The number of people placed in permanent jobs by recruitment consultancies across the UK continued to rise markedly in April, but expansion pace was still the weakest so far this year, according to the latest Report on Jobs from IHS Markit and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.

In contrast, the report found temp billings expanded at slightly quicker pace after moderating to a 13-month low in March. But although the growth of temporary billings was sharp overall, the pace of expansion remained softer than those seen through the majority of 2017.

Starting salaries for permanent workers continued to rise sharply in April, with the rate of inflation picking up from March. Concurrently, rates of pay for contract/temporary staff rose to the greatest extent for two years.

The Midlands registered the strongest rise in permanent staff appointments in April, while the weakest was seen in London. Scotland continued to record the steepest increase in temp billings when comparing all five monitored UK regions, while the North of England recorded the slowest.

“For employers, the challenge is to stay ahead of the competition to maintain and enhance your workforce,” said Tom Hadley, REC director of policy. “This is about more than just pay, it is about providing progression opportunities and a positive workplace culture. As recruitment gets harder the only solution for employers is to get better at attracting and retaining the right skills and staff.”

Private-sector demand for staff rose in April, and demand was also higher in the public sector.

Most sectors saw more vacancies for permanent staff during April, but the most growth occurred in the engineering and IT & computing sectors. The only category to see lower demand for permanent workers was retail.

Blue collar and engineering were the most in-demand categories for temporary workers during April.