In an economic landscape hungry for flexibility, the UK staffing industry flexed extraordinary muscle, generating a colossal £189.2 billion in gross volume and placing a vital 1.2 million temporary workers in 2023 alone.
Key Takeaways
- The UK staffing industry turnover reached £152.4 billion in 2023, marking a 6% increase from the previous year
- Temporary staffing spend in the UK grew by 8.2% year-on-year to £36.7 billion in Q4 2023
- The permanent recruitment market in the UK achieved £42.1 billion in fee income during 2023
- In 2023, 1.14 million people were employed as agency temps in the UK, representing 3.7% of total employment
- UK agency workers totalled 911,000 in Q4 2023, down 2% from peak but stable
- Permanent placements by UK agencies reached 850,000 in 2023
- Industrial sector dominated with 32% of UK temp workforce in 2023
- Healthcare staffing accounted for 14% of UK agency billings in 2023
- IT & Tech sector made up 12.5% of permanent placements in UK 2023
- London region hosted 28% of UK staffing agency turnover in 2023
- South East England accounted for 18% of temp placements UK 2023
- Midlands generated 14.5% of staffing revenue UK 2023
- 67% of UK staffing agencies reported skills shortages as top challenge in 2023
- AI adoption in UK recruitment reached 45% of agencies by end-2023
- Remote work placements dropped to 22% of total in UK staffing 2023
The UK staffing industry saw substantial growth across all sectors in 2023 and 2024.
Employment and Agency Workers
- In 2023, 1.14 million people were employed as agency temps in the UK, representing 3.7% of total employment
- UK agency workers totalled 911,000 in Q4 2023, down 2% from peak but stable
- Permanent placements by UK agencies reached 850,000 in 2023
- Female agency workers comprised 52.3% of the UK temp workforce in 2023
- Over-50s made up 12.4% of UK agency temps in 2023, up from 10% in 2020
- BAME workers represented 18.7% of UK staffing agency workforce in 2023
- Average weekly hours for UK temps were 31.2 in 2023
- 28% of UK temps worked in industrial roles in 2023
- UK agency worker pay averaged £12.45 per hour in 2023, up 5.8% YoY
- 15.2% of UK workforce had agency experience in last 5 years as of 2023
- London accounted for 22% of all UK agency temp placements in 2023
- Zero-hour contract agency workers numbered 140,000 in UK 2023
- NHS agency staff totalled 120,000 full-time equivalents in 2023
- Manufacturing agency workers: 250,000 in UK 2023
- Construction temps: 180,000 placed in UK 2023
- Retail agency staff peaked at 300,000 during holidays 2023 UK
- Hospitality temps: 220,000 in UK 2023
- Logistics agency workers: 400,000 in UK 2023
- IT contractors via agencies: 95,000 in UK 2023
- Finance temps: 45,000 placed UK 2023
- Engineering agency staff: 110,000 UK 2023
- Healthcare non-medical temps: 80,000 UK 2023
- Education supply teachers: 40,000 agency-placed UK 2023
- Average tenure of UK agency temps was 8.4 weeks in 2023
- 65% of UK temps transitioned to permanent roles within 12 months in 2023
- Disability representation among UK agency workers was 9.2% in 2023
Employment and Agency Workers Interpretation
Even as agency temping shows its age with a graying and diverse workforce providing the UK's essential flexibility—from nurses to forklift drivers—its fleeting, eight-week romances often blossom into steady employment, proving that sometimes the best way to get a permanent seat at the table is to first pull up a temporary chair.
Industry Sectors
- Industrial sector dominated with 32% of UK temp workforce in 2023
- Healthcare staffing accounted for 14% of UK agency billings in 2023
- IT & Tech sector made up 12.5% of permanent placements in UK 2023
- Logistics & Warehousing temps comprised 22% of total temps UK 2023
- Construction staffing represented 11% of market turnover UK 2023
- Retail & Commercial office staff 18% of temp market UK 2023
- Engineering & Technical 9% of UK staffing fees in 2023
- Financial Services 7.2% of permanent recruitment UK 2023
- Hospitality 6.8% of temp placements UK 2023
- Public Sector non-NHS 5.4% of agency spend UK 2023
- Manufacturing industrial temps 25% share UK 2023
- Education sector agency staff 4.1% of total UK 2023
- Energy & Utilities 3.7% of engineering staffing UK 2023
- Automotive sector temps 2.9% UK market 2023
- Pharmaceuticals & Life Sciences 3.2% staffing turnover UK 2023
- Media & Creative 2.5% of specialist recruitment UK 2023
- Telecoms & Digital 2.8% agency placements UK 2023
- Legal professionals staffing 1.9% of market UK 2023
- Marketing & PR temps 2.1% UK 2023
- Agriculture seasonal workers via agencies 1.5% UK 2023
- Aerospace staffing 1.7% of engineering UK 2023
- Environmental services temps 1.2% market share UK 2023
- Transport excluding logistics 1.4% agency workers UK 2023
Industry Sectors Interpretation
While Britain’s industrial backbone may be propped up by temporary hands, its staffing agencies are busy playing a high-stakes game of sectoral Monopoly, where healthcare holds the expensive Park Lane and agriculture is stuck with the Old Kent Road.
Market Size and Revenue
- The UK staffing industry turnover reached £152.4 billion in 2023, marking a 6% increase from the previous year
- Temporary staffing spend in the UK grew by 8.2% year-on-year to £36.7 billion in Q4 2023
- The permanent recruitment market in the UK achieved £42.1 billion in fee income during 2023
- Overall UK staffing market gross volume stood at £189.2 billion for the full year 2023
- Contract staffing turnover in the UK hit £73.6 billion in 2023, representing 39% of total industry turnover
- UK recruitment agencies placed 1.2 million temporary workers in 2023, contributing to a total agency spend of £152 billion
- The industrial staffing segment generated £28.4 billion in turnover in 2023, up 12% from 2022
- Office professionals staffing market reached £14.2 billion in the UK for 2023
- UK staffing industry profit margins averaged 4.2% in 2023 across top 100 agencies
- Total UK flexible workforce spend was £41.5 billion in Q1 2024, a 4% rise YoY
- The UK staffing market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 5.1% from 2024-2028, reaching £220 billion by 2028
- In 2022, UK staffing turnover was £143.7 billion, with temps comprising 25% of the workforce
- Public sector staffing spend in the UK was £12.8 billion in 2023
- IT staffing in the UK generated £18.9 billion in 2023
- UK recruitment tech spend within staffing hit £1.2 billion in 2023
- Healthcare staffing turnover reached £9.4 billion in the UK in 2023, up 15%
- Engineering staffing market in UK was £7.6 billion in 2023
- Financial services staffing fees totalled £5.3 billion in 2023 UK
- Logistics staffing spend was £22.1 billion in UK 2023
- Legal staffing turnover £3.8 billion in UK 2023
- Marketing staffing market £4.2 billion UK 2023
- Construction staffing £16.7 billion UK 2023
- Hospitality staffing £8.9 billion UK 2023 post-pandemic recovery
- Retail temp staffing £11.3 billion UK 2023 seasonal peak
- Education staffing £6.1 billion UK 2023
- Automotive staffing £2.9 billion UK 2023
- Pharma staffing £4.7 billion UK 2023
- Energy sector staffing £3.5 billion UK 2023 green transition
- Media staffing £1.8 billion UK 2023
- Telecoms staffing £2.4 billion UK 2023
Market Size and Revenue Interpretation
The UK staffing industry, now a £189 billion behemoth, is essentially the nation's professional matchmaker on steroids, deftly placing 1.2 million temps while quietly building a £220 billion future, proving that flexibility is not just a perk but the very engine of the modern economy.
Regional Distribution
- London region hosted 28% of UK staffing agency turnover in 2023
- South East England accounted for 18% of temp placements UK 2023
- Midlands generated 14.5% of staffing revenue UK 2023
- North West 12% of agency workers UK 2023
- Scotland 7.2% market share in staffing UK 2023
- Yorkshire & Humber 9.1% temp billings UK 2023
- South West 6.8% permanent placements UK 2023
- Wales 4.3% of total agency spend UK 2023
- East of England 8.2% industrial staffing UK 2023
- Northern Ireland 1.9% staffing turnover UK 2023
- Greater Manchester 6.4% of national temp workforce UK 2023
- West Midlands industrial hub 9.7% market UK 2023
- East Midlands logistics 7.1% share UK 2023
- North East England 4.8% construction temps UK 2023
- Kent & Sussex 3.2% logistics staffing UK 2023
- Liverpool & Merseyside 3.9% warehousing UK 2023
- Bristol area 2.8% tech staffing UK 2023
- Edinburgh 2.1% financial services UK 2023
- Glasgow industrial 1.7% national UK 2023
- Cardiff 1.4% public sector UK 2023
- Belfast 1.1% manufacturing temps UK 2023
- Cambridge tech cluster 2.3% IT placements UK 2023
- Sheffield advanced manufacturing 1.6% UK 2023
Regional Distribution Interpretation
If London is the flashy head office taking all the credit, then the rest of the UK is the determined, specialized, and slightly put-upon body keeping the entire operation running.
Trends and Challenges
- 67% of UK staffing agencies reported skills shortages as top challenge in 2023
- AI adoption in UK recruitment reached 45% of agencies by end-2023
- Remote work placements dropped to 22% of total in UK staffing 2023
- Gig economy platforms captured 8% of temp market UK 2023
- ESG compliance affected 35% of client contracts in UK staffing 2023
- Brexit-related labour shortages impacted 52% of industrial agencies UK 2023
- Diversity hiring mandates met by 61% of large agencies UK 2023
- Inflation drove 7.2% rise in agency margins UK 2023
- Mental health support offered by 78% of recruiters UK 2023
- Cyber threats rose 29% in staffing firms UK 2023
Trends and Challenges Interpretation
Despite facing a perfect storm of persistent skills gaps, Brexit woes, and rising cyber threats, UK recruiters have cunningly adapted by raising their rates, leaning on AI, and mostly keeping their humanity intact by prioritizing mental health support even as remote opportunities recede.
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