The UK labour market has been ‘defying gravity’ thanks to the influence of umbrella service companies and the work that interim workers do each and every day, according to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.
Kevin Green, the REC’s chief executive, wasted no time in touting the positive effects that umbrella companies have had on the country’s economy in the wake of the Office of National Statistics’ newest employment figure announcement. Flexible working is here to stay in the UK, suggested Mr Green, giving the country’s status as the most flexible labour market in Europe as one of the primary drivers responsible for the rise in the number of jobs.
Flexibility is absolutely crucial for employers in a tight economy. With so much riding on being able to provide goods and services efficiently and with as minimal cash outlay as possible, business owners are mad for contractors and other interim workers because they cost less to employ than permanent workers. Umbrella companies are some of the best sources of skilled, experienced contractors, and have thus made major contributions to the ability of businesses to contribute to the economic recovery as cost-effectively as possible.
Still, we’re not exactly out of the woods when it comes to making a full economic recovery. With the eurozone crisis still in few swing, it could be quite some time before we return to pre-recession economic levels, and economic experts warn that there could be many more peaks and troughs before any real stability once more emerges.
