The latest UK Job Market Report by job matching platform Adzuna has seen the UK jobs market showing further signs of cooling in September as advertised vacancies dropped -2.4 per cent month-on-month to 826,205 jobs, echoing ONS data that highlights a 39th consecutive period of vacancy decline.
This means open roles are now -4.1 per cent lower than a year ago, and alarmingly, September records the lowest vacancy level this year, suggesting employers are continuing to scale back hiring plans after a strong start to the year. In addition to broader economic headwinds, many UK employers appear to be pausing recruitment activity as they await November’s Budget announcement.
While pay growth slows, pay packets continue to hold up. The average advertised salary rose slightly to £42,417 in September, a +0.12 per cent month-on-month lift and +8.8 per cent up year-on-year. While wage growth has eased from the rapid pace of late 2023, annual pay increases continue to outpace inflation (3.8 per cent) and remain supported by April’s National Minimum Wage rise. Annual public sector wage growth now outstrips the private sector, up +6.0 per cent compared to +4.4 per cent, respectively.
Competition for roles is heating up. There are now over two jobseekers for every vacancy (2.06) – the highest ratio since early 2024 – as unemployment remains up at 4.8 per cent. The North East continues to be the toughest region for jobseekers, with more than three people competing per role, followed by Northern Ireland (3.32) and the West Midlands (3.2).
However, Adzuna have also found this year’s Christmas hiring remaining resilient, with 20,284 advertised Christmas jobs so far, accounting for 2.54 per cent of all UK jobs – similar to last year’s level (2.57 per cent), with Retail (+8.1 per cent) and Logistics & Warehouse jobs (+3.0 per cent) experiencing a clear uptick in hiring ahead of the festive season. The biggest employers offering Christmas jobs include Royal Mail (20,000), Amazon (15,000+ openings), Sainsbury’s (17,000), and Marks & Spencer (4,671). Healthcare remains under pressure, with vacancies down -5.4 per cent month-on-month and -22 per cent year-on-year, extending months of steady decline.
Salary transparency also continued to decline. Just 43.5 per cent of UK job ads last month included pay details, down from 43.9 per cent in August and 45.0 per cent in July, reversing the modest gains made earlier in the summer. This means more than half (56.5 per cent) of all listings still omit salary information – a trend that’s persisted for much of 2025 despite rising calls for greater clarity.
Hiring activity was mixed in September, with modest gains in a handful of frontline sectors offset by wider slowdowns elsewhere. Retail led the growth, with vacancies up +8.1 per cent month-on-month, supported by early seasonal hiring. Manufacturing (+3.7 per cent) and Logistics & Warehouse (+3.0 per cent) also saw solid increases, suggesting continued resilience in supply chain and production roles.
Several major sectors saw further declines in September. Consultancy roles led the fall (-9.9 per cent), followed by PR, Advertising & Marketing (-7.8 per cent), and Legal (-5.5 per cent). Healthcare & Nursing vacancies dropped -5.4 per cent month-on-month and are now -22.3 per cent lower year-on-year, highlighting continued challenges.
On the pay side, IT (+11.9 per cent), Teaching (+10.1 per cent), Manufacturing (+9.4 per cent), Retail (+9.0 per cent), Trade & Construction (+9.0 per cent) and PR, Advertising & Marketing (+8.2 per cent)saw modest annual rises, while only two sectors Charity & Voluntary (-2.4 per cent) and Travel (-1.8 per cent) posted small annual salary declines.
To highlight, there were a handful of sectors that saw simultaneous monthly growth in both hiring and pay in September, including Logistics & Warehouse (+3.0 per cent vacancies; +1.4 per cent salaries), Travel (+1.1 per cent; +1.0 per cent), and HR & Recruitment (+0.5 per cent, +0.7 per cent).
For early-career workers, conditions remain challenging. Graduate job ads fell -2.9 per cent month-on-month to 13,754 jobs in September, leaving them -39.9 per cent lower year-on-year, just slightly above during the Covid-19 pandemic. Average graduate pay held broadly steady at £25,906, down marginally -0.1 per cent month-on-month, but still +4.7 per cent higher than a year ago.
When it comes to hiring speed, Admin (31.3) and Legal (31.6) roles filled faster than the national average of 36.5 days, while hiring took the longest in Healthcare & Nursing (40.0 days), Energy, Oil & Gas (39.9) and Social Work (39.9), and Teaching (39.4).
Andrew Hunter, co-founder of job matching platform Adzuna, said: “September’s figures reflect a job market that’s steady but cautious.
“For jobseekers, this all combines to bring more competition and a tougher fight for each role,” he said. “In a highly competitive job market, timing is everything. Jobseekers who submit applications promptly and tailor them precisely are more likely to succeed. While job search can be demanding and stressful, many free AI tools, such as Adzuna’s brand-new AI search and job matching agent ApplyIQ, can streamline the process and take on much of the heavy lifting.”
