preventative measure against any future potential penalties. Hiring managers are prepared to offer premium salaries to attract professionals with extremely strong technical knowledge.”

Financial services jobs new to the market October ‘14

Professionals seeking new roles, both in and out of employment October ‘14

Chart 3: Average change in salary each month – October ’14

Chart 4: Average Salaries and Average Bonuses for Compliance Professionals in Investment Banking Financial Services, London – October ’14