Employers are struggling to fill jobs as demand for staff rises and EU workers leave the UK in their droves with Brexit looming, according to a new study.

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) found that while demand for permanent staff continues to grow and is the strongest in almost two years, its research among 400 recruitment agencies recorded that the number of candidates has plummeted.

The sectors with the strongest demand for permanent staff in May included the NHS and engineering, while the slowest increase in demand was for construction workers.

Demand for temporary staff was also highest in the nursing, medical and care sectors.

Tom Hadley, REC's director of policy, said the challenges facing the next government are stark, adding: "Official data shows unemployment has dropped to the lowest level since 1975, and EU citizens are leaving the UK in droves.


"Employers seeking to fill vacancies are running out of options. Skill shortages are causing headaches in many sectors.

"The NHS, for example, is becoming increasingly reliant on short-term cover to fill gaps in hospital rotas because there aren't enough nurses to take permanent roles.

Brexit 'making it harder' to fill jobs

"Meanwhile, the shortage of people with cybersecurity skills is a particular concern in many businesses.

"Whichever party forms the next government must focus on improving the employability of our young people and boosting inclusion for under-represented groups.

"Alongside this, these figures clearly show that in many sectors we need more, not fewer, people so that businesses can grow and public services continue to deliver."

Last month, official figures from the Office of National Statistics showed net migration fell below a quarter of a million in 2016 for the first time in almost three years.

The overall measure, the difference between the number of people arriving and leaving the country, was estimated to be 248,000 representing a "statistically significant" fall of 84,000 compared to 2015, the ONS said.

Statisticians said the change in long-term international net migration - covering people coming to and leaving the country for at least 12 months - was driven by a rise in emigration, which was up 40,000 on 2015.

This was comprised mainly of EU citizens, with the number leaving at an estimated 117,000 - a rise of 31,000 on the previous year.