UK worker shortages and hiring difficulty
Four labour-market questions asked of UK businesses every two weeks: are you short of workers, did you struggle to recruit last month, did hourly wages rise, and are staffing costs going up. The last pair is what official statistics cannot give — businesses are asked both what already happened to staffing costs over the past three months and what they expect over the next three, so the table carries a forward-looking line from the firms who set pay, months before it reaches average weekly earnings.
| Indicator | 08-2026 | 07-2026 | 06-2026 | 05-2026 | 04-2026 | 03-2026 | 02-2026 | 01-2026 | 12-2025 | 11-2025 | 10-2025 | 09-2025 | 08-2025 | 07-2025 | 06-2025 | 05-2025 | 04-2025 | 03-2025 | 02-2025 | 01-2025 | 12-2024 | 11-2024 | 10-2024 | 09-2024 | 08-2024 | 07-2024 | 06-2024 | 05-2024 | 04-2024 | 03-2024 | 02-2024 | 01-2024 | 12-2023 | 11-2023 | 10-2023 | 09-2023 | 08-2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worker shortages and recruitment2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Experiencing a shortage of workers20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Had difficulty recruiting employees20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wages and staff costs4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Average hourly wages increased on the month20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Average hourly wages decreased on the month17 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Staffing costs rose over the last three months20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Expect staffing costs to rise over the next three months20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Response to higher employment costs7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to raise prices to absorb employment costs | 28.2 | 29.4 | 31.4 | 29.4 | 28.9 | 30.7 | 31.7 | 23.9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to absorb employment costs within margins | 24.2 | 25 | 25 | 24.5 | 22.7 | 22.9 | 21.5 | 17.6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to reduce the number of employees | 9.8 | 10.1 | 10.4 | 11.5 | 10.6 | 10 | 11.3 | 6.8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to reduce wage increases for other employees | 5.1 | 4.7 | 6.5 | 7.4 | 7.2 | 6.6 | 8.3 | 3.8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to limit overtime hours | 3.5 | 4.8 | 5.3 | 6.4 | 6.2 | 5.3 | 6.2 | 3.8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to reduce spending on investment | 9 | 7.7 | 9 | 10.3 | 9.9 | 8.5 | 11.2 | 3.7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Plan to reduce spending on training | 4.8 | 4.8 | 5.3 | 5.3 | 4.9 | 5 | 5.5 | 2.2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Homeworking5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Using or intending to use homeworking permanently20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Not intending to use homeworking permanently20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Intending to use homeworking permanently (weighted by employment)20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reasons for homeworking5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reasons against homeworking5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Skills in high demand7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High demand: advanced digital skills19 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High demand: basic digital skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High demand: management or leadership skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High demand: manual skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High demand: customer service skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| High demand: transferable skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No skill in high demand20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Skills needing extra training5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Needs training: advanced digital skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Needs training: basic digital skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Needs training: management or leadership skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Needs training: manual skills20 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No skill needs extra training20 |
Latest reading
All businesses stood at 8.4% in Aug 2026. That is −1.1 pp from Jul 2026 and −0.3 pp from a year earlier. The series on this page is monthly and runs from Oct 2021 to Aug 2026. Source: ONS — Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS).
- Latest
- 8.4%
- Aug 2026
- vs previous period
- −1.1 pp
- Jul 2026
- vs a year earlier
- −0.3 pp
About this data
Four labour-market questions asked of UK businesses every two weeks: are you short of workers, did you struggle to recruit last month, did hourly wages rise, and are staffing costs going up. The last pair is what official statistics cannot give — businesses are asked both what already happened to staffing costs over the past three months and what they expect over the next three, so the table carries a forward-looking line from the firms who set pay, months before it reaches average weekly earnings.
Frequently asked questions
- What does this UK worker shortages table measure?
- The table measures the proportion of UK businesses reporting worker shortages, recruitment difficulties, rising wage costs, homeworking arrangements, and specific skill demands from the ONS Business Insights and Conditions Survey (BICS).
- How often is UK business workforce data published?
- The Office for National Statistics publishes these UK workforce and recruitment figures monthly, tracking employer responses across the United Kingdom since 2020.
- Which breakdowns are available for UK hiring difficulties?
- Data are broken down by industry sector, such as manufacturing and construction, and by business size band, ranging from micro-businesses to large enterprises with 250 or more employees.
- How are the survey responses presented?
- All measures are expressed as percentages of UK businesses, capturing both realised staffing pressures and forward-looking employer expectations without seasonal adjustment.
