Permanent placements fell at a slower rate in August, according to the latest ‘Report on Jobs’ from the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC) and KPMG.

The results of the survey from 400 staffing agencies also reveals that temporary billings are on the increase for the first time in nine months.

Although the number of people in permanent positions declined for the third month in a row, the fall was only modest. Some London-based consultancies even reported that clients were delaying hiring due to the Olympics, mirroring data from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo).

Demand for staff continued to increase in August, extending the current period of growth to 35 months. At 52.9, the Report on Jobs Vacancies Index was little changed from 52.8 in July, signalling that the rate of growth remained broadly stable. 

Data showed that demand for temporary staff rose at a slightly faster pace than that for permanent employees during August.

Commenting on the results, Bernard Brown, partner and head of business services at KPMG, says: “With question marks still hanging over the long-term state of the economy, it would be easy to suggest than an upward curve in the jobs markets is nothing more than a blip.

“But the truth is that, in some parts of the country, we are actually seeing a growth in the number of companies recruiting and where there is a decline it is now virtually insignificant.

“It may be slow, but perhaps we are witnessing the first signs of recovery? Temporary placements are also on the up, so the hope must be that employer confidence is returning, that they are looking to the long term and recruiting for growth.”

And REC chief executive Kevin Green adds: “Continued growth in candidate availability and vacancy growth are both good indicators for a recovery, although it’s too soon to say we’re out of the woods yet. 

“We think the fall in people placed into permanent work for the past three months is down to a certain ‘stickiness’ in the recruitment process – employer confidence remains fragile and hiring decisions are taking longer than in boom times, slowing down the process of getting people into jobs.”