One fifth of employers, 19%, plan to increase temporary agency headcount in the medium term — the next four to 12 months — and 12% plan to do so in the next three months, according to the latest JobsOutlook survey of employers released by the Recruitment & Employment Confederation. Engineering/technical, hospitality and drivers are the top three sectors where employers expect a shortage of suitable temporary agency workers.

The survey, which polled 600 employers, also found 22% plan to increase permanent headcount in the short term and medium term. Construction, engineering/technical and health/social care are the three sectors where employers most expect a shortage of candidates for permanent roles.

In attempts to attract candidates after failing with an initial advertisement, 80% of employers re-advertised the role and 24% resorted to lowering the requirements of the role.

Shortages continue to be a major concern amongst employers, with 49% stating they expect a shortage of candidates for permanent roles in the next three months. Additionally, 34% of employers stated they have no spare capacity and would need to take on new staff if demand increased, and 46% have just “a little” capacity and might have to take on staff if their workload grew.

“The short supply of skilled candidates is likely to get worse,” said REC Chief Executive Kevin Green. “Many sectors of the economy are dependent on EU workers. The government has got to design an immigration system which enables businesses to fill the roles they have available and keeps public services up and running. If it becomes harder for EU nationals to work here and employers can’t fill their jobs, they will have little choice but to outsource the work overseas or automate it.”