Image caption The UK jobs market has remained resilient despite the economy being in a recession

The number of people being placed in jobs in the UK fell for the second straight month in July, although the pace of decline slowed, a study showed.

The survey by Recruitment and Employment Confederation and KPMG said there was a "high degree of uncertainty" among employers.

It added that firms were taking longer to decide on hiring, slowing down recruitment.

It said the Olympics may have also impacted hiring during the month.

However, the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) said that while there had been a fall in number of appointments, job vacancies had actually increased.

"What must be emphasised, though, is that employers are still hiring," Kevin Green, chief executive of REC, said in a statement.

"In fact, the number of vacancies has grown, but fragile confidence means they are taking longer to make decisions about appointments and the whole process of recruiting is slowing down."

'Gold medal'

Data released last month showed that unemployment rate in the UK fell to 8.1% in the three months to May, down from 8.3% in the previous quarter.

The number of people out of work fell by 65,000 to 2.58 million, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The REC said that the country's labour market had been resilient, despite the slowdown in the economy.

"The UK's labour market deserves a gold medal for its incredible performance in the face of adversity so far this year," said REC's Mr Green

"In the last few months, it has defied gravity as unemployment has fallen and jobs grew even while the economy slipped back into recession."

However, he warned that "this run might be coming to an end" amid a slowdown in both permanent and temporary hiring.