Julius Probst is the European labour economist at Totaljobs. He did his M.Sc. in Economics with a specialisation in macroeconomics and his PhD in Economic History at Lund University in Sweden. During his PhD, he also worked as a researcher for the European Central Bank.
The UK economy is doing better than forecasters expected at the end of last year. The biggest short-term risks are sticky inflation and higher rates, which could negatively impact the housing market. However, consumer confidence and the business outlook have improved recently, even as recruitment challenges in the form of skills shortages remain.
While the UK’s economic performance has been lacklustre since 2020, the labour market has been quite tight. The pandemic and Brexit have led to a drop in the UK’s workforce, which is affecting all sectors of the economy. The Bank of England recently revised their long-run growth rate forecast down, citing the decline in the labour force as the main reason. The service sector is missing some 350,000 workers due to Brexit and economic inactivity has increased because of long-term health issues, early retirement, and a broken housing market.
Discover how to use pay transparency to attract and retain the Gen Z talent your business needs to succeed in our webinar on 14th May at 10:00am.
The UK job market continues to evolve, shaped by economic shifts and employer hiring strategies. In this edition of the Hiring Trends Index, we analyse the key recruitment patterns of the first quarter of 2025 and look ahead to what’s on the horizon for Q2.
Discover the latest hiring trends and learn how to stay ahead in the current job market in our webinar on 28th May at 10:00am.
Discover 11 key recruitment KPIs that improve efficiency, reduce costs, and enhance the candidate experience.
Explore key recruitment obstacles and unlock proven strategies to secure top talent in a competitive market.
You’ve written a job advert and drawn up a shortlist of candidates, but before you can go ahead with a job offer, you need to go through the interview process. We’re here to help by looking at interview questions to ask candidates for more efficient hiring.
New research from Totaljobs ranked quality of life factors for 15 major UK cities, spotlighting the greatest each area has to offer people looking for the best work-life balance in 2023.
Explore our insights to see which cities come out on top as UK workers look to stretch their pay. Discover how your city compares and get tips for attracting a new talent pool open to relocation.
Learn how to improve the candidate experience and your employer brand by giving unsuccessful applicants valuable insights and actionable feedback.
Below is your step-by-step guide to using the Totaljobs CV Database, a tool which lets you take control of your hiring by easily searching for candidates.
Filter searches by skillset and location, see candidates’ application history, contact the best suited, and set up alerts to find others who fit the brief.
With diversity and the gender-pay gap a key focus of many UK organisations, we have conducted extensive research into how the language of a job ad could impact on diversity.
Using previous academic research from The University of Waterloo and Duke University which outlined a series of male and female gender-coded words, we analysed 76,929 job adverts over a six week period to assess the frequency of gender-coded words in UK recruitment.
Drawing from analysis of 17.4 million job ads across 23 industries, Totaljobs’ latest research reveals the pivotal salary and benefit trends shaping recruitment in 2025. Download our comprehensive UK Salary Trends Report for essential insights into crafting competitive remuneration packages to support talent attraction and retention.
Discover key exit interview questions that can uncover valuable insights into the employee experience and aid future talent retention.
By implementing clear and effective personal development plans, employers can effectively support their employees in reaching their career goals. Here’s how.
With research from Totaljobs showing only 1 in 3 recruiters received high quality applications for their most recent hire, compelling job adverts are more important than ever.
By following our best practice guide you can increase the views, number of applications and relevancy of candidates that your job ad receives.
With findings candidates with the right skills a challenge for 67% of employers, there’s never been a better time to learn how to conduct competency-based interviews. This structured interview style assesses the skills and abilities a candidate can bring to the table, helping you to access a wider pool of talent, hire more objectively, and find the best person for the job.
The most recent ONS estimates of labour market data (13th June 2023) show that wage growth picked up in April 2023. This is set to make the Bank of England’s plans to halve inflation more difficult, making another raise in interest rates likely. The market is still tight; therefore, redundancies and unemployment in the UK remain low. Meanwhile, long-term sickness is at an all-time high.
With 65% of UK workers open to relocating, employers can expand their talent pool by providing support with relocation costs.
Workers from the UK, US and Germany think humans should make the final decision to hire, but still share the excitement about AI’s potential at work and in the recruitment process.
With research from Totaljobs showing only 1 in 3 recruiters received high quality applications for their most recent hire, compelling job adverts are more important than ever.
Uncover effective strategies for managing stress in the workplace and enhancing workforce wellbeing.
AI is rapidly going mainstream, and people are as excited as they are sceptical about its implications in the world of work and beyond. So, who is winning jobseekers’ hearts when it comes to hiring?
Learn how you can implement an employee reward strategy that increases motivation and engagement amongst your workforce.
Frequent salary reviews are vital to keeping employees engaged. Learn how to keep up with industry standards of pay and retain your top performers.
New research from Totaljobs ranked quality of life factors for 15 major UK cities, spotlighting the greatest each area has to offer people looking for the best work-life balance in 2023.
Explore our insights to see which cities come out on top as UK workers look to stretch their pay. Discover how your city compares and get tips for attracting a new talent pool open to relocation.
Uncover the pitfalls of interviewer bias in hiring processes and learn proven strategies to cultivate fairer, more inclusive recruitment practices.
With a third of workers looking for a fresh start this year, successfully managing notice periods is crucial. In this guide we’ll examine what employers need to know about the different types of notice periods, their legal obligations and fixed term contracts.
The cost of living is hampering young people’s career prospects and looks set to deepen long-standing challenges employers have in reaching and attracting entry level talent.
The latest report from Totaljobs, in partnership with Career Ready, shows that due to the rising cost of living, school leavers are confronted with growing concerns around money which threatens their career aspirations. This is having a negative impact on social mobility, with financial factors disproportionately affecting those from lower socio-economic backgrounds. The report offers insight into young people’s limitations and employers’ expectations.
The ONS released its latest estimates of labour market data (16th May 2023), showing a continuing increase in labour participation. This increase is largely driven by students – who are working part-time or looking for part-time employment – as well as self-employed workers. Meanwhile, the number of unemployed for over 12 months has been increasing.
According to our research, over half (54%) of HR leaders say it has become more difficult to hire for entry level roles in the last two years. Meanwhile, youth unemployment is on the rise, young people report lacking adequate career advice and face limited opportunities trying to enter the workforce. So, how can employers bring their entry level opportunities to more young people?
Whether you’ve just started hiring people or you’re a recruiting pro; our free tips, advice and insight will help you adopt best practices and find the best people for the job.
Whether it’s insight and advice from an in-depth report, or a step-by-step Totaljobs user guide, here you can find the resources you need to make recruitment easier.
Read the latest employment figures, with an in-depth focus on the UK skills shortage and how government legislation and employment law could affect your recruitment.
What is employer branding? Your employer brand strategy is vitally important to make sure you can recruit the best people for your business.
Improve your interviewing skills by learning the top questions to ask candidates, how to prepare for and conduct a great interview and how best to give interview feedback.
What is employee engagement? Find out everything you need to know to develop company culture and successfully manage people at work. From staff retention tips to how human resources can improve productivity, support employee wellbeing, and embed diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Find out how to advertise a job vacancy, with free examples and tips to help you get the best response from your job advert.
Your staff retention strategy is fundamental to making sure you keep hold of the best people in your business. Find out what motivates people at work, how you can boost employee engagement, and use training, learning and development to upskill members of staff.
What is human resources? HR is responsible for supporting employees with their mental and physical health and protecting all workers’ rights in the workplace. This covers everything from maternity and paternity leave to resolving workplace conflicts and disputes. In short, we offer tips to help you promote employee wellbeing and effectively manage a team.
