The British Retail Consortium (BRC)-Bond Pearce Retail Employment Monitor Q4 2010 has reported that in the last quarter of 2010, there was the equivalent of 3,900 more full-time jobs in UK retail than the same quarter a year earlier, an increase of 0.6 per cent. Comparing the three months to December with the same period the previous year, the number of outlets grew by 5.9 per cent, an additional 943 shops.
Comparing just December with the same month in 2009, the number of hours worked by retail employees fell by 1.5 per cent as a result of tough trading conditions. This was equivalent to a fall of around 10,300 full time jobs year-on-year. The number of outlets grew by 6.0 per cent compared with the same month in 2009.
Stephen Robertson, British Retail Consortium Director General, said: “Against an economy-wide background of rising unemployment, retail job numbers were up modestly by 0.6 per cent on the same quarter in 2009. Almost two thirds of retailers say they will add to or maintain job numbers over the next three months and new stores are still being opened. With youth unemployment a major concern, retailers’ largely positive outlook is good news for young jobseekers since a third of retail staff are under 25.”
Source: British Retail Consortium
