Manufacturing Drive Boosts Job Market Recovery in Midlands and North England

A manufacturing drive in the Midlands and the north of England has boosted the regions' labour market recovery, according to job site Adzuna.

The company said average advertised salaries in manufacturing hit a two-year high in July, up 15.9% year-on-year to £29,507 ($48,930, €36,874).

Further signs of positivity in the sector abound, with the number of advertised manufacturing vacancies increasing to 15,912 – almost double the levels in July 2013 (7,645).

The news comes amid recent figures showing that UK manufacturing is in its 14th consecutive month of increased employment alongside strong output levels.

Limited wage growth and business tax cuts have now allowed the UK to be the most efficient manufacturing country in Western Europe.

Specifically, the UK car manufacturing industry has been at the heart of the north's catch up with other areas of the country.

"Whilst the UK has somewhat lost its mantle as the Workshop of the World, there is no denying manufacturing in the UK is finding its feet once more as the bedrock of the British economy," said Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna.

"The north's combination of cheaper running costs, spare labour capacity and cutting-edge innovation is beginning to ensure the economic recovery is felt in the northern regions.

"Regions such as the north east and West Midlands were hit particularly hard by the economic downturn and have a lot of ground to make up. This recovery is only just taking effect in some parts of the country, six years after the financial crisis began."

The research revealed that on a yearly basis, salaries increased for the first time since the recession, with advertised salaries up 0.9% compared with July 2013.

There was also a 2.9% increase month-on-month in July, the fourth consecutive month in which wages have grown.

Total advertised vacancies grew by more than a quarter (27.2%) year-on-year in July.

Advertised vacancies in July stood at 872,629, up 3.9% month-on-month from 839,950 in June.

Manufacturing helped drive this month's job surge as advertised vacancies in the industry doubled year-on-year in July to 15,912.