UK job vacancies fall to lowest level since spring 2021

Fewer employers are starting new roles, and that is an early warning that confidence is fading before unemployment fully worsens. The Office for National Statistics said UK vacancies fell by 19,000, or 2.6%, in its early estimate for March to May 2026, taking the total to 707,000, the lowest level since February to April 2021.

The decline has been persistent rather than a one-off. The ONS said vacancies were down 54,000, or 7.1%, in February to April 2026 from a year earlier, while earlier releases showed 705,000 vacancies in February to April and 711,000 in January to March, both the weakest readings since spring 2021. That means there were fewer openings across the UK labour market quarter after quarter, leaving jobseekers competing for a shrinking pool of roles.

The softening is showing up in the balance between people looking for work and jobs available. There were 2.5 unemployed people per vacancy in January to March 2026, unchanged from the previous quarter but well above 1.8 a year earlier. That shift matters because it signals a less tight labour market, with more pressure on workers trying to move roles and fewer options for people trying to get started in entry-level jobs.

The weakness is broad, but some parts of the market are cooling faster than others. The ONS said vacancies fell in 10 of 18 industry sectors in the March to May early estimate, with the largest quarterly drop in professional services. Other reporting based on the figures pointed to lower-paying sectors, including retail and hospitality, and to smaller employers as areas where hiring was being pared back first. Vacancies were also down in 4 of the 5 employment size bands, with the biggest fall among firms with 1 to 9 employees.

The wider labour market has also loosened. Payrolled employees fell by 138,000, or 0.5%, between April 2025 and April 2026. The early estimate for May 2026 put payrolled employment at 30.3 million, up 2,000 on the month but down 119,000 from a year earlier. The UK workforce jobs total stood at 36.8 million in March 2026, and the employment rate for people aged 16 to 64 was 75.0% in February to April 2026. Together, the figures suggest employers are becoming more cautious about recruitment, a trend that can slow wage growth, reduce job mobility and make hiring harder well before the headline unemployment rate turns sharply higher.