Job recruitment in Scotland increases in March

Job recruitment in Scotland has continued to increase in permanent and temporary posts, according to a survey.

The Royal Bank of Scotland's report showed that permanent positions in March increased at the second quickest rate on record.

The bank's chief economist said this activity was likely to continue, but labour shortages were still an issue.

Engineering and construction recorded the steepest increase in permanent vacancies.

This was followed closely by IT and computing.

RBS chief economist Sebastian Burnside said: "Ongoing labour shortages do raise the question of how strong future increases in permanent placements and temp billings will be, as skill shortages limit firms' ability to fill roles.

"Nevertheless, the competitive and tight labour market plays in favour of job seekers, with starting salary inflation hitting a fresh survey high in March."

The report showed that temporary billings in March had the sharpest growth in five months.

March was also the 16th consecutive month where there was a rise in permanent starting salaries in Scotland.

This rise was the fastest since the survey began in 2003.

The rate of salary inflation across the UK as a whole also hit a fresh series high in March but remained slower than in Scotland.

However, last month the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that average pay rises were failing to keep up with the rise in the cost of living.

Vacancies for permanent staff across Scotland grew for the 14th month - the quickest rate of growth since last October.

The upturn in demand for permanent workers remained quicker than the UK-wide average.

Recruitment consultancies signalled an 18th straight monthly rise in temporary vacancies across Scotland.

The increase was sharp, having accelerated to a three-month high, but was not as steep as the increase for the UK as a whole.