The last few months have been challenging for businesses of all sizes, and this is no different for those operating in property and construction. In the initial lockdown period, many development sites and schemes shut down temporarily, but a lot of these have now reopened with new social distancing measures in place. This should see a continued rise in demand for niche skill sets, particularly across technical, design and commercial job families which are still skills-short areas of the market.At Michael Page Property and Construction, we work closely with businesses across the UK searching for skilled professionals and individuals seeking new opportunities. Watch our new market update video with Michael Lyons, Operating Director at Michael Page as he reveals the latest hiring trends in the sector.You can view the full video outlining these trends by clicking above.Key developments that are shaping the recovery of the sectorWith the recently announced stamp duty holiday, it is expected that the UK will see an increased demand for housing. In addition to this, modular builds have seen an upturn in fortunes as all manufacturing and build stages can be carried out in an off-site and controlled environment. Looking at the social housing sector, throughout Q2 there was strong activity in areas such as emergency repairs and maintenance, health and safety, and compliance – and we expect this to continue, particularly after the building safety recommendations of the Hackett Report. Change and transformation projects have also come to the fore as organisations have utilised this period of inactivity to assess current systems and procedures, as they prepare for new ways of working.The government has also announced major investment into housing, particularly around carbon reduction programmes, over the next five years. In commercial property development, we have seen an increased demand for temporary resource in the central government and local authority sectors. Pockets of the development sector have remained buoyant, linked to large-scale city centre schemes, but also with regard to industrial and logistics construction projects. How has remote working impacted property and construction? Virtual working has had a very positive impact on the sector, not only in helping facilitate flexible working in many businesses, but also in the way in which they recruit. Video technology, which was somewhat avoided prior to the global health pandemic, has been key for many businesses’ recruitment processes. This extends from inception to completion and is also used for the remote onboarding of new starters. In turn, this switch has opened up the talent pool for businesses to access people across geographical areas. While it has been a very tough period for the sector, several markets have performed ahead of expectations and demonstrated a high level of resilience. It is hoped that as lockdown measures continue to ease, combined with strong government investment, there will be an upturn in performance across the sector.Whether you are looking for talent or exploring your options, your recruitment partner will be able to keep you in the loop with how the market is changing and support you in navigating this new recruitment landscape. If you would like to discuss the market insights we can provide in more detail, please get in touch. Alternatively, explore our Page Insights capabilities and request a bespoke report.Michael LyonsOperating Director, Michael Page Property and Construction Get in touchIf you are an employer and would like to talk to us about your current recruitment needs, fill in the form below and one of our consultants will call you back.
