The public sector faces up to the credit crunch
The last couple of months suggest that the credit crunch is finally beginning to impact upon the public sector, albeit gradually, and only across certain specialisms. Central government remains very busy and vacancies in central government agencies are still plentiful, however local authority is now beginning to feel the pinch. Recruitment into the public sector has traditionally been very steady – workloads are not affected to nearly the same extent as the private sector and so allow for a degree of stability, yet low salaries have thwarted any attempt to recruit permanently on a widespread scale.
Property and planning vacancies are beginning to slow down
One of the changes worth noting this year however has been the influx of solicitors from private practice wishing to work in the public sector. These have largely been property lawyers greatly affected by the crunch in the housing market and unable to find work in the private sector have hoped for better luck in a local authority. While the work and skills are transferable to a degree, such a move has been made considerably harder recently. Unlike we reported at the beginning of 2008, there is less development work going on now, and property and planning vacancies are beginning to slow down in the public sector. Twelve months ago, property and planning was the most active area in the temporary market, yet there has been a real decline in the last few months. With this set to continue, many public sector property lawyers are beginning to struggle to find work and may be in for a difficult second half of the year.
While this is hardly worth celebrating if you’re looking for work, it may come as a windfall for employers. Traditionally, the public sector has struggled to fill permanent vacancies thanks to the uncompetitive salaries on offer, but there’s nothing like an economic downturn to make people reconsider their position. We are seeing a growing number of professional locums reconsidering their lifestyle as they face up to the potential of not securing a long-term temporary position. As such, they are weighing up the benefits of a drop in salary for the security of a full-time permanent position. Whether these same lawyers will stay in a lower paid job when the market picks back up is anyone’s guess, but while the economy continues at this pace, the public sector looks set to benefit.
We welcome your comments on this article.
Comments are moderated and may not appear immediately.