‘No end in sight’ to finance staff shortages

The staff shortages in the UK's financial services sector - which have been exacerbated by problems in recruiting and retaining overseas talent - are likely to persist throughout 2022, according to new research.

David Sapsted

14 March 2022

Attraction to relocate drops leaving a recruitment gap in the market

With the sector heavily dependent on overseas skills, the '2022: Adapting to the New Normal' report says that the international recruitment problems caused by the pandemic and Brexit are still "unfolding".According to the industry's trade body, TheCityUK, 19.5 per cent of staff across UK-based financial services are from abroad, with the figure rising to 42 per cent in fintech.The new research from Talent.com shows that last year, what it describes as 'tightening' in the financial services labour market - the difference between the number of vacancies and the number of professionals available for work - increased by 40 per cent.Noura Dadzie, vice-president of UK & international markets sales at Talent.com, said: “While financial services has experienced a tight labour market in the past, our latest data highlights just how much pressure the industry’s employment landscape has been put under since the pandemic.

Rising of jobs continues to grow

"With rising vacancy levels, decreasing unemployment figures and the growing skills gap, talent pools have been squeezed significantly. What we’re seeing now is more pressure on hiring and recruitment teams which is only going to exacerbate the need to direct recruitment expenditure into the right channels that will ensure companies vacancies are seen by the right people.”Ms Dadzie added that recruitment in the financial services sector remained buoyant and showed no signs of slowing down."We predict that as we approach the second half of 2022, we are very likely to see a rise year-on-year in both job adverts and hires. Those that take a proactive hiring approach will stay ahead of the competition during these unprecedented circumstances."

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A recent report from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) showed that almost three-quarters of financial services companies were actively recruiting new staff to tackle the skills shortage gap.Last autumn, the nation's financial sector called on the government to ease visa requirements to enable overseas staff to work for up to six months in the UK, in a bid to maintain global competitiveness.

The hybrid scheme could help recruit and retain staff

The 'Global Talent Mobility' report from TheCityUK, City of London Corporation and consultants EY said such a 'hybrid' scheme, which would avoid the bureaucratic requirements and costs of full visas, would help overcome the "practical challenges" being faced by banks, fintech and insurers in hiring the right talent."Without it, we will not be able to innovate in key growth areas like fintech or green finance, nor build out our international trading networks," said Miles Celic, CEO of TheCityUK.The government, however, has yet to agree to such a scheme.