Permanent staff hires in Scotland improved in January for the first time in four months, but demand for temp staff fell for the first time in 28 months, according to the Royal Bank of Scotland’s “Report on Jobs” report released Wednesday. The data is comparable to the KPMG and REC Report on Jobs. Both are produced by S&P Global.

Scotland went against the broader UK trend in permanent placements, which recorded a fourth successive monthly decline. Also, the decline in temp billings in Scotland contrasted with the modest upturn across the UK as a whole.

“The bounce-back in permanent staff hiring across Scotland was a positive start to 2023 after having declined throughout the last quarter of 2022,” said Sebastian Burnside, chief economist at Royal Bank of Scotland. “The data indicates a shift in the market with a preference for permanent staff. However, lingering concerns over the economic outlook and intense cost pressures at firms indicate that recruitment decisions may be under more pressure in the months ahead.”

The upturn in permanent staff hires was attributed to improved client demand and new projects.

Meanwhile, Scottish temp billings fell in January, declining at a quicker pace than in the preceding survey and at their fastest since June 2020. Recruiters linked the downturn to relatively subdued market conditions and weaker-than-expected activity levels at clients.

The report also noted that permanent staff availability fell in January, extending a trend which has been observed since February 2021.

Permanent starting salaries in Scotland continued to rise sharply in January.