New research has found that vacant positions in UK companies are costing the country’s economy an estimated £18bn a year.
The study conducted by online employment website Indeed, found that unfilled roles in British businesses was causing productivity to slow, leading to a multi-billion black hole in the UK’s economy.
The research found that an unintended consequence of the country’s economic success was that there were now fewer suitable candidates able to fill an increasing number of empty positions within British companies.
It reported that that on average there were 683,000 vacancies in the UK job market in the third quarter of 2014, but that nearly half of all jobs advertised by employers remained empty after a month, and 27 per cent are unfilled after three months.
Paul D’Arcy, senior vice-president at Indeed, said: “For job-seekers these are positive conditions, but at £18bn per year, the cost of unfilled roles should serve as a wake-up call to businesses.
“For the business, finding and recruiting the right individual means better productivity and profits, while for the individual, earning an income and spending a salary contributes to economic growth.”
The study found that the sector with the highest number of unfilled vacancies was property and real estate, where the potential cost to the British economy was estimated to be £210m per annum. Property and real estate was followed closely by wholesale and retail at £195m, then professional services at £155m.
The research report concluded that businesses were losing out on production and profits due to unfilled positions, while a lack of personal income was reducing consumption slowing economic growth.
