March sees 8% drop in financial jobs advertised, part of longer-term slump in sector, while average pay is 10% down
Jobs in the City are becoming harder to find, according to a report which found advertised vacancies for financial services jobs had dropped by 8% in March on the previous month.
Pay for the average City worker is also on the decline, indicating a 10% drop from £55,768 down to £50,330.
The month-on-month fall is part of a longer-term slump in employment across the banking, insurance and investment sectors, according to an employment survey by recruiters Morgan McKinley.
In the last year job vacancies have fallen by 57%, while the number of people seeking work in the sector has fallen to 62%.
Spokesman Andrew Evans said there have been some tentative signs of optimism among City employers in recent weeks, but this has yet to feed through to hiring intentions.
"We are beginning to hear some anecdotal indications from City employers that the market is starting to regain some of the confidence that was particularly low at the end of last year," he said.
But with the volume of new job vacancies across the sector falling, compared to a month ago and a year ago, it is clear that the current hiring market does not yet reflect the slightly increased optimism, Evans added. A recent survey by the CBI and accountants PwC supported the view that City firms are feeling more optimistic.
It said there was an unexpected rise in hiring intentions in the first quarter and a further boost in the second quarter should follow a sustained rise in demand for financial services.
Morgan McKinley said its employment monitor, while down in March, also revealed a modest rise over the first quarter, though much of the activity was in the temporary jobs market.
Evans said: "Looking at the permanent and temporary hiring markets separately, there are two slightly differing stories: the permanent jobs market has remained very challenged, while activity in the temporary market has been significantly more active and more stable although there is no actual growth.