Hiring for permanent staff in the UK showed signs of stabilising in February, according to a monthly survey by KPMG UK and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC).
“Despite a marginal fall in hiring last month, the jobs market was showing its strongest signs of improvement in three years, with hiring at its closest point to turning positive,” Jon Holt, group CEO and senior partner at KPMG UK, said in the UK Report on Jobs.
The Permanent Placements Index — the report’s main hiring measure — rose from 46.9 in January to 49.2 in February, edging closer to the neutral level of 50. Index readings below 50 signal a decline in the number of staff appointments compared with the previous month. The February index reading is the highest since March 2023. September 2022 was the last time the hiring index was above 50.
While some recruiters in the latest survey mentioned that overall hiring conditions remained subdued, others noted a relative improvement in employers’ willingness to recruit new staff, the report said.
The number of job opportunities across the UK continued to decrease in February, the 28th consecutive month of declines. However, the rate of contraction was the lowest since May 2025, the report said.
Despite an improved job outlook, starting salary growth fell last month after hitting a 17-month high in January.
The UK requires “stability for sustained growth, and yet again businesses are facing into unexpected economic shocks because of global events out of their control”, Holt said.
The report is compiled from the responses of 400 UK recruitment and employment consultancies.
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