Despite the unnerving reports that we are slipping ever closer towards recession, there is positive news within our sector specifically.
Construction is resilient and there is an abundance of fantastic opportunities across a range of projects with a range of clients across the UK.
Construction Enquirer reports that construction activity continued to grow in September despite strong headwinds in the wider economy. This marked a third consecutive month of growth in the market.
Both building and facilities maintenance saw an upcurve in new work with order books looking strong, showing that confidence remains high in the sector, which is bucking the trend in comparison to other markets.
The effects of this positive news are absolutely in play – recruitment in the sector is robust, we are witnessing a busy and optimistic time.
At large, across the UK permanent placements are falling, and temp placements stagnating, which is down to a mixture between employer and employee caution at the looming recession. But this is far from the case currently in our market, and in fact, we run the risk of causing a premature recession for the industry through reacting with undue cautiousness taken off the back of news coming from sectors around us.
It is doubtless that the economy will have a major part to play in how 2023 unfolds, the OBR (Office for Budget Responsibility) have of course predicted a recession, but off the back of the autumn statement we can take some solace in the fact that any economic downturn will not be as bad as the OBR expects.
Careful decision making is advised, as always, but undue cautiousness within the construction sector at the moment is not in sync with what is happening in the market itself, and in fact could even cause premature harm to the sector if people react too strongly to the media reporting.